European Investment Fund Strengthens Alternative Lending Platform Under Regional Resilience Fund with Investment in Qualitas Energy

European Investment Fund Strengthens Alternative Lending Platform Under Regional Resilience Fund with Investment in Qualitas Energy

(IN BRIEF) The European Investment Fund has committed €62 million to the Qualitas Energy Credit Fund under the Alternative Lending Instrument for Sustainable Development within Spain’s Regional Resilience Fund, using NextGenerationEU resources. Managed by Qualitas Energy, the fund provides debt financing for renewable energy infrastructure projects across wind, solar, hydro, battery storage and renewable natural gas sectors. The investment will expand non-bank financing solutions for SMEs and mid-caps developing energy transition projects and help address financing gaps in a challenging economic environment. The Regional Resilience Fund channels capital from Spain’s Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan to support sustainable investment nationwide, with the EIB Group responsible for implementation. The transaction represents the twelfth EIF investment under this instrument and highlights the growing importance of private credit in strengthening Europe’s energy security and advancing climate goals.

(PRESS RELEASE) MADRID, 12-Feb-2026 — /EuropaWire/ — European Investment Fund has approved a €62 million commitment to the Qualitas Energy Credit Fund under the Alternative Lending Instrument for Sustainable Development of Spain’s Regional Resilience Fund. The investment is backed by NextGenerationEU resources and is designed to widen non-bank financing options for small and medium-sized enterprises and mid-caps developing energy transition and sustainability projects.

The Qualitas Energy Credit Fund is managed by Qualitas Energy, an international investment and asset management platform focused on renewable energy, the broader energy transition and sustainable infrastructure. The fund provides flexible debt financing for renewable infrastructure projects, supporting both greenfield developments and brownfield assets across sectors including wind, solar, hydro, battery energy storage systems and renewable natural gas.

To date, the fund has deployed five investments totalling approximately €170 million, building a diversified portfolio of renewable energy infrastructure debt transactions spanning Spain, Poland, Germany and Italy. The new EIF commitment will further strengthen the vehicle’s capacity to address financing gaps in a challenging macroeconomic environment and accelerate the rollout of new renewable capacity.

The transaction marks the twelfth investment made by the EIF through the Alternative Lending Instrument for Sustainable Development, one of two financing tools launched under the Regional Resilience Fund. The fund channels capital from Spain’s Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan — part of the EU’s NextGenerationEU programme — to stimulate environmental and social investment across Spain’s autonomous communities. Oversight is provided by Spain’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Enterprise, while the European Investment Bank Group manages and implements the programme.

By supporting private credit strategies focused on renewable infrastructure, the operation aims to enhance SME and mid-cap access to alternative sources of capital, strengthen Europe’s energy security and resilience, and contribute to EU climate objectives. The initiative underscores the growing role of private debt financing in scaling renewable energy infrastructure and supporting the transition to a more secure and competitive European energy system.

Background information

About the European Investment Fund

The European Investment Fund (EIF), part of the EIB Group, designs venture and growth capital, guarantees and microfinance instruments that absorb part of the risk that is taken by a wide range of selected financial intermediaries when they finance businesses, individuals and infrastructure projects, thereby improving access to finance in Europe. This encourages funds to invest, banks to lend and private investment to be crowded in to boost innovation, competitiveness and climate action, as well as improve sustainability, social impact and skills.

About the Regional Resilience Fund

The Regional Resilience Fund (FRA) was created to facilitate access to NextGenerationEU loans from the Spanish Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan for the autonomous communities, with the aim of boosting investments and developing projects in eight priority areas: social and affordable housing; urban renewal; transport and sustainable tourism; the energy transition; water and waste management; the care economy; research, development and innovation; and the competitiveness of industry and SMEs.

The fund is led by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Enterprise, which takes input from the autonomous communities and cities for investment decision-making and looks to the EIB Group as a strategic management partner.

The EIB Group and the Spanish Ministry of Economy, Trade and Enterprise have launched the following financial instruments under the Regional Resilience Fund:

• a direct financing mechanism, to co-finance EIB-supported operations in sectors like renewable energy, clean transport and sustainable infrastructure.
• an intermediated mechanism managed by financial intermediaries selected by the EIB, to support projects in urban development and sustainable tourism.
• two instruments intermediated by the European Investment Fund that will facilitate SME financing for innovation, sustainability and competitiveness.

About Qualitas Energy

Qualitas Energy is a leading global investment and management platform with a dual focus on both funding and developing renewable energy, energy transition, and sustainable infrastructure. Since 2006, the Qualitas Energy team has dedicated over €14 billion to the energy transition worldwide.

These investments have been deployed through six vehicles: Fotowatio / FRV, Vela Energy, Qualitas Energy III, Qualitas Energy IV, Qualitas Energy V, and Qualitas Energy Credit Fund. Qualitas Energy’s existing portfolio currently comprises 11 GW of operational and development-stage renewable energy assets – including solar PV, concentrated solar power (CSP), wind, energy storage, hydroelectric power, and renewable natural gas – across Spain, Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy, Poland, Chile, and the United States.

Over the past five years, Qualitas Energy has generated enough energy to supply 1.2 million homes and has successfully avoided the emission of 1 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent. The Qualitas Energy team consists of more than 550 professionals across fifteen offices in Madrid, Berlin, London, Milan, Hamburg, Wiesbaden, Trier, Cologne, Stuttgart, Warsaw, Wroclaw, Santiago, Durham, Bristol, and Edinburgh. Please visit www.qualitasenergy.com for further information.

Press contacts

Maite Cordero
EIBG Press
m.corderomunoz@eib.org
+34 606 66 82 62
www.eib.org/press

press@eib.org
+352 4379 21000
www.eib.org/press

Daniel Yebra
Ministry of Economy
prensa@economia.gob.es
+ 34 91 603 79 18

Henar Hernández
Qualitas Energy – Head of Communications
henar.hernandez@qenergy.com
+34 697 11 68 72

Headland
qualitas@headlandconsultancy.com
+44 7435 546304 / +44 7311 369929

SOURCE: European Investment Fund