InvestEU: EIF and Denmark’s Export and Investment Fund join forces to support green transition of Danish businesses

• Thanks to EIF guarantees, Denmark’s Export and Investment Fund will be able to further support Danish customers in their green transition with access to funding on preferential terms.
• The co-financed projects will be in the areas of renewable energy, energy savings and resource efficiency.
• The agreement is backed by the European Union’s InvestEU programme. 

The European Investment Fund (EIF) and Denmark’s Export and Investment Fund have signed an agreement to guarantee around DKK 229 million (€30.9 million) in new loans for Danish businesses. The agreement is backed by the InvestEU programme. The sustainability guarantee will support new debt financing for small and medium-sized enterprises, enabling the Danish state fund to approve loans for Danish businesses of up to DKK 575 million (€77.3 million).

The sustainability guarantee will support new financing for small and medium-sized enterprises to contribute to Europe’s green transition. The loans will be channelled towards energy saving, renewable energy and resource efficiency projects, seeking to bridge the gap between traditional bank financing and equity capital.

Denmark’s Export and Investment Fund is the sovereign investment fund of Denmark, and the result of a merger of EKF Denmark’s Export Credit Agency, the growth fund Vaekstfonden and the Danish Green Investment Fund. Through a single point of contact, Danish companies can now gain access to state-financed risk capital. The fund is one of the first financial institutions in Denmark to sign an agreement under the InvestEU programme.

Morten Bødskov, Danish Minister for Industry, Business and Financial Affairs, said: “If we are to succeed with the green transition, we need to ensure that risk capital is available to achieve our ambitious green goals. InvestEU plays a central role in the green transition across the entire European Union by financing green and sustainable projects across member nations. With the establishment of Denmark’s Export and Investment Fund, we now have an ambitious player in Denmark. The agreement with the European Investment Fund gives it even more firepower to fund the green transition of Danish businesses.”

Peder Lundquist, chief executive officer of Denmark’s Export and Investment Fund, said: “The green transition requires long-term risk capital because the solutions needed to cross the finish line require large investments. Global competition means that we, as the state loan fund, play a crucial part in the task of developing and commercialising new technologies and enabling a green transition for the entire business community. We are therefore happy to have the opportunity to cooperate with a global entity such as the European Investment Fund, so that we can help make way for the green businesses that are going to make Denmark richer and the world greener.”

EIF Chief Executive Marjut Falkstedt said: “We are very happy to be partnering with Denmark’s Export and Investment Fund, a leader in green financing. This agreement, which was made possible by the InvestEU programme, will channel financing to Danish businesses to help them on their path to a more sustainable, greener future. Public entities need to make every effort to support European businesses in their green transformation and this transaction does precisely that.”

European Commissioner for the Economy Paolo Gentiloni said: “InvestEU is playing an important role across Europe in helping small and medium-sized businesses gain access to the finance they need to innovate, expand and create jobs. This investment can also help them green their business, thereby making a major contribution to our transition to a low-carbon economy. I am delighted that, thanks to this agreement, more Danish businesses will receive the support they need to fulfil their full potential.” 

Background information

The European Investment Fund is part of the European Investment Bank Group. Its central mission is to support Europe’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by helping them access finance. The EIF designs and develops venture and growth capital, guarantees and microfinance instruments that specifically target this market segment. In this role, the EIF furthers key EU policy objectives such as competitiveness and growth, innovation and digitalisation, social impact, skills and human capital, climate action and environmental sustainability, and more.

The InvestEU programme provides the European Union with crucial long-term financing by mobilising significant public and private funds to support a sustainable recovery. It helps generate additional investments in line with key European priorities, such as the European Green Deal, the digital transition and support for SMEs. The InvestEU programme brings together a multitude of EU financial tools to support investment by making project financing simpler, more efficient and more flexible. The programme has three components: the InvestEU Fund, the InvestEU Advisory Hub and the InvestEU Portal. The InvestEU Fund is implemented via various financial partners. They will invest in projects by using the EU budget guarantee of €26.2 billion to mobilise at least €372 billion in additional investments.

Denmark’s Export and Investment Fund is a merger of three existing state funds — Vaekstfonden, EKF Denmark’s Export Credit Agency and the Danish Green Investment Fund. Together, they offer risk capital financing to entrepreneurs, small and medium companies and export companies.

Press contacts

European Investment Fund
Kristiina Randmaa, tel.: +352 4379 72894 — k.randmaa@ext.eib.org
Follow us on Twitter@eif_eu
Website: www.eif.org — Press Office: +352 4379 21000 — press@eib.org

Denmark's Export and Investment Fund
Sara Kleist, Communications Advisor

+45 42372950
mail: skl@vf.dk

www.eifo.dk