The transition to a net-zero economy represents a massive opportunity for capital providers to finance new technologies and invest in the business models of the future. But today, the volume of capital for the transition is well short of what will be needed. What is constraining capital from flowing into transition projects? At a fundamental level, the investments that need to be made are large and risky. This is especially true in emissions-intensive heavy industrial and mobility sectors.
Given the volume of investment needed and the level of risk involved, no single actor will be able to solve this challenge alone. Finance, industry experts, and the public sector must come together to create a new financing ecosystem that can bring innovative zero-carbon industrial technologies and business models to life.
EIB President Werner Hoyer participated in this session, discussing, among other topics, the role of various financial institutions in the multi-stakeholder effort to mobilise capital for industrial-scale transition projects. The panel also explored the financial sector’s expectation of the public sector in terms of what will be needed to incentivise private capital (e.g. carbon price, regulatory certainty, public investment) and solicit activities and key lessons learned.