The European Investment Bank (EIB) is participating in the World Circular Economy Forum, on 3-4 June in Helsinki, the largest conference on circular economy that brings together around 2,000 business leaders, policymakers and experts to present best practice from around the world.

During the conference, the EIB, as one of the biggest multilateral providers of climate and environment finance, will present its financing and advisory solutions for circular economy projects, discuss the challenges and opportunities of investing in the circular economy, the role of cities in the transition and the potential of social outcomes contracting.

In recent years, the EIB has been stepping up its financing and advisory services for circular economy. Over the last five years (2014-2018), the EIB has provided EUR 2.3 billion to finance circular economy projects in a variety of sectors ranging from resource efficiency, recycling infrastructure, mobility to agriculture, and more recently new circular business models. The EIB has also developed dedicated financial products to address the specific financing needs of circular economy projects.

Some of the recent EIB initiatives for circular economy include:

  • The launch of the Circular Bioeconomy Investment Platform with an expected EUR 100 million investment from the EIB, guaranteed under the InnovFin initiative: this EU-wide fund will be entrusted to a third party manager to provide financing for innovative bioeconomy projects.
  • The Clean Oceans Initiative launched in October 2018 with the German development bank KfW and France’s Agence Française de Développement (AFD) to provide up to EUR 2 billion in lending over the next five years to tackle plastic pollution in the oceans through circular solutions such as waste prevention measures, plastics recycling or wastewater treatment to remove microplastics.
  • The new publication 15 Circular Steps for Cities released in December 2018 offers a vision and toolbox to help cities in their transition to a circular economy. This document complements the EIB’s Circular Economy Guide which proposes a taxonomy of circular economy projects.

Ahead of the WCEF 2019, Emma Navarro, EIB Vice-President responsible for climate action and environment said: “A systemic shift to a circular economic model has become a necessity to decouple development from environmental impact and waste generation. Our collective prosperity depends on that. At the EIB we will continue to deploy our technical expertise, advisory and financial strength in support of those investments which will make our economies sustainable, regenerative and waste-free.”

Join the EIB at WCEF 2019

Come and join us at the EIB stand at the at the Finlandia Hall Piazza (2nd floor) to find out more about how we support the circular economy. EIB participants at the conference will include EIB financial and technical experts on circular economy who will be available for interviews.

Vice-President Emma Navarro will be a keynote speaker at the Grand Opening on 3 June (12:00-13:45) and Liesbet Goovaerts, Environmental Engineer, will speak at the parallel session “Investing in the Circular Economy” on 4 June (14:00-15:30).

The EIB is also co-organizing two side sessions at the event: