Financial activities of the European Investment Bank Group – annual report 2025

The European Parliament adopted by 316 votes to 281, with 29 abstentions, a resolution on the financial activities of the European Investment Bank Group – annual report 2025.

Members welcomed the EIB's strategic roadmap for 2024-2027, which aims to support the EU's political priorities, as well as the increased priority given to investments strengthening Europe's competitiveness, industrial resilience and security.

Parliament supports the EIB's role as a climate bank, noting that climate action is identified as the number one strategic priority of the EIB Group for the 2024-2027 period – with well over 50 % of annual investments allocated to the green transition. It called for higher levels of investment for competitiveness-related priorities, in particular for SMEs and start-ups, and for scaling up innovative European companies.

The resolution underlined that EU-level action should complement, not crowd out, Member States’ investments. It further stressed that the EIB should play a pivotal role in enabling both commercial and public banks to invest in the European defence sector. The EIB is encouraged to: (i) play an active role in supporting the continuity and completion of projects initiated under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF); and (ii) continue developing innovative financial instruments to mobilise Europe’s substantial private savings for productive investment, especially by engaging with institutional investors to support venture capital.

Parliament underlined the key role played by the EIB in developing the green bonds market and providing financing solutions to sustainable companies.

Driving innovation for technological leadership

Stressing that the EU continues to lag behind in the development of key industry-leading technologies, Parliament insisted on the need to increase investment in European technologies and sectors essential for long-term resilience, including semiconductors, battery value chains, digital sovereignty, and clean tech manufacturing. It called for a balanced and comprehensive allocation of resources allocated under the TechEU programme to SMEs, start-ups, and scale-ups.

Members believe that investments in climate and the environment can help strengthen Europe's industrial base, productivity, and global competitiveness. They support investments across all industrial value chains to enable economically sustainable pathways to decarbonisation, where such investments are driven by innovation and can enhance market competitiveness and European strategic autonomy. The resolution encouraged investment in research and development, as well as in innovative technologies for climate preparedness.

Parliament also called for intensified efforts to close the financing gap for high-growth companies and to foster a more dynamic and integrated European capital market. The EIB is urged to accelerate application and approval procedures, reduce administrative burdens and disproportionate reporting requirements, in order to facilitate access to European funding for smaller beneficiaries (SMEs, start-ups, municipalities).

Financing energy security and the secure supply of critical raw materials for industrial competitiveness

Recalling that energy volatility remains a structural risk for the EU’s economy, Parliament called for the EIB to support energy infrastructure projects, including those financed under the Connecting Europe Facility, to alleviate energy prices for households and businesses and enhance energy supply.

Members called for climate and energy policies to be implemented in a pragmatic manner, ensuring financing of cost-effective solutions focused on measurable economic impact that guarantee affordable energy, strategic independence, system reliability, and infrastructure development. They stressed the importance, for the circular economy, of a critical raw materials approach based on recycling and reuse in order to reduce the EU's dependence on third countries and strengthen its strategic autonomy.

Defence and foreign action

Parliament supports the EIB's March 2025 action plan, which aims to strengthen Europe’s security and defence capabilities. The EIB should further increase its commitment to these strategic sectors. EIB financial support for military mobility, strategic infrastructure, and advanced technologies is a key factor in fostering market integration and strengthening common European interests.

Noting that obstacles remain hindering the full mobilisation of private capital for European security, Members called on the EIB Governing Council to continue adapting the EIB's lending practices to the defence industry. They also stressed the importance of the role of the EU and the EIB in establishing mutually beneficial economic partnerships with third countries.

Support for cohesion, agriculture and housing

Parliament encouraged the EIB to: (i) deepen cooperation with national promotional banks and regional financial institutions in order to maximise the territorial impact of Union financing and reduce regional investment disparities; (ii) maintain support for agricultural policy and cohesion policy, including wider use of financial instruments to mobilise Union subsidies and attract private investment; (iii) intensify its activities to improve access to affordable housing.

Lastly, Parliament reiterated its call for a structured interinstitutional framework ensuring enhanced parliamentary oversight, improved access to information, and the opportunity for Parliament to contribute to the EIB's strategic orientations. It stressed the importance of the EIB ensuring the traceability of the projects it finances.

Text adopted by Parliament, single reading