Commission publishes the first call for proposals for a Public Sector Loan Facility

Today, the Commission has published the first call for proposals for grants under the Public Sector Loan Facility. Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms, Elisa Ferreira, said: “We have been working hard to support the regions and communities most affected by the transition to a climate-neutral economy. The opening of this first call for grants under the Public Sector Loan Facility marks the concrete deployment of a new instrument in our just transition toolbox, alongside the Just Transition Fund and the InvestEU just transition scheme. These are concrete steps to supporting investments that will facilitate the creation of new business and jobs in just transition regions and we will continue to work with local and regional authorities to make the most of all instruments available.” Public authorities may apply for grants for projects that will benefit just transition territories. The grant support is complemented by a European Investment Bank loan. In the less developed regions, it can go up to 25% of the EIB loan, reducing substantially the financial burden for beneficiaries and increasing the attractiveness of the investments. The Public Sector Loan Facility is one of the three pillars of the Just Transition Mechanism (JTM), which is part of the European Green Deal to achieve EU climate neutrality by 2050. Overall, the Facility is expected to mobilise between €18 and €20 billion of public investments over the next 7 years. The governance framework of the JTM is centred on the Territorial Just Transition Plans that Member States are preparing to identify the territories most negatively impacted by the transition to climate neutrality and the investments that will help socio-economic change in the territories. Public sector entities in just transition regions are invited to consult the relevant documentation and submit their proposals on the Commission’s Funding and Tenders portal. Potential beneficiaries can also request advisory support from the InvestEU Advisory Hub. More information is available here.