The European Union lifts its first green bonds

European flags in front of the headquarters of the European Commission in Brussels (illustrative image).

AFP - JOHN THYS

Text by: RFI Follow

1 min

The European Commission raised its first green bonds for an amount of 12 billion euros.

The issuance program will finance part of the recovery plan of the Twenty-Seven, called the Next Generation EU.

Advertising

Read more

The European Commission assures us that this 12 billion euro fundraising represents “ 

the largest green bond issue in the world

 ”.

But these are only her first steps, and she is already thinking bigger.

In total, by 2026, Brussels intends to raise nearly 250 billion euros in green bonds.

Enough to finance a third of the recovery plan of the Twenty-Seven.

If it succeeds, this would make the European Commission the world's largest issuer of these debt securities intended to finance the ecological transition, welcomed Johannes Hahn, the Budget Commissioner.

This money will be signed.

Concretely, the States will have to detail their expenditure in favor of the ecological transition.

Information that Brussels will use to show investors the proper use of their funds. 

This money will be able to finance nine categories of projects such as, for example, those related to clean energy, energy efficiency or clean transport. 

If the projects are not 100% green, according to the

All Europe site

, only the "green part", if it is sufficiently large, will be financed by these bonds.

The mechanism could also go to gas-fired power stations " 

under certain conditions to provide a transition solution

 ". 

On the contrary, nuclear power has been excluded from eligible programs.

Newsletter

Receive all international news directly in your mailbox

I subscribe

Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application

google-play-badge_FR

  • European Union

  • Environment

  • Economy

  • Finance