The EU Commission has proposed an ambitious investment plan1motivated by the coexistence of two major economic problems in the EU: the severity of the economic crisis, most notably expressed as low investments, and the huge stock of viable investments being held back by a number of factors. Hence, the EU Commission has proposed an investment plan based on three key principles: (1) mobilising (new sources of) finance for investments, (2) making sure this finance reaches the real economy in order to support growth and jobs, and (3) improving the investment environment.
To unlock private and public investment, the EU Commission and the European Investment Bank have more specifically launched a partnership to increase investment by € 315 billion over the period 2015-2017. Designated target areas are infrastructure (notably broadband and energy networks), transport infrastructure in industrial centres, education, research and innovation, and, last but not least, renewable energy and
energy efficiency.
