Commission hosts Workshop on European Competitiveness Fund

On Monday 18 May, the Commission organized a workshop on their proposal on the European Investment Fund. Stakeholders across the broader bioeconomy sector were invited to learn more about the proposal, and give input. EUSTAFOR took this opportunity and shared a statement with their vision on this fund in relation to the forest sector.

The European Commission has proposed expanding EU-level investment tools to strengthen Europe’s competitiveness, innovation, clean technology, defence, and economic resilience. The proposal is mainly part of the EU’s next long-term budget (2028–2034). In practice, the proposal aims to turn EU savings and public guarantees into much larger private investments, especially in sectors considered critical for Europe’s future growth and security.

The ECF budget amounts to 234 billion euro, roughly distributed over four policy windows. The window most relevant to the forestry section is window 2: “Health and Biotech, Agriculture and Bioeconomy. For this window, 20.4 billion euro is allocated. However, the policy windows on “Digital Leadership” and “Clean Transition and Industrial Decarbonisation” can also be indirectly applicable to our sector.
the budget will be used for building Single Market Value Chains and up-scaling the sector, support to start-ups & scale-ups, developing skills and R&I activities. For a more detailed breakdown, please check the Commission’s presentation.

The plan still needs approval from EU member states and the European Parliament before it can take effect.