Climate finance and its distribution in the EU
Authors:
Judith Clifton (UC), Daniel Díaz-Fuentes (UC), Marcos Fernández Gutiérrez (UC), Ana Lara Gómez (UC)
Abstract:
This case study investigates the extent to which the European Investment Bank (EIB), as implementer of the European Green Deal Investment Plan (EGDIP), delivers on the promise (as a policy-taker of the EU) of a ‘just transition’ across EU regions. Despite political commitments to ‘leave no one behind’, concerns persist that climate finance may be disproportionately directed towards urban regions, which are both more responsible for climate change and better positioned to attract finance. The study addresses this gap by analysing the regional distribution of EIB climate finance between 2021 and 2023, using original data on 646 green projects. Two hypotheses are tested: whether urban regions attract more finance per capita, and whether vulnerable regions (as measured by the Green Transition Vulnerability Index, GTVI) receive more support. Findings confirm that cities and their commuting areas receive significantly more climate finance, while vulnerable regions do not. This challenges the equity of the transition and raises questions about the effectiveness of current policy tools.
