The EU and Egypt signed a €690 million agreement on June 16 to modernise Egypt's national electricity grid and connect 22 GW of new solar and wind capacity from the Red Sea and Gulf of Suez regions. The financing package, comprising a €600 million EIB Global loan and €90 million in Commission grants, is the EU's largest energy investment in Africa and the first concrete project under T-MED, the Trans-Mediterranean Renewable Energy initiative Europe launched at EUSEW last week.
The deal is not just development finance. A modernised Egyptian grid that can export clean power north changes the geometry of where European states can source electricity.
Energy Transition
T-MED launches with €25 billion in commitments and €5 billion in EU guarantees
The Commission launched the Trans-Mediterranean Renewable Energy and Clean Technology Cooperation (T-MED) initiative on June 9, targeting €25 billion in total investment by 2035 and 15 GW of new renewable capacity across the Mediterranean basin. The Commission put up €5 billion in guarantee capacity to mobilise private investment across solar, wind, storage, interconnectors, and clean manufacturing.
The Egypt deal, signed within days, is T-MED's first proof of concept. The test is whether the guarantee structure can attract the private co-investment the 2035 target requires. (pv magazine)
EIB Board clears €7.9 billion in new financing
The EIB Group approved €7.9 billion in new financing on June 11, including renewable projects in Austria, grid upgrades in Germany, and energy efficiency investments in Slovakia and Sweden. The EIB is still willing to deploy at scale, even as euro area growth is forecast at just 1.1% for 2026. (EIB)
Lithuania's Kelmė wind farm secures €150 million EIB loan
Ignitis Group signed a €150 million supplementary EIB loan on June 16 for the Kelmė onshore wind farm in central Lithuania. The Baltic states have outpaced most of the EU on wind build-out since 2022: energy independence is a security imperative there, not a policy preference.
The loan is part of a steady flow of EIB capital into Baltic infrastructure as the region prepares to desynchronise from the Russian grid. (GlobeNewswire)
Climate Tech
COP31 hosts launch "35 by 35" electrification target at Bonn
At the Bonn Climate Change Conference (June 8 to 18), Australia and Türkiye, the joint COP31 hosts, launched a "35 by 35" goal: raise electricity's share of global final energy use from around 20% today to 35% by 2035. The target is demand-side; heat pumps, industrial motors, and electric vehicles, not just generation capacity.
For European electrification companies, it adds global momentum at a moment when actual uptake in several member states still lags behind headline ambition. (Climate Change News)
Nine EU states in infringement as EPBD deadline passes
The May 29 transposition deadline for the revised Energy Performance of Buildings Directive passed with nine member states already in infringement over the fossil fuel boiler subsidy phase-out, which was due January 1, 2025. Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Luxembourg, Austria, Poland, Romania, and Slovenia are all under proceedings.
Buildings account for roughly 40% of EU energy use. Heat pump installers, insulation manufacturers, and building energy management companies can only scale when the regulatory pressure bites.
Nine infringement cases suggest the market signal remains blunted. (nzero.com)
Policy & Regulation
IMF tells EU ministers energy fragmentation costs industry 18% in value added
At the June 11 Eurogroup, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva told EU finance ministers that industrial electricity prices across Europe remain 2 to 3 times higher than in the US and China. The doubling of real EU energy prices over two decades has reduced value added in energy-intensive industries by an estimated 18%.
Completing a genuine European Energy Union, with integrated planning, shared institutions, and coordinated investment, would lower prices, improve security, and accelerate decarbonisation. The European Council has set end-2027 for Single Market completion; current progress makes that target look ambitious. (IMF)
Science
El Niño is underway, and forecasts point to a record super event
NOAA and Japan's Meteorological Administration confirmed on June 11 to 12 that El Niño conditions have begun, with forecasts pointing to intensification into a "super" El Niño that could persist through December 2026. For Europe, a strong El Niño typically shifts the jet stream and drives above-normal temperatures northward.
Coming after May's early heat dome, a super El Niño this summer would push electricity demand away from seasonal norms, increasing cooling load and reducing heating demand, just as grid operators are still learning to manage their renewable dispatch tools. (Carbon Brief)
One to Watch
EU ETS revision proposal lands July 15
The Commission's formal ETS revision proposal is due July 15. The package will propose aligning free allocation rules with the 2040 climate target, integrating permanent carbon removals certified under the EU Carbon Removal Certification Framework, and reviewing Market Stability Reserve thresholds.
Watch particularly how the Commission handles carbon removal accounting: it will determine whether hard-to-abate sectors face tighter caps or broader flexibility. Co-decision runs through 2027, but July 15 sets the negotiating terrain for the next two years. (OPIS)