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Ongoing Call
Running until the 18th of December 2024 17:00 (Brussels time), the 7th call of the European City Facility offers support to 71 local beneficiaries across the European Union, Ukraine and Iceland.
About the call
The 7th call of the European City Facility is funded by the LIFE Programme and offers an opportunity for 71 local authorities and their groupings throughout the European Union, Ukraine and Iceland.
It is the last round of funding currently planned, and applications will need to be submitted before 18th of December 2024 17:00 (Brussels time).
The specific call information is available below. The application system and eligibility check is available here.
Objective
The European City Facility (EUCF) aims to support municipalities and local authorities in developing Investment Concepts related to the implementation of actions identified in their climate and energy action plans. The ultimate objective of the EUCF is to build a substantial pipeline of sustainable energy investment projects across municipalities in Europe.
Financial Support
The EUCF finances the development of an Investment Concept with a fixed grant of 60 000 EUR.
Eligibility
The EUCF is open to all municipalities/local authorities, their groupings, and local public entities aggregating municipalities/local authorities from the 27 EU Member States, Iceland and Ukraine. Applicants are required to have a climate and/or energy plan. This includes SECAPs (Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans), developed within the Covenant of Mayors initiative, or other climate and/or energy plans with mitigation targets.
Moreover, applicants have to demonstrate political commitment to the development of the Investment Concept through a letter of support, signed by the mayor or other relevant political representative.
The applicant must commit to the EUCF monitoring period of two years.
What can be financed
The EUCF finances activities, such as (technical) feasibility studies, market analyses, stakeholder analyses, legal, economic and financial analyses, risk analyses, etc., that are required to develop the investment concept. These activities can be delivered by in-house staff or subcontracted external experts.
The grant cannot directly finance the actual investments, but it covers costs to mobilise resources and access services to develop an investment concept.
Criteria
Applications are evaluated based on 4 evaluation criteria:
- Ambition of the proposed investment concept
- Governance structure for the development of the investment concept
- Stakeholders’ engagement strategy
- Coherence and plausibility
Please find the full details of the evaluation process in the Guidelines for applicants.
Advantages of Joint Applications
In line with the EUCF objectives, local authorities/municipalities are strongly encouraged to join forces and resources and submit joint applications, to increase the ambition of the application and increase the chances of success.
Do you want to apply as a grouping? Check our website and see what you should consider when applying as a grouping.
Local public entities aggregating municipalities/local authorities are also eligible. A non-exhaustive list of potential eligible applicants included in this category can be found on the EUCF website in the above link.
Timeline
The seventh EUCF call opens on the 15th of October 2024, 00:00 (Brussels time). The deadline for submitting your application is on the 18th of December 2024, 17:00 (Brussels time).
How to Apply
The overall application process consists of (1) an eligibility check and (2) an application form. Once successfully passing this eligibility check, performed by the applicants themselves directly on the EUCF website, the applicant will be directed to the online portal that includes the application form to be filled in and submitted.
The application form will be accessible online as of the 15th of October 2024 via the EUCF website.
For more information on the Application Process, click here.
Regional Calls
The EUCF calls are organised in parallel for three geographic regions including all eligible countries (EU 27 Member States, Iceland and Ukraine) as displayed in the map below.
Budget
This 7th call will support the development of 71 investment concepts, with a total budget of EUR 4.260.000 allocated to the three regions according to the table below:
| Region | Countries | Budget available for the 7th call (in M EUR) | Number of Investment Concepts financed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) | Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Ukraine. | 1.74 M EUR | 29 |
| Nordic countries & Western Europe (NC&WE) | Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Sweden. | 1.08 M EUR | 18 |
| Southern Europe (SE) | Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Spain. | 1.44 M EUR | 24 |
| Total available for this call | 4.26 M EUR | 71 |
Expected output
The expected output is the developed Investment Concept, i.e. a document providing investors and financial institutions with necessary information to assess an investment project.
Further information, support and FAQ
Please read the Guidelines for Applicants and the FAQs on the EUCF website, before applying.
For specific queries, please contact the EUCF Helpdesk or the Country Expert, responsible for your country.
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