A new report by the European Investment Bank (EIB) raises the question of who actually benefits from the multi-billion-euro investments in “green energy”, and who ultimately bears the costs. AfD Member of the European Parliament Markus Buchheit sharply criticises the EIB’s latest annual activity report. He says the bank is increasingly presenting itself as a “climate bank”, while citizens and businesses in many EU countries are suffering from rising electricity prices and growing living costs.
Markus Buchheit (AfD), MEP for the ESN Group, said:
“Nearly 60 percent of EIB financing now flows into so-called green projects. That may sound good in Brussels, but it does not ease the burden on families or on small and medium-sized businesses. The heavy focus on offshore wind power in particular shows how skewed Europe’s investment policy has become.
For individual offshore projects, the EIB grants loans in the hundreds of millions of euros. These projects are expensive, technically highly complex, and heavily dependent on grid infrastructure and weather conditions. Nevertheless, they are being pushed forward politically, even though actual electricity generation is falling short of expectations. The costs are passed on to citizens through electricity prices, grid charges, and state guarantees.
While the EIB speaks of ‘clean and affordable energy’, many households are experiencing the opposite. High energy prices are weighing on incomes and competitiveness, without any noticeable improvement in security of supply or price stability. I consider it problematic that the EIB is increasingly acting as a political instrument of the Green Deal, detached from people’s day-to-day reality.
I am especially critical of the bank’s financing model: risks are socialised through EU budget guarantees, while private investors benefit from cheap loans. If projects fail or fall short of expectations, taxpayers ultimately end up liable.”
The AfD is calling for a fundamental reorientation of EIB policy. Investments should once again be guided by security of supply, affordability, and tangible benefits for citizens. An EU that distributes billions while households and companies struggle with rising costs loses its credibility.
