Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English English
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS

Bulgarian Energy Efficiency Forum on Smart Finance for Smart Buildings

Project description

Improved financing for sustainable energy transition in Bulgaria

The success of Bulgaria’s clean energy transition is currently overly dependent on grants. For instance, the country’s home renovation sector is 100 % reliant on grants. There is a need to develop a sustainable financing scheme to achieve ambitious energy goals and address the growing rates of energy poverty. The EU-funded BeSMART project will create a discussion forum and nine roundtables engaging public authorities, energy efficiency experts, the financial and construction sectors, energy service companies, SMEs and homeowners to support new business models and smart financing. The project will also support the development of national and local strategies, develop institutional and legal frameworks and pave the way to increased trust among investors.

Objective

Bulgaria is facing a serious challenge to radically transform its extremely grant-dependent energy efficiency support schemes, while at the same time preserving the speed and scope of the clean energy transition. This is especially valid for the residential sector, where the existing 100% grant mechanism for building renovation has to be quickly reformed into a sustainable financing scheme, at the same time targeting more ambitious energy targets and taking into account the overspread energy poverty. Similar situation is evidenced in the industry, where investments are usually prompted by operational programmes offering up to 80% grants. Considering the principles of functioning of the EU Green Deal and the possibilities under the Recovery Package, innovative financial instruments have to be quickly designed and adopted in a transparent and inclusive way, significantly improving the leveraging effect of public resources, while at the same taking into account the limited investment capacities and purchasing power of the consumers. To address these policy and market gaps, BeSmart aims to support smart financing implementation by setting up a permanent discussion forum, gathering central and local authorities, energy efficiency experts, the financial sector, ESCOs, homeowners, industry, construction and SME sector representatives. The discussion forum and the 9 roundtables planned under the project are specifically designed to support new business models and utilize investment opportunities derived from the increased financing for energy efficiency and renewable energy at EU level. They will gather and upscale existing best practices, support the development of national and local-level strategies, propose improvements in the national policy framework and implementation programmes, develop the institutional and legal framework, and increase the transparency in the policy-making process, leading to increased trust of the investors and better functioning of the market.

Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

CSA - Coordination and support action

See all projects funded under this funding scheme

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) H2020-LC-SC3-2018-2019-2020

See all projects funded under this call

Coordinator

FONDATSIYA TSENTAR ZA ENERGIYNA EFEKTIVNOST - ENEFEKT
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 120 298,75
Address
CHRISTO SMIRNENSKY BLVD 1 FL 3
1164 Sofia
Bulgaria

See on map

Region
Югозападна и Южна централна България Югозападен София (столица)
Activity type
Research Organisations
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 120 298,75

Participants (10)

My booklet 0 0