The European Investment Bank (EIB) and Crédit Agricole CIB have signed an agreement committing up to €600 million in guarantees to support investment in energy grids across the European Union.
Under the deal, the EIB will provide up to €300 million in counter-guarantees, allowing Crédit Agricole CIB to commit an equivalent amount to build a portfolio of bank guarantees issued on behalf of its clients, the EIB informed on Monday.
A counter-guarantee is a promise by one party to cover part of the risk taken on by another issuer of guarantees.
The guarantees are intended to back new investment linked to EU electricity networks, including companies that manufacture components for power grids.
The EIB said the arrangement is expected to mobilise up to €2.4 billion in investment in the real economy.
EIB Vice-President Ambroise Fayolle said the partnership follows earlier work with Crédit Agricole CIB on wind energy and that the focus is now on energy grids and equipment needed for their development.
The EIB Group invested €33 billion in energy worldwide in 2025 and accounted for more than a quarter of all investment in the energy transition in the EU, Fayolle said.
Part of a wider EU-backed package
The agreement sits within a €1.5 billion EIB envelope dedicated to developing, modernising and reinforcing EU energy grids, described by the organisation as its “Energy Grids Package”.
The initiative is supported by the EU’s InvestEU programme.
The EIB said the grid package was announced in 2025 and followed €6.5 billion it had previously made available for wind energy.
The EIB and Crédit Agricole CIB also signed an agreement in December 2025 to build a €1 billion guarantee portfolio for wind energy.
