European City Facility

The LIFE-2025-CET-EUCF call aims to establish a European City Facility (EUCF) to support cities and municipalities in developing investment concepts for energy efficiency and renewable energy. The funding opportunity opens on April 24, 2025, and closes on September 23, 2025, operating under a single-stage submission process.

Eligible applicants include European cities, municipalities, and their groupings, which must demonstrate a strong background in municipal sustainable energy and climate planning. Proposals are required to come from a minimum of three applicants from three different eligible countries. The funding is categorized as a grant, specifically a LIFE Project Grant, with a co-funding rate of 95% for eligible costs. The total budget allocated for the EUCF in 2025 is €15 million, although proposals can request this amount or lesser figures depending on the specific needs.

The target sectors focus on clean energy transition, addressing energy efficiency, renewable energy, and sustainable development. Proposed projects should help implement EU directives related to energy efficiency and renewable energy, while aiming for tangible investments in public energy initiatives.

The EUCF will offer lump sum grants that cover approximately 70-75% of the project budget to eligible entities. Additionally, it will provide related services, including assistance with investment concept development and capacity-building efforts for local authorities. It aims to facilitate the transformation of long-term climate and energy plans into actionable investment strategies.

Proposals must include proof of political commitment from municipalities, detailed plans for stakeholder engagement, and an outline of the existing capabilities in terms of energy planning. The initiative aims to bridge the gap in resources that smaller municipalities face when attempting to secure funding for sustainable energy projects.

While success rates are not detailed within the announcement, the call emphasizes the importance of demonstrating mobilization of multiple cities and robust outreach strategies. The selected project is expected to contribute to the EU's climate and energy policy goals for 2030 and beyond, including a commitment to reaching climate neutrality by 2050.

Overall, the EUCF will act as an intermediary, providing essential financial support and capacity-building services to empower local authorities to mobilize sustainable energy investments effectively.

The LIFE-2025-CET-EUCF call, part of the LIFE Clean Energy Transition (LIFE-2025-CET) call under the Programme for the Environment and Climate Action (LIFE), aims to establish a ‘European City Facility’ (EUCF) to support cities and municipalities in developing investment concepts for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. This initiative builds upon the experiences of the existing EUCF and seeks to scale up its fundamental approach. The call opens on April 24, 2025, and closes on September 23, 2025, at 17:00:00 Brussels time. It is a single-stage submission process.

The primary objective is to mobilize investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy to meet the EU's climate and energy policy goals, particularly the 2030 targets and climate neutrality by 2050, as outlined in the Energy Efficiency Directive (EED), Renewable Energy Directive (RED), and Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD). The EUCF will address the gap in capacity and resources that public authorities, especially small and medium-sized municipalities, face when transforming long-term climate and energy strategies (e.g., Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans or local heating and cooling plans) into mature, finance-ready investment concepts.

The scope of the call involves running a European City Facility that offers financial support and related services to European cities, municipalities, or their groupings. The EUCF will provide lump sum grants to these entities, covering 70-75% of the budget, to develop investment concepts that include a clear project pipeline, legal and governance analysis, financing descriptions, and investment launch processes. The EUCF should offer services at the national level to support cities and municipalities in call applications, investment concept development, identification of financing streams and investment implementation processes. The EUCF should also implement appropriate capacity building schemes, in particular to help beneficiaries of the lump sum grants to use the financial support in the most effective manner and guide them in the post-investment concept phase.

Applicants are expected to demonstrate deep knowledge in municipal sustainable energy/climate planning and financial engineering of energy efficiency and renewable energy investments. They should also understand the strategic nature of the initiative, including challenges in upscaling finance and mobilizing private financing. Furthermore, applicants must demonstrate the ability to mobilize a critical mass of cities/municipalities and have an inclusive outreach strategy across Europe.

To qualify for EUCF support, cities and municipalities must provide proof of political commitment, clarify existing planning processes and resources, demonstrate substantial investment and energy savings potential based on approved SECAPs or similar plans, describe the investment sectors and financial solutions, and develop a strategy to engage stakeholders and citizens. They also need to plan long-term capacity building actions and commit to monitoring investment implementation for at least one year.

The EUCF should collaborate with DG Energy initiatives like the Smart Cities Marketplace and the Covenant of Mayors to ensure integrated approaches and synergies.

Proposals must be submitted by at least 3 applicants (beneficiaries; not affiliated entities) from 3 different eligible countries. The Commission intends to select one single proposal under this topic.

The Commission suggests proposals request up to EUR 15 million from the EU, although other amounts will also be considered. The funding rate is 95% for Other Action Grants (OAGs).

Expected impacts include:

Number of investment concepts delivered, especially for local heating and cooling plans.

Number of investment concepts transformed into tangible investments.

Increased capacity of public authority staff in developing investment concepts for energy efficiency and integrated energy transition.

Quantifiable impacts related to the LIFE Clean Energy Transition sub-programme, such as:

Investments in sustainable energy triggered by the project (cumulative, in million Euro).

Primary energy savings triggered by the project (GWh/year).

Renewable energy generation triggered by the project (GWh/year).

Reduction of greenhouse gases emissions (in tCO2-eq/year).

Admissibility conditions include adhering to proposal page limits and layout guidelines as described in the call document and application form. Eligible countries and other conditions are detailed in section 6 of the call document. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion criteria are in section 7. Submission and evaluation processes are described in section 8 and the Online Manual, while award criteria, scoring, and thresholds are in section 9. The indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement is in section 4, and legal and financial setup details are in section 10.

Relevant documents include the call document, application form templates (Standard application form, Detailed budget table, Participant information), Model Grant Agreements (LIFE MGA), LIFE Multiannual Work Programme 2025-2027, LIFE Regulation 2021/783, EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509, Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment, EU Grants AGA, Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual, Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions, and Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement.

This call is about establishing a European City Facility under the LIFE CET program to help cities and municipalities develop investment concepts for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. It aims to bridge the gap in resources and expertise that often prevents local authorities from turning their climate and energy strategies into viable investment opportunities. The EU is offering up to 15 million EUR to a consortium that can effectively run this facility, providing financial support, capacity building, and networking opportunities to cities across Europe. The selected consortium will essentially act as an intermediary, empowering local governments to mobilize investments in sustainable energy and contribute to the EU's ambitious climate goals.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types include European cities, municipalities, and their groupings. The call specifies that applicants should be deeply rooted in municipal sustainable energy/climate planning and financial engineering of energy efficiency investments and integrated energy transition investments combining energy efficiency and renewables. Proposals must be submitted by at least 3 applicants (beneficiaries; not affiliated entities) from 3 different eligible countries.

Funding Type: The funding type is a grant, specifically a LIFE Project Grant (LIFE-PJG) under the LIFE Clean Energy Transition (LIFE-2025-CET) call. The type of Model Grant Agreement (MGA) is a LIFE Action Grant Budget-Based [LIFE-AG]. The funding rate is 95% for Other Action Grants (OAGs). Proposals are expected to deliver financial support to third parties, in the form of lump sum grants to cities, municipalities or their groupings which should represent 70-75% of the budget.

Consortium Requirement: A consortium is required. Proposals must be submitted by at least 3 applicants (beneficiaries; not affiliated entities) from 3 different eligible countries.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility is focused on European cities and municipalities or their groupings. The call requires a consortium of at least 3 applicants from 3 different eligible countries, implying a focus on entities within the EU or countries eligible under the LIFE program.

Target Sector: The target sectors are energy, climate, and sustainable development, with a specific focus on energy efficiency, renewable energy, and integrated energy transition investments. The call targets the implementation of the Energy Efficiency Directive (EED), Renewable Energy Directive (RED), and Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD). It also addresses Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plans (SECAPs) and local heating and cooling plans.

Mentioned Countries: The opportunity does not explicitly mention specific countries, but it refers to "different eligible countries" and focuses on European cities and municipalities, implying eligibility within the EU and associated countries participating in the LIFE program.

Project Stage: The project stage is focused on the development and implementation of investment concepts for energy efficiency and renewable energy. This includes transforming long-term climate and energy strategies into mature investment concepts, mobilizing finance, and scaling up investment packages. The projects should aim to move from planning to tangible investments.

Funding Amount: The Commission considers that proposals requesting a contribution from the EU of up to EUR 15 million would allow the specific objectives to be addressed appropriately. Nonetheless, this does not preclude submission and selection of proposals requesting other amounts.

Application Type: The application type is an open call, with a single-stage submission process. The call is open for submission as of April 24, 2025, with a deadline of September 23, 2025.

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries will receive money in the form of grants. A significant portion of the funding (70-75% of the budget) is expected to be delivered as financial support to third parties, specifically cities, municipalities, or their groupings, in the form of lump sum grants. The European City Facility should offer services at the national level to support cities and municipalities in call applications, investment concept development, identification of financing streams and investment implementation processes. The European City Facility should also implement appropriate capacity building schemes, in particular to help beneficiaries of the lump sum grants to use the financial support in the most effective manner and guide them in the post-investment concept phase.

Application Stages: The application process is a single-stage process.

Success Rates: The success rate cannot be determined from the provided text, but the Commission intends to select one single proposal under topic LIFE-2025-CET-EUCF.

Co-funding Requirement: The funding rate is 95% for Other Action Grants (OAGs), implying that a 5% co-funding is expected from the applicants or other parties.

Summary: This opportunity, under the LIFE Clean Energy Transition program, aims to establish a 'European City Facility' to support cities and municipalities in developing investment concepts for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. The facility will provide financial support and related services to help local authorities transform their climate and energy strategies into mature, finance-ready investment plans. The selected project will receive up to EUR 15 million and will be responsible for distributing lump sum grants to cities and municipalities, offering capacity building schemes, and facilitating the exchange of best practices. The initiative seeks to mobilize investments in sustainable energy, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and contribute to the EU's climate and energy policy objectives for 2030 and 2050. A consortium of at least 3 applicants from 3 different eligible countries is required, and the application deadline is September 23, 2025. The selected project will also work in synergy with existing EU initiatives such as the Smart Cities Marketplace and the Covenant of Mayors.