NextGenerationEU Green Bonds

In line with the reporting requirements of the NGEU Green Bond Framework, the Commission published on 20 November its 2024 edition of the annual NGEU Green Bonds Allocation and Impact report. The Report provides investors and stakeholders with updated information on: 

• the allocation of proceeds from NGEU Green Bond issuances;
• the alignment of eligible expenditure with the EU Taxonomy; and 
• the estimated expected and realised climate impacts of investments financed by the NGEU Green Bond programme.

Three years after the inaugural green issuance in October 2021, the EU has now issued more than €68 billion of NGEU Green Bond, making the EU the 5th largest issuer of green bonds globally.  NGEU Green Bond issuance to date is backed by an already reported and validated climate relevant expenditure of €53 billion.[1] These issuances are expected to expand in the coming years, backed by a pool of €264 billion worth of climate-relevant expenditure contained in Member States’ Plans that are funded by the NGEU Recovery and Resilience Facility.

The issuance of NGEU Green Bonds will increasingly match the timing of Member States' reporting and validation of eligible expenses. For expenses that are confirmed after 2026, the Commission may issue NGEU Green Bonds to replace maturing conventional bonds during the refinancing phase. This approach ensures that all eligible expenditures are fully verified before the bonds are issued.

Other key highlights of the report (based on 1 August 2024 cut-off date) include:

• €264.6 billion: Pool of expenditure eligible for financing under NGEU Green Bond Programme: (39.4% higher than in 2023);
• 63.4%: share of the total pool of NGEU Green Bond eligible expenditure assessed as being fully or substantially aligned with the EU Taxonomy metrics;
• 55 million tonnes of CO2e per annum: a conservative estimate of the CO2e savings that can be achieved upon implementation of NGEU Green Bonds eligible measures.

The report complements the regularly updated information presented in the NGEU Green Bond Dashboard.  You can read the full report and related methodological annexes here.