A competitive Europemust be climate-resilient

There is no choice between investing in resilience and investing in competitiveness. They are increasingly one and the same. Climate risk has become economic risk and a matter of economic security.
The data leaves no room for doubt. Extreme weather and climate-related events caused €822 billion ($920 billion) in economic losses across the European Union between 1980 and 2024. A quarter of those losses occurred in the past five years.
The consequences for Europe’s competitiveness and economic security are clear. Flood-damaged power grids, factories disrupted by extreme heat, water-stressed farms, and overheating hospitals are not simply environmental problems. They weaken productivity, disrupt supply chains, and increase costs.
That is why Europe is making resilience a design feature, factoring climate risks into infrastructure, urban planning, and business investment from the outset. It is also why the European Investment Bank Group, building on years of investment in climate resilience, will provide at least €30 billion for climate adaptation between 2026 and 2030, twice as much as in the previous five years.
The EIB’s new Adaptation Plan will help turn this ambition into investment by building stronger project pipelines, supporting European adaptation technologies, and making finance and climate information easier to access and use. From resilient water infrastructure to climate-smart agriculture, these investments protect citizens and businesses while strengthening the foundations of Europe’s economy.
Investing in resilience before extreme weather events occur is far more effective than paying for recovery afterwards. Every €1 invested in prevention and adaptation to climate change saves €10 in damages and repairs. That is why infrastructure must be built for the climate of the future, not just the climate of today.
Energy is a good example. Europe’s energy security depends not only on how much clean-energy capacity we build, but also on whether our energy system can withstand heatwaves, floods, or wildfires. The resilience of water, transport, and communications networks depends on it. Societies must be able to maintain essential services and respond effectively when climate-related events strike.
In Athens, EIB financing is helping to modernise wastewater services for more than four million residents while strengthening the city’s resilience to drought. In Poland, EIB Advisory has supported climate-vulnerability assessments of the national road network. In France, we are supporting hospital modernisation by renovating existing buildings and constructing new, more energy-efficient facilities that can better withstand heatwaves.
These examples illustrate an important point: adaptation is not simply a matter of spending more. It is about investing better. To this end, EIB Advisory services will help clients prepare adaptation projects and support partner banks in identifying and assessing investments that qualify for EIB Group green finance.
Better investment decisions start with better data. Working with the Copernicus Climate Change Service, we are making location-specific information on climate hazards, vulnerabilities, and possible adaptation measures openly available.
Closing Europe’s resilience gap is also an opportunity to build European leadership in a rapidly expanding global market. Technologies that strengthen climate resilience — from cooling and water-efficient irrigation to climate monitoring, backup power, and climate-resilient industrial processes — will be increasingly in demand.
Developing and deploying these technologies at scale can strengthen Europe’s industrial base, create export opportunities, and reduce dependence on critical technologies and suppliers from elsewhere. We pledge to help European innovators develop and scale these solutions, connecting them with financing, credit guarantees, and advice.
The case for resilience does not stop at Europe’s borders. Climate-vulnerable countries face some of the greatest adaptation needs but often struggle to turn them into bankable projects. The EIB will give particular attention to Small Island Developing States and Least Developed Countries. Together with the European Commission, we will help turn national adaptation priorities into investable projects.
Europe must keep cutting greenhouse-gas emissions and accelerating investment in low-carbon energy and sustainable transport, while preparing for climate impacts that are already unavoidable. These objectives reinforce each other: energy-efficiency measures reduce power bills and emissions while protecting people from extreme heat.
The investments we make today must be ready for the climate of tomorrow. Building resilience can strengthen Europe’s competitiveness, support jobs, protect health and nature, and open up new opportunities for technologies and markets. A competitive Europe must be a climate-resilient Europe. @Project Syndicate, 2026