Project Development Assistance for sustainable energy investments

Project Development Assistance (PDA) offers technical assistance to convert sustainable energy project ideas into actual investments. It supports public and private project developers in every step needed to deliver ambitious and large-scale sustainable energy investments. PDA aims to mobilise significant investments necessary for the EU’s energy and climate targets and to strengthen EU competitiveness and energy independence. PDA projects lead to the launch of sustainable energy investments, deliver innovative organisational or financial solutions, and contribute to increased skills and capacity for further investments. Activities include project bundling, technical studies, audits, financing option assessment, legal advice, and preparation for tendering. The topic aims for investments leveraging at least 15 times the EU support (or 10 times for projects only in residential buildings) and achieving significant energy savings and decarbonisation impacts.

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Agency	LIFE (EU)
Region	EU
Country	N/A
Legal form	Company, NGO, Government organization, Other
Start date	21 Apr 2026
End date	16 Sep 2026
Max funding	The Commission considers proposals requesting EUR 1–1.5 million appropriate, but other amounts can be submitted.
Budget	8,000,000 EUR for LIFE-2026-CET-PDA in 2026
Coverage	Funding rate up to 95% of eligible costs.

Grant application conditions

Admissibility conditions	Proposal must follow page limit and layout described in the call document. Detailed requirements are in Part B of the Application Form in the Submission System.
Eligible countries	Eligibility as described in section 6 of the call document. Generally open to EU Member States and countries associated with the LIFE programme.
Applicant types	Proposals can be submitted by public or private project promoters such as public authorities or their groupings, infrastructure operators and bodies (public/private), energy agencies, energy service companies, retail chains, property owners, industry, or services.
Investment leverage	Projects must demonstrate that every EUR 1 million of EU support results in at least EUR 15 million in sustainable energy investments (or at least EUR 10 million for projects in residential buildings only).
Project sectors	Existing residential buildings, including rental sector and social housing Existing non-residential buildings (public buildings, hospitals, academies, defence facilities, commercial buildings) Decarbonisation and modernisation of existing district heating/cooling networks (fully based on renewable or waste heat for extensions) Modernisation of local electricity grids (focus on efficiency, renewables, electrification, flexibility) Decarbonisation and efficiency improvements in existing public infrastructure (e.g., water/wastewater services) Industry and services advancing beyond business-as-usual in financial/organisational innovation Decentralised renewable energy production replacing solid/fossil fuels
Investment type restriction	Proposals for new building construction are not within scope. Proposals for innovative technological solutions not yet fully available commercially are not within scope.
Proof of investment	Evidence of actual launch of investments required (e.g., signed work/investment contracts or convincing proof relevant to the investment context). General access to finance is not sufficient.
Duration and pipeline	PDA projects must lead to investment launch within the project duration and must identify an initially envisaged investment pipeline.
Results quantification	Quantify results and impacts for end of project and 5 years after. Use topic indicators (investments launched, leverage factor, staff/organisations with increased skills, jobs created, energy savings, renewables generated, GHG reduced, etc.).
Minimum contribution	There is no minimum grant amount required as per the call but the Commission suggests EUR 1–1.5 million.
Consortium	Single applicants or consortia from single/eligible countries may apply.
Documentation	https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/screen/opportunities/topic-details/LIFE-2026-CET-PDA

Eligible expenses

Evaluation criteria

Business exclusions

Reporting

Application process

Application requirements