‘Hoe financier je duurzaam vastgoed?’ Die vraag staat centraal tijdens het H2020 – BuildInterest Event, waarin een Europees consortium concrete resultaten presenteert en waardebepaling van duurzaam vastgoed aan het licht brengt. In een Engelstalig interview met projectmanager Jérôme Barel wordt duidelijk hoe Bpifrance (BPI), een van de partners van H2020, inzet op verschillende activiteiten gerelateerd aan financiering en verduurzaming.

Could you explain us in a few words what BPI does?

Bpifrance is the French Public Bank for investment. We support companies (start-ups, SMEs, ETI, large groups) at all stages of their development by offering them various financing solutions.

What about the role of BPI in BUILDINTEREST?

Well, Bpifrance is the lead partner in charge of the activities of French platform. As a bank, we felt that the most relevant way for us to tackle two issues of the French market at the same time, i.e. the fragmentation of the sector and the lack of visibility for companies, was to push for the creation of an online community. It is meant to be a place of dialogue and meeting for stakeholders. On one side, we run the day to day animation of the community and offer specific content, invitations to events, latest news on the market; on the other side, members themselves are key to the success of the community because they interact together to learn more from each other.

One of the special perks to be included in such a community are pitching sessions and webinars; companies really enjoy these opportunities to show how much their technologies are innovative.

Did you have to start from scratch to set up the online community?

Not at all. Back in 2008, Bpifrance launched EuroQuity, an online matchmaking service so that companies looking for investment could meet potential investors. We soon realized that people preferred to gather around thematic communities – so we decided the online BI platform would be an online specific community within the EuroQuity platform. It worked! Now we have reached 137 members, which is more that we initially expected.

Aside from the online community, which activities are carried out?

As you know, the second year of BUILDINTEREST is about implementing practical solutions. After several discussions with the Working group resulting from the first-year stakeholder analysis, we decided to run a renovation pilot project. The concept is quite simple: since many people are wary of engaging energy efficient renovation works because they believe it is too expensive and too difficult to be coordinated, we must prove them wrong. We are working in close collaboration with a small group of stakeholders to set specifications that will be applied to a pool of houses for renovation works- the end goal is having a few renovated housings for a reasonable price after people went through our “special customer route”.

Last but not the least, we hope to launch a new financial offer this year financial scheme dedicated to EE companies, all the more since there very few financial incentive mechanisms in place to encourage business investment in more EE buildings. From 2018 onwards, companies that carry out EE renovation works will be eligible to a tax reduction within the framework of these new energy efficiency lease property scheme.

Tijdens het H2020 Event komen diverse visies voorbij over financering, verduurzaming, waardebepaling en andere belangrijke onderwerpen. Inschrijven? Dat kan nog! Benieuwd naar het volledige programma? Bekijk dan de overzichtspagina.