EU invests EUR217 million in energy infrastructure

European Union member states agreed to invest EUR217 million in key trans-European energy infrastructure projects, mainly in Central and South Eastern Europe.

In total, 15 projects were selected following a call for proposals under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), an EU funding programme for infrastructure. Of the 15 proposals selected for funding:

• Nine are in the gas sector (financial aid worth EUR207 million) and six in electricity sector (EUR10 million);
• 13 relate to studies, such as environmental impact assessments (EUR29 million), and two to construction works (EUR188 million).

The European Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy Miguel Arias Cañete said: “Today, we are targeting those regions in Europe which need it the most. With this funding we will help secure supplies and fully integrate Europe’s energy market by connecting networks across Europe. We must press ahead with the modernisation of our energy networks to bring any country still isolated into the European energy market. Modern energy networks are also crucial to ensuring efficient use of our energy resources and therefore key to reaching our climate goals.”

In the gas sector, the allocated grants will cover, among others, studies for modernising the Bulgarian gas transmission network which will improve the possibilities for the transport of gas in the region, notably for the benefit of Greece, Romania, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Turkey.

Funding will also be allocated to studies on the Midcat project which will help eliminate infrastructure bottlenecks between the Iberian Peninsula and France, and connect gas supplies from Algeria and Spanish LNG terminals with the rest of Europe. The interconnector linking gas networks in Romania, Bulgaria, Austria and Hungary will also get EU funding. This is an important development for the EU gas market as this will allow gas from the Caspian region and other potential sources, including LNG, to reach Central Europe.

The development of electricity infrastructure will also benefit from CEF financial assistance. This includes environmental and engineering design studies for the Germany-Denmark interconnection which will help supply Nordic electricity to Central Europe.

The European Commission proposal to select these projects was supported by the CEF Coordination Committee, which consists of representatives from all Member States. Later this month the Commission will formally adopt the list of proposals which will receive financial assistance under CEF-Energy.