New Europe: Commission releases €750 million for infrastructure projects on energy

The first call for proposals under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) to help finance key trans-European energy infrastructure projects is open. A total of €750 million will be made available for first priority projects mainly in the gas and electricity sectors.

These projects will address security of supply issues and help bring an end to the energy isolation of some Member States. They will also contribute to the completion of the EU-wide internal energy market and to the integration of renewables to the energy grid. The EU funding will accelerate investment in missing cross-border links by leveraging the necessary private and public funding.

European Energy Commissioner Günther Oettinger said: "This is a crucial step. Such a huge amount of EU financial support will make a solid difference. The current Ukraine crisis underlines the importance of upgrading energy infrastructure and building missing interconnections between Member States in order to enhance the energy security in the EU. In general Member States can only help each other with energy supplies, if they are well connected. Moreover, improving the energy infrastructure is a prerequisite for completing the internal energy market for the benefit of consumers and businesses in the EU."
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