Brussels, 12/05/2014 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 12 May, the Commission announced the opening of an initial call for proposals in the framework of the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF): an envelope of €750 million will be available for first-priority energy infrastructure projects, mainly in the sectors of electricity and gas.
These projects, which will contribute to security of supply, will also help to complete the single energy market, break the energy isolation of certain member states and include sources of renewable energy in the distribution network. The EU funding will make it possible to speed up investment in the missing cross-border connections by making the necessary money, public and private, available, the Commission stresses in a press release.
The legal basis for this call for proposals is the regulation establishing the CEF, which entered into force in December 2013, whilst the rules on granting financial support are laid down in the regulation on the guidelines for trans-European energy infrastructure, which has been in force since May 2013. Of a total budget of €33.2 billion for the CEF overall, an envelope of €5.85 billion has been earmarked for trans-European energy infrastructure projects for 2014-2020.
In order to qualify for EU financial support, an energy infrastructure project must feature on the list of projects of common interest. The first list, which was adopted in October 2013, comprises 250 major energy infrastructure projects which will guarantee significant advantages for at least two member states, both in terms of energy security and the integration of the single market.
The subsidies allocated will be used to pay for studies and construction work. Although petroleum infrastructure projects do not qualify for any form of financial assistance, all other projects of common interest may benefit from aid for studies or construction work, with the exception of hydro-pumped storage projects.
In order to receive aid for the completion of construction work, however, projects must fulfil specific criteria: its cost-benefit analysis must demonstrate significant advantages in terms of security of supply, solidarity or technological innovation.
Projects must have been the subject of a cross-border cost allocation decision issued by the competent national regulatory authorities or by the Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER), in the absence of an agreement between the national regulatory authorities. Additionally, the project must not be commercially viable, according to the business plan.
In general, the amount of EU support cannot exceed 50% of the eligible costs. In exceptional cases, when a project will contribute significantly to the security of supply or boost energy solidarity between member states, the EU support can amount to 75% of the costs.
This first call for proposals will run until 19 August. The final decision on which projects will get the CEF funding will be taken by November 2014.
This 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. 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”, said the Commissioner for Energy, Günther Oettinger. (EH)