On Friday 17 February, EU member states approved a proposal from the Commission to invest €444 million in 18 energy infrastructure projects of common interest (PCIs), following a second call for proposals issued by the Commission in 2016 (see EUROPE 11584) under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF).
Seven projects in the electricity sector have been allocated support of €176 million, ten in the gas sector will receive EU support of €228 million and €40 million will go to a smart grid project.
The support relates to construction works in five of the eighteen projects (EU support of €350 million) and to studies in the other thirteen (EU support of €94 million).
In the electricity sector, a grant will support the implementation of Germany’s largest energy infrastructure project, the SuedLink project, to lay 700 kilometres of high voltage cables underground linking the wind power generated in the north and the consumer centres in the south of the country.
A €90 million EU grant will support the implementation of an innovative energy storage project, compressed air energy storage (CAES) in Larne, Northern Ireland.
In the gas sector, €102 million will support the construction of an off-shore LNG terminal on the Croatian island of Krk which will bring diversification of supply to the region.
Lastly, financial support of €40 million has been granted to a smart grid project, SINCROGRID, between Slovenia and Croatia. This will lead to more efficient use of the existing electricity transmission grid in both countries enabling current infrastructure to cope with the uptake of additional renewable energy.
Under the Connecting Europe Facility, a total of €5.35 billion has been allocated to trans-European energy infrastructure for the 2014-2020 period.
To be eligible for a grant, a proposal has to be on the list of PCIs, revised in November 2015 (see EUROPE 11433) and updated every two years. There are currently 195 key energy infrastructure projects for internal energy market integration. When completed, the projects will each result in significant benefits for at least two member states, enhance security of supply and increase sustainability.
Under the Connecting Europe Facility – Energy, grants of €647 million for 34 projects were awarded in 2014, €366 million for 35 projects in 2015, and €707 million for 27 projects in 2016. (Original version in French by Emmanuel Hagry)