The European Commission adopted decisions on Wednesday 20 March to mobilise €750 million for key energy infrastructure projects in Europe with significant cross-border benefits.
The funds come from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), the European programme to support trans-European infrastructure.
The 2019 call for proposals for ‘CEF Energy’ will be open until 13 June 2019. To be eligible, projects must first be designated as projects of common interest (PCI). The selection decision will take place in October 2019.
Financial assistance (grants and programme support actions) should contribute to the further development of PCIs in the electricity (including smart grids), gas and cross-border carbon dioxide network sectors, so as to achieve the overall objectives of energy policy: - improving competitiveness by promoting further integration of the internal energy market and the interoperability of electricity and gas networks across borders; - strengthening the security of the Union's energy supply; - contributing to sustainable development and the protection of the environment, including through the integration of renewable energy sources into the transport grid and the development of smart energy grids and carbon dioxide grids. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)