06/04/2022 (Agence Europe) – The European Commission’s Technical Support Instrument for reforms (TSI) will help 17 Member States - Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Hungary, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia and Finland - to gradually reduce their dependence on Russian fossil fuels, according to the REPowerEU plan scheduled on Wednesday 18 May. The technical expertise provided will help them identify and implement the best policy reforms and investments in areas such as diversifying energy supplies, accelerating the transition to renewable energy and increasing energy efficiency. The call for expressions of interest for technical support was launched at the end of March. All applications submitted by Member States have been assessed and approved, the Commission said in a statement. More information on the TSI instrument: see EUROPE 12907/22. (MB)