EU Transport Ministers backed the partial negotiating position (‘general approach’) on the new Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) for the period 2028-2034, as part of the EU’s future Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), at the EU Council meeting on Thursday 4 December. The European Energy Ministers are due to adopt it on Monday 15 December (see EUROPE 13764/7).
The Danish Presidency’s proposal introduces a number of changes to the programme’s objectives in order to clarify which infrastructure projects are eligible for funding. The Annex has also been amended to take account of the request of certain Member States to extend its scope.
“We also want to ensure that the Member States are fully involved in adopting the work programmes and selecting the projects that will receive funding under the CEF”, emphasised Danish Minister Thomas Danielsen. “This will guarantee and ensure that the Member States are properly involved in the process throughout the MFF period”.
The Ministers appreciated the fact that the text took account of specific geographical features, in particular those of island countries such as Ireland and Malta, which noted the inclusion of ports in the proposal.
The big outstanding issue is the budget, which will be decided at a later date. All the Ministers affirmed their commitment to maintaining a high level of funding for the CEF, in particular to finance transport infrastructure.
In the European Parliament, the Committees on Industry (ITRE) and Transport (TRAN) have yet to give their joint opinion on the proposal.
Read the compromise: https://aeur.eu/f/jsp (Original version in French by Anne Damiani)