€800M to fund EU energy infrastructure

EU Member States have agreed invest some €800M in key European energy infrastructure projects, providing major cross-border benefits. The EU funding comes from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), the European support programme for trans-European infrastructure.

One of the political priorities of the Juncker Commission is to develop a connected, modern energy grid and this funding will promote project which enhance this. Priority will be given to projects that increase competitiveness, enhance the EU’s security of energy supply through the promotion of safe, secure and efficient network operation, and contribute to sustainable development and environmental protection.

Commission Vice-President in charge of the Energy Union, Maroš Šefčovič affirmed: “CEF is one of those instruments that prove the EU’s added value. [The] approved list showcases that Energy Union is an efficient tool to modernise and green our economies, to make them future proof in line with climate and environmental goals.”

Funding has been awarded to studies and works for a total of 14 projects: seven for electricity, two for smart grids, two for CO2 cross-border transportation and three for gas.

A €323M grant has been awarded to the Baltic electricity synchronisation project. The Baltic States remain synchronously connected to the central dispatch facility of Russia, hindering their full integration into EU electricity markets. The project aims to increase the security of supply and reliability of the power systems in the region through their synchronous connection to the Continental European Network (CEN).

Some €91M has been approved for the ACON SG project to modernise and improve the power grid between Czechia and the Slovak Republic.

While €6.5M in funding will be allocated to a study on the development of a CO2 infrastructure in the Port of Rotterdam. The objective is to establish an open access, cross-border, carbon dioxide network in North-West Europe, with its core located in the Port of Rotterdam.

Finally, some €215M has been awarded to the Baltic Pipe project, a new, bi-directional offshore gas interconnection between Poland and Denmark. This pipeline will be crucial for security of supply and market integration of the region.

If you are interested in finding out more about key infrastructure trends today, you may wish to attend the flagship infrastructure exhibition at the NEC in April 2019 : UKIS 2019

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