The EU will provide a total financial support of EUR 188.8 million to 26 projects. The objective is to help delivering a transport network which is environmentally sustainable, in line with the ambitious objectives laid out in the EU Green Deal. The projects have been selected among those submitted under calls for proposals issued under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) programme, the funding programme supporting European transport infrastructure.
Under the third cut-off date of the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Facility (AFIF) call for proposals, which closed on 10 November 2022, 26 projects were selected for a total EU grant support of EUR 188.8 million. This support is coupled with a loan or investment facility from a financial institution. The projects range from the installation of electric recharging stations along the European TEN-T road network to the deployment of hydrogen refuelling stations for cars, trucks and buses and the electrification of ground handling services in airports. The call remains open with further cut-off dates at regular intervals. The next cut-off date is 13 April 2023.
European Commissioner for Transport Adina Vălean, said: “Applications for AFIF funding continue to increase, illustrating the transport industry’s commitment to the switch to sustainable solutions. Our investment of €189 million will translate into approximately 2.000 charging points, plus some 63 hydrogen refuelling stations. Four projects will support the electrification of ground-handling services at airports, for example by electrifying ground-support equipment and installing recharging infrastructure for service vehicles.”
The acting Director of the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA), Paloma Aba Garrote, also stated: “The EU continues to support projects which aim at boosting the shift towards less polluting forms of transport. Such projects contribute to the achievement of the Union’s climate targets as well as fostering economic growth and boost job creation.”
Background
The EU’s financial contribution comes in the form of grants with different co-financing rates or Unit contributions depending on whether the project is located in a country eligible for Cohesion Fund support or not. Under the CEF Transport programme for the period 2021-2027, EUR 25.8 billion are available for grants to co-fund TEN-T projects in the EU Member States. Since 2014, CEF has supported over 1,200 projects for a total amount of almost EUR 29 billion in the transport sector.
Next steps
Following the EU Member States’ approval of the selected projects on 13 April, the Commission will adopt formal financing decisions in the coming weeks. The European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA) has started the preparation of the grant agreements with the project beneficiaries of the successful projects.
Please note that the results are provisional and will only become definitive once the European Commission adopts the corresponding award decisions.