Brussels is providing billions for Germany’s transition to clean energy. What will be done with it has already been decided – and it must be implemented so that the money flows.
Germany is getting billions more from Brussels for investments in energy infrastructure. At a meeting in the Belgian capital, EU finance ministers approved a request for 2.3 billion euros that the Federal Republic had previously submitted to the EU Commission. The funds will help accelerate Germany’s transition to clean energy by increasing the share of renewable energies in the German energy mix, the Council of Ministers announced.
The money comes from the EU funding pot ARF, the so-called Recovery and Resilience Facility, which was created during the Corona crisis. The pot was created in 2021 to deal with the economic damage caused by the Corona pandemic.
According to calculations, Germany will now be able to access a total of 30.3 billion euros in non-repayable grants. This will be used to support 17 reforms and 28 investment projects in the Federal Republic, with almost half of the funds earmarked for measures to support climate targets and for digital measures. 6.25 billion euros have been paid out so far.
Funds are performance-related
According to the latest figures, the ARF provides 357 billion euros in non-repayable grants and 291 billion euros in loans across the EU. The funds are financed through debts that are to be repaid jointly by 2058.
In order to receive the aid, member states must submit a plan with concrete investment and reform projects. The funds are performance-related and will only be paid out once promised milestones and targets have been achieved in the implementation of planned reforms and investments.
According to previous information, the additional 2.3 billion euros now approved for Germany are intended to support investments in more energy-efficient residential buildings, the purchase of emission-free vehicles, the public charging network and the digital market launch of the hydrogen infrastructure. Reforms are intended to enable onshore and offshore wind energy plants to be approved more quickly.
Source: Stern
