Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct.3
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
EU Member States agreed on a Commission proposal to invest €556 million in key European energy infrastructure projects with major cross-border benefits, Trend reports citing the European Commission.
The EU funding comes from the energy window of the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF-Energy). The grants go to Projects of Common Interest that increase competitiveness, enhance the EU’s security of energy supply, and contribute to sustainable development and the protection of the environment, as well as the promotion of safe, secure and efficient network operation.
Today’s vote grants financial aid for studies and works for a total of 8 projects: 6 for electricity and 2 for gas. The overall amount of CEF-Energy funding to be granted to the proposals is €556 million, with electricity accounting for €550 million and €6 million allocated to the gas. This call for proposals (2019) was launched in March and closed on 13 June 2019.
In the electricity sector, a €530 million grant was awarded for works on the Celtic Interconnector between France and Ireland which will for the first time connect Ireland directly with the continent. The grant will enable the construction of a 700 MW high voltage direct current connection of approximately 575 km in length between the South coast of Ireland and the North-West coast of Brittany in France. It will end Ireland’s electrical isolation from the European continent. The interconnector will increase regional security of supply and enhance the development and integration of more renewable energy.
In addition, funding was given for studies to support electricity storage projects in the Netherlands, Estonia, and Lithuania as well as the Baltic electricity Synchronisation Project. In the gas sector, nearly €5 million were awarded for works on the enhancement of the interconnection between Latvia and Lithuania as well as for a study on underground gas storage in Greece.
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