EU secures EUR 29 million for transmission line

European Commission said European Union Member States agreed on its proposal to allocate EUR 150 million to key trans-European energy infrastructure projects, including maximum financial assistance of EUR 29 million for the construction of a 400 kV overhead transmission line between Maritsa East and Burgas in Bulgaria. The applicant was Elektroenergien Sistemen Operator EAD and the internal connection is part of a cluster of four lines increasing the connectivity between Bulgaria and Greece.

In total, 20 projects were selected following a call for proposals under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), an EU funding programme for infrastructure. The selected projects will increase energy security and help end the isolation of member states from EU-wide energy networks, the press release said. They will also contribute to the completion of a European energy market and the integration of renewable energy sources into the electricity grid.

Seventeen projects relate to studies, such as environmental impact assessments (EUR 30 million), and three to construction works (EUR 120 million). Eleven are in the gas sector (EUR 80 million) and nine are for electricity (EUR 70 million).

A total of EUR 5.35 billion has been allocated to trans-European energy infrastructure for the period of 2014-2020 under the CEF. In order to be eligible for a grant, a proposal must relate to a project included in the list of projects of common interest.