Luxembourg requests €58m from EU Commission to increase resilience

The Grand Duchy requested a second tranche worth €58 million from the EU Commission as part of the country’s recovery and resilience plan, the EU’s executive arm said on Wednesday.

The funds will go towards the acquisition of new skills, improving healthcare, pushing affordable housing and “important investments in the domains of the electrification of transports, the digitalisation of public services and healthcare,” Luxembourg’s representation at the commission said in a statement on Wednesday.

The EU launched the Recovery and Resilience Fund (RRF) in 2021 to lift Europe’s economy out of the slump that the pandemic induced. Countries can apply for loans and grants under the RRF, which for the first time was funded by jointly issued bonds, after submitting detailed expenditure plans.

Also read:Luxembourg requests €26m payout of EU funding

The RRF offers a total of €723 billion in loans and non-repayable grants to help countries respond to the effects of the public health crisis.

Also read:EU states risk stranding billions under Covid recovery fund

Funds are distributed according to a series of milestones and targets, which enables the EU to track progress toward the reforms agreed, though the European Court of Auditors said in its latest annual report earlier this year there is no effective way to measure how the RRF helps countries achieve their long-term goals.

Also read:Five probes against EU budget fraud opened in Luxembourg in 2023

Luxembourg has been allocated €241.1 million in RRF grants to put in place the plan it presented to the EU. About 80% of the country’s plan revolves around the green transition. Like other EU member states, the country has to meet strict criteria and deadlines to unlock parts of the funding.

Also read:Dudelange housing project loses €24 million in EU funds over delays

In July, the country lost €24 million in funding after works on its sustainable housing development project in Dudelange – called Neischmelz – failed to be completed in time for the EU’s deadline.

The government was able to reallocate the €18 million it had sought to another funding mechanism, the REPowerEU intiative, set up to strengthen the EU’s energy independence from Russia in the wake of the country’s attack against Ukraine.

“The Commission will now examine the request, and will then forward its preliminary assessment of the achievement of these milestones and targets to the Council’s Economic and Financial Committee,” the Luxembourg representation said.

Also read:No clarity on how Luxembourg spends EU recovery cash

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Publish date : 2024-12-18 09:40:00

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