On Thursday, the European Commission approved Austria’s revised recovery and resilience plan for the reconstruction fund. As announced by the Commission, the plan now amounts to €3.96 billion in grants.
Newly approved was €210 million in non-repayable financial support from the EU REPowerEU program to accelerate renewable energy and hydrogen and the decarbonisation of road transport.
30 reform measures and 34 investment measures
Austria’s revised Recovery and Resilience Plan now includes 30 reform measures and 34 investment measures. This meant that non-repayable aid for Austria was gradually increased from EUR 3.5 billion to EUR 3.75 billion and now to a total of EUR 3.96 billion.
Lion’s share for climate goals
According to the European Commission, the amended plan reserves 56 percent of the available resources for measures in favor of the climate objectives, which easily exceeds the required target of 37 percent. The measures in the REPowerEU chapter would help reduce dependence on fossil fuels, accelerate the use of renewable energy and reduce transport-related CO2 emissions.
EU countries now have four weeks to approve the Commission’s assessment. Once the Council gives the green light, Austria can submit its second payment application and request EUR 42 million as pre-financing from REPowerEU. To date, Austria has received a total of EUR 1.15 billion from the recovery plan: EUR 450 million as pre-financing in September 2021 and EUR 700 million in April after the first payment request.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
