The European Commission will allocate nearly €650 million in grants from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) to help finance 14 cross-border energy infrastructure projects. These projects will play a vital role in strengthening the EU's energy security, increasing the integration of renewable energy and, as a result, Europe's competitiveness. As emphasised in the recently adopted European Grids Package, improved interconnectivity is crucial for the EU to reduce energy prices for consumers and industry and to ensure our independence.

This is the second call for proposals under the first PCI/PMI list. The granted funding goes beyond the call's initial indicative budget of €600 million, mirroring the success and interest seen in the first call from 2024. Furthermore, for the first time, CEF funding will be used to support the protection of critical energy infrastructure and to fund work projects on hydrogen, demonstrating the increasing maturity of the sector.