A new report published by CEE Bankwatch revealed that Poland, Croatia and Bulgaria were seeking EU funding under REPowerEU. The three countries intend to invest at least €1,5 billion in new gas infrastructure considered crucial for energy security with €1,15 billion being requested by Poland alone.

CEE Bankwatch analyzes the progress made by 9 central and eastern European countries on updating the national recovery and resilience plan. As of 17 July 2023, “only Estonia, Slovakia and the Czech Republic have submitted their REPowerEU chapters” without including “any fossil gas measures”. 

According to the report, initially Romania “focused heavily on fossil gas projects” for which it had previously intended to request EU financial support. Furthermore, two other countries, Hungary and the Czech Republic also planned to include such projects in their RePowerEU plans.

Nonetheless, according to the latest information obtained by Bankwatch, both Romania and the Czech Republic have recently removed gas investments from their national chapters “following civil society pressure and negotiations with the European Commission.” Also, the Hungarian minister of energy confirmed that gas projects “will not be included in the REPowerEU chapter.”

It is assumed by Bankwatch that our country will continue to seek alternative funding sources for those projects such as the Modernisation Fund. “‘The very idea that EU taxpayers could once again be subsidizing the fossil fuel industry is perverse, especially after a year in which fossil gas companies made record profits,” said Gligor Radečić, co-author of the report. The numbers prove him right: last year, Romanian gas grid operators “saw their revenues double.”