Subject matter and scope
This Regulation establishes the public sector loan facility (the ‘Facility’) for the duration of the 2021-2027 MFF in support of public sector entities by combining grants from the Union budget with loans granted by the finance partners, and sets out the objectives of the Facility. It lays down rules for the grant component of the Facility, covering in particular its budget, the forms of Union support and provisions on eligibility.
The Facility shall provide support benefiting Union territories facing serious social, economic and environmental challenges deriving from the transition towards the Union’s 2030 climate target and the objective of climate neutrality in the Union by 2050.
Definitions
For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions apply:
(1)
‘administrative agreement’ means a legal instrument establishing the cooperation framework between the Commission and a finance partner setting out the respective tasks and responsibilities for the implementation of the Facility in accordance with this Regulation;
(2)
‘beneficiary’ means a legal entity established in a Member State as a public law body or established as a body governed by private law entrusted with a public service mission, with which the Commission has signed a grant agreement under the Facility;
(3)
‘finance partners’ means the EIB, other international financial institutions, national promotional banks and financial institutions, including private financial institutions, with which the Commission signs an administrative agreement to cooperate within the Facility;
(4)
‘project’ means any action identified by the Commission as being eligible for Union support under the Facility, intended to accomplish an indivisible task of a precise economic or technical nature, which has a pre-defined objective and a set period during which it must be implemented and finalised;
(5)
‘territorial just transition plan’ means a plan established in accordance with Article 11 of Regulation (EU) 2021/1056 and approved by the Commission;
(6)
‘loan scheme’ means a loan granted to a beneficiary by finance partners that is aimed at financing a set of several pre-determined projects under the Facility;
(7)
‘less developed region’ means a less developed region as referred to in Article 108(2) of Regulation (EU) 2021/1060.
Objectives
1. The general objective of the Facility is to address serious social, economic and environmental challenges deriving from the transition towards the Union’s 2030 climate and energy targets and the objective of climate neutrality in the Union by 2050 at the latest, set out in Regulation (EU) 2021/1119, for the benefit of the Union territories identified in the territorial just transition plans.
2. The specific objective of the Facility is to increase public sector investments which address the development needs of the territories identified in the territorial just transition plans, by facilitating the financing of projects that do not generate sufficient streams of revenues to cover their investment costs, in order to prevent the replacement of potential support and investment from alternative resources.
3. In pursuing the specific objective referred to in paragraph 2, this Regulation also aims to ensure that advisory support for the preparation, development and implementation of eligible projects, where necessary, including support for the preparation of projects prior to the submission of the application, is provided. That advisory support shall be provided in accordance with the rules and implementation methods for the InvestEU Advisory Hub established by Article 25 of Regulation (EU) 2021/523 of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 19 ) .
Horizontal principles
1. Respect for fundamental rights and compliance with the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, and in particular gender equality, shall be ensured, as appropriate, throughout the preparation, evaluation, implementation and monitoring of eligible projects.
2. Beneficiaries and the Commission shall avoid any discrimination based on gender, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation throughout the implementation of the Facility. In particular, accessibility for persons with disabilities, when relevant, shall be taken into account throughout the preparation and implementation of eligible projects.
3. The objectives of the Facility shall be pursued in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, the European Pillar of Social Rights, the ‘polluter pays’ principle, the Paris Agreement and the ‘do no significant harm’ principle.
Budget
1. Without prejudice to additional resources allocated in the Union budget for the 2021-2027 period, the grant component of the Facility shall be financed from:
(a)
resources from the Union budget at an amount of EUR 250 000 000 in current prices; and
(b)
assigned revenue as referred to in paragraph 2 up to a maximum amount of EUR 1 275 000 000 in current prices.
2. The assigned revenue referred to in point (b) of paragraph 1shall be provided by repayments stemming from financial instruments established under the programmes listed in Annex I to this Regulation, up to a maximum amount of EUR 275 000 000, and from the surplus of the provisioning for the EU guarantee established by Regulation (EU) 2015/1017, up to a maximum amount of EUR 1 000 000 000.
3. The resources and assigned revenue referred to in paragraph 1 may be complemented by financial contributions from Member States, from third countries and from bodies other than those set up under the TFEU or the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community. Those financial contributions shall constitute external assigned revenue within the meaning of Article 21(5) of the Financial Regulation.
4. By way of derogation from point (f) Article 21(3) of the Financial Regulation, resources stemming from repayments referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article shall constitute external assigned revenue within the meaning of Article 21(5) of the Financial Regulation. By way of derogation from point (a) of Article 213(4) of the Financial Regulation, the resources stemming from surplus of the provisioning for the EU guarantee referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article shall constitute external assigned revenue within the meaning of Article 21(5) of the Financial Regulation.
5. An amount up to 2 % of the resources referred to in paragraph 1 may be used for technical and administrative assistance for the implementation of the Facility, such as preparatory, monitoring, control, audit and evaluation activities, including in relation to corporate information technology systems, as well as administrative expenditures and fees of the finance partners.
6. Resources up to an amount of EUR 35 000 000 included in those referred to in paragraph 1 shall be provided for activities set out in Article 3(3), out of which at least EUR 10 000 000 shall support the administrative capacity of beneficiaries, in particular in the less developed regions.
7. Budgetary commitments for actions extending over more than one financial year may be broken down over several years into annual instalments.
Source: EUR-Lex (Publications Office of the EU), © European Union, reuse permitted under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.
