Amendments to Regulation (EU) 2021/241
Article 1
Regulation (EU) 2021/241 is amended as follows: (1) in Article 4, paragraph 1 is replaced by the following: ‘1. In line with the six pillars referred in Article 3 of this Regulation, the coherence and synergies they generate, and in the context of the COVID-19 crisis, the general objective of the Facility shall be to promote the Union’s economic, social and territorial cohesion by improving the resilience, crisis preparedness, adjustment capacity and growth potential of the Member States, by mitigating the social and economic impact of that crisis, in particular on women, by contributing to the implementation of the European Pillar of Social Rights, by supporting the green transition, by contributing to the achievement of the Union’s 2030 climate targets set out in point (11) of Article 2 of Regulation (EU) 2018/1999, by complying with the objective of EU climate neutrality by 2050 and of the digital transition, and by increasing the resilience, security and sustainability of the Union’s energy system through the necessary reduction in dependence on fossil fuels and diversification of energy supplies at Union level, including by means of an increase in the uptake of renewables, in energy efficiency and in energy storage capacity, thereby contributing to the upward economic and social convergence, restoring and promoting sustainable growth and the integration of the economies of the Union, fostering high quality employment creation, and contributing to the strategic autonomy of the Union alongside an open economy and generating European added value.’ ; (2) in Article 5, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following: ‘2. The Facility shall only support measures respecting the principle of ‘do no significant harm’, which shall also apply to the measures in the REPowerEU chapters, unless otherwise specified in this Regulation.’ ; (3) Article 14 is amended as follows: (a) in paragraph 3, the following point is added: ‘(d) where applicable, the reforms and investments in line with Article 21c.’; (b) paragraph 4 is replaced by the following: ‘4. The loan support to the recovery and resilience plan of the Member State concerned shall not be higher than the difference between the total costs of the recovery and resilience plan, as revised where relevant, and the maximum financial contribution referred to in Article 11, including, where relevant, the revenue referred to in Article 21a as well as resources transferred from shared management programmes.’ ; (c) paragraph 6 is replaced by the following: ‘6. By derogation from paragraph 5, subject to the availability of resources, in exceptional circumstances the amount of the loan support may be increased, considering the needs of the requesting Member State, as well as requests for loan support already submitted or planned to be submitted by other Member States, while applying the principles of equal treatment, solidarity, proportionality and transparency. To facilitate the application of those principles, Member States shall communicate to the Commission by 31 March 2023, whether they intend to request loan support. The Commission shall present to the European Parliament and to the Council, simultaneously, on equal terms and without undue delay, an overview of the intentions expressed by the Member States and the proposed way forward for the distribution of the available resources. That communication of the intention to request loan support shall not prejudice the ability of Member States to request loan support until 31 August 2023, including in the case of requests exceeding 6,8 % GNI, where the relevant conditions apply. It shall also not prejudice the entering into of the corresponding loan agreement after the adoption of the relevant Council implementing decision.’ ; (4) in Article 17, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following: ‘2. Measures started from 1 February 2020 onwards shall be eligible provided that they comply with the requirements set out in this Regulation. However, the new reforms and investments referred to in Article 21c(1) shall only be eligible where they start from 1 February 2022 onwards.’ ; (5) Article 18(4) is amended as follows: (a) the following point is inserted: ‘(ca) an explanation of how the REPowerEU chapter contributes to addressing energy poverty, including, where relevant, giving adequate priority to the needs of those affected by energy poverty, as well as to the reduction of vulnerabilities during the coming winter seasons;’; (b) point (e) is replaced by the following: ‘(e) a qualitative explanation of how the measures in the recovery and resilience plan are expected to contribute to the green transition, including biodiversity, or to addressing the challenges resulting therefrom, whether they account for an amount that represents at least 37 % of the recovery and resilience plan’s total allocation and whether measures of that type in the REPowerEU chapter account for an amount that represents at least 37 % of the total estimated costs of measures included in that chapter, based on the methodology for climate tracking set out in Annex VI; that methodology shall be used accordingly for measures that cannot be directly assigned to an intervention field listed in Annex VI; the coefficients for support for the climate objectives may be increased up to a total amount of 3 % of the allocation of the recovery and resilience plan for individual investments to take account of accompanying reform measures that credibly increase their impact on the climate objectives as explained in the recovery and resilience plan;’; (c) point (h) is replaced by the following: ‘(h) an indication of whether the measures included in the recovery and resilience plan comprise cross-border or multi-country projects, an explanation as to how the relevant measures in the REPowerEU chapter, including the measures addressing challenges identified in the Commission’s most recent needs assessment, have a cross-border or multi-country dimension or effect, and an indication of whether the total costs of those measures account for an amount that represents at least 30 % of the estimated costs of the REPowerEU chapter;’; (d) point (q) is replaced by the following: ‘(q) for the preparation and, where available, for the implementation of the recovery and resilience plan, a summary of the consultation process, conducted in accordance with the national legal framework, of local and regional authorities, social partners, civil society organisations, youth organisations and other relevant stakeholders, and how the input of the stakeholders is reflected in the recovery and resilience plan, with that summary to be complemented, where a REPowerEU chapter has been included, by setting out the stakeholders consulted, by a description of the outcome of the consultation process as regards that chapter, and by an outline as to how the input received was reflected therein;’; (6) Article 19(3) is amended as follows: (a) the following points are inserted: ‘(da) whether the REPowerEU chapter contains reforms and investments referred to in Article 21c that contribute effectively to energy security, the diversification of the Union’s energy supply, an increase in the uptake of renewables and energy efficiency, an increase of energy storage capacities or the necessary reduction of dependence on fossil fuels before 2030; (db) whether the REPowerEU chapter contains reforms and investments referred to in Article 21c which are expected to have a cross-border or multi-country dimension or effect;’; (b) point (e) is replaced by the following: ‘(e) whether the recovery and resilience plan contains measures that effectively contribute to the green transition, including biodiversity, or to addressing the challenges resulting therefrom, whether they account for an amount which represents at least 37 % of the recovery and resilience plan’s total allocation and whether such measures in the REPowerEU chapter account for an amount which represents at least 37 % of the total estimated costs of the measures included in that chapter, based on the methodology for climate tracking set out in Annex VI; that methodology shall be used accordingly for measures that cannot be directly assigned to an intervention field listed in Annex VI; the coefficients for support for the climate objectives may be increased up to a total amount of 3 % of the allocation of the recovery and resilience plan for individual investments to take account of accompanying reform measures that credibly increase their impact on the climate objectives, subject to the agreement of the Commission;’; (7) in Article 20(5), the following point is inserted: ‘(ca) a summary of the measures proposed in the REPowerEU chapter which have a cross-border or multi-country dimension or effect, including those measures addressing challenges identified in the Commission’s most recent needs assessment; where the estimated costs of those measures account for an amount that represents less than 30 % of the estimated costs of all measures included in the REPowerEU chapter, an explanation of the reasons therefor, in particular a demonstration that other measures included in the REPowerEU chapter better address the objectives set out in Article 21c(3) or that there are not enough realistic projects available which have cross-border or multi-country dimension or effect, in particular considering the lifetime of the Facility;’; (8) the following Chapter is inserted after Chapter III: ‘ CHAPTER IIIa REPower EU Article 21a Revenue from the emission trading system under Directive 2003/87/EC 1. EUR 20 000 000 000 in current prices, obtained in accordance with Article 10e of Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council ( *1 ) , shall be made available as additional non-repayable financial support under the Facility for implementation under this Regulation to increase the resilience of the Union’s energy system through a decrease of dependence on fossil fuels and diversifying energy supplies at Union level. As provided for in Article 10e of Directive 2003/87/EC, those amounts shall constitute external assigned revenue in accordance with Article 21(5) of the Financial Regulation. 2. The allocation share of the amount referred to in paragraph 1 available for each Member State shall be calculated on the basis of the indicators set out in the methodology in Annex IVa. 3. The amount referred to in paragraph 1 shall be allocated exclusively to measures referred to in Article 21c, with the exception of measures referred to in Article 21c(3), point (a). It may also cover expenses referred to in Article 6(2). 4. Commitment appropriations covering the amount referred to in paragraph 1 shall be made available automatically for that amount as of 1 March 2023. 5. Each Member State may submit to the Commission a request for the allocation of an amount not exceeding its share by including in its plan the reforms and investments referred to in Article 21c and indicating their estimated costs. 6. The Council implementing decision adopted pursuant to Article 20(1) shall lay down the amount of the revenue referred to in paragraph 1 of this Articleallocated to the Member State following the submission of a request pursuant to paragraph 5 of this Article. The corresponding amount shall be paid in instalments, subject to available funding, in accordance with Article 24, once the Member State concerned has satisfactorily fulfilled the milestones and targets identified in relation to the implementation of the measures referred to in Article 21c. Article 21b Resources from shared management programmes to support the REPowerEU objectives 1. Within the resources allocated to them, Member States may request under the Common Provisions Regulation for 2021-2027 support for the objectives set out in Article 21c(3) of this Regulation from programmes supported by the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund Plus and the Cohesion Fund, subject to the conditions set out in Article 26a of the Common Provisions Regulation for 2021-2027 and the Fund-specific Regulations. Such support shall be implemented in accordance with the Common Provisions Regulation for 2021-2027 and the Fund-specific Regulations. 2. Resources may be transferred under Article 4a of Regulation (EU) 2021/1755 of the European Parliament and of the Council ( *2 ) to support measures referred to in Article 21c of this Regulation. Article 21c REPowerEU chapters in recovery and resilience plans 1. Recovery and resilience plans submitted to the Commission after 1 March 2023 that require the use of additional funding under Articles 14, 21a or 21b, shall include a REPowerEU chapter containing measures and their corresponding milestones and targets. The measures in the REPowerEU chapter shall be either new reforms and investments, started from 1 February 2022 onwards, or the scaled-up part of reforms and investments included in the already adopted Council implementing decision for the Member State concerned. 2. By derogation from paragraph 1, Member States that are subject to a decrease in the maximum financial contribution in accordance with Article 11(2) may also include in the REPowerEU chapters measures included in the already adopted Council implementing decisions without having them scaled-up, up to an amount of estimated costs equal to that decrease. 3. Reforms and investments in the REPowerEU chapter shall aim to contribute to at least one of the following objectives: (a) improving energy infrastructure and facilities to meet immediate security of supply needs for gas, including liquified natural gas, notably to enable diversification of supply in the interest of the Union as a whole; measures concerning the oil infrastructure and facilities necessary to meet immediate security of supply needs may be included in the REPowerEU chapter of a Member State only where that Member State has been subject to the exceptional temporary derogation in Article 3m(4) of Regulation (EU) No 833/2014 by 1 March 2023, due to its specific dependence on crude oil and its geographical situation; (b) boosting energy efficiency in buildings and critical energy infrastructure, decarbonising industry, increasing the production and uptake of sustainable biomethane and of renewable or fossil-free hydrogen, and increasing the share and accelerating the deployment of renewable energy; (c) addressing energy poverty; (d) incentivising reduction of energy demand; (e) addressing internal and cross-border energy transmission and distribution bottlenecks, supporting electricity storage and accelerating the integration of renewable energy sources, and supporting zero-emission transport and its infrastructure, including railways; (f) supporting the objectives set out in points (a) to (e) through an accelerated requalification of the workforce towards green and related digital skills, as well as through support of the value chains in critical raw materials and technologies linked to the green transition. 4. The REPowerEU chapter shall also contain an explanation as to how the measures in that chapter are coherent with the efforts of the Member State concerned to achieve the objectives set out in paragraph 3, taking into account the measures included in the already adopted Council implementing decision, as well as an explanation of the overall contribution of those measures and other nationally funded and Union-funded complementary or accompanying measures to those objectives. 5. The estimated costs of the reforms and investments in the REPowerEU chapter shall not be taken into account for the calculation of the recovery and resilience plan’s total allocation under Article 18(4), point (f), and Article 19(3), point (f). 6. By derogation from Article 5(2), Article 17(4), Article 18(4), point (d), and Article 19(3), point (d), the principle of “do no significant harm” shall not apply to the reforms and investments under paragraph 3, point (a), of this Article, subject to a positive assessment by the Commission that the following requirements are met: (a) the measure is necessary and proportionate to meet immediate security of supply needs in accordance with paragraph 3, point (a), of this Article taking into account cleaner feasible alternatives and the risk of lock-in effects; (b) the Member State concerned has undertaken satisfactory efforts to limit the potential harm to environmental objectives within the meaning of Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2020/852, where feasible, and to mitigate harm through other measures, including the measures in the REPowerEU chapter; (c) the measure does not jeopardise the achievement of the Union’s 2030 climate targets and the objective of EU climate neutrality by 2050, based on qualitative considerations; (d) the measure is planned to be in operation by 31 December 2026. 7. When carrying out the assessment referred to in paragraph 6, the Commission shall act in close cooperation with the Member State concerned. The Commission may make observations or request additional information. The Member State concerned shall provide the requested additional information. 8. The revenue made available in accordance with Article 21a shall not contribute to reforms and investments under paragraph 3, point (a), of this Article. 9. The total estimated costs of the measures subject to a positive assessment by the Commission under paragraph 6 shall not exceed 30 % of the total estimated costs of the measures included in the REPowerEU chapter. Article 21d REPowerEU pre-financing 1. The recovery and resilience plan containing a REPowerEU chapter may be accompanied by a request for pre-financing. Subject to the adoption by the Council of the implementing decision referred to in Article 20(1) and Article 21(2) by 31 December 2023, the Commission shall make up to two pre-financing payments for a total amount of up to 20 % of the additional funding requested by the Member State concerned to finance its REPowerEU chapter, under Articles 7, 12, 14, 21a and 21b, while complying with the principles of equal treatment among Member States and proportionality. 2. With regard to resources transferred under the conditions set out in Article 26 of Regulation (EU) 2021/1060, each of the two sets of pre-financing payments shall not exceed EUR 1 000 000 000. 3. By derogation from Article 116(1) of the Financial Regulation, the Commission shall make the pre-financing payments, to the extent possible and subject to available resources, as follows: (a) as regards the first pre-financing payment, within two months of the conclusion, by the Commission and the Member State concerned, of the agreement constituting a legal commitment as referred to in Article 23; (b) as regards the second pre-financing payment, within 12 months of the entry into force of the Council implementing decision approving the assessment of the recovery and resilience plan including a REPowerEU chapter. 4. A pre-financing payment in respect of resources referred to in paragraph 2 shall be made following the receipt of information from all Member States on whether they intend to request pre-financing of such resources, and, where necessary, on a pro-rata basis to respect the total ceiling of EUR 1 000 000 000. 5. In cases of pre-financing under paragraph 1, the financial contribution referred to in Article 20(5), point (a), and, where applicable, the amount of the loan to be paid as referred to in Article 20(5), point (h), shall be adjusted proportionally. ( *1 ) Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 October 2003 establishing a scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Union and amending Council Directive 96/61/EC ( OJ L 275, 25.10.2003, p. 32 )." ( *2 ) Regulation (EU) 2021/1755 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 October 2021 establishing the Brexit Adjustment Reserve ( OJ L 357, 8.10.2021, p. 1 ).’;" (9) in Article 23, paragraph 1 is replaced by the following: ‘1. Once the Council has adopted an implementing decision as referred to in Article 20(1), the Commission shall conclude an agreement with the Member State concerned constituting an individual legal commitment within the meaning of the Financial Regulation. For each Member State the legal commitment shall not exceed the total of the financial contribution referred to in point (a) of Article 11(1) for 2021 and 2022, the updated financial contribution referred to in Article 11(2) for 2023 and the amount calculated under Article 21a(2).’ ; (10) the following Article is inserted: ‘Article 25a Transparency with regard to final recipients 1. Each Member State shall create an easy-to-use public portal containing data on the 100 final recipients receiving the highest amount of funding for the implementation of measures under the Facility. Member States shall update those data twice a year. 2. For the final recipients referred to in paragraph 1, the following information shall be published: (a) in the case of a legal person, the recipient’s full legal name and VAT identification number or tax identification number, where available, or another unique identifier established at the national level, (b) in the case of a natural person, the first and last name of the recipient; (c) the amount received by each recipient, as well as the associated measures for which a Member State has received funding under the Facility. 3. The information referred to in Article 38(3) of the Financial Regulation shall not be published. 4. Where personal data are published, the information referred to in paragraph 2 shall be removed by the Member State concerned two years after the end of the financial year in which the funding has been paid to the final recipient. 5. The Commission shall centralise the Member States’ public portals and publish the data referred to in paragraph 1 in the recovery and resilience scoreboard referred to in Article 30.’; (11) in Article 26(1), the following point is added: ‘(h) the progress of the implementation of the reforms and investments in the REPowerEU chapters.’; (12) in Article 29, paragraph 1 is replaced by the following: ‘1. The Commission shall monitor the implementation of the Facility and measure the achievement of the objectives set out in Article 4, including the implementation of the reforms and investments in the REPowerEU chapters and their contribution to the objectives set out in Article 21c(3). The monitoring of implementation shall be targeted and proportionate to the activities carried out under the Facility.’ ; (13) in Article 30, paragraph 3 is replaced by the following: ‘3. The Scoreboard shall also display the progress of the implementation of the recovery and resilience plans in relation to the common indicators referred to in Article 29(4). It shall also include the progress of the implementation of the measures in the REPowerEU chapters and their contribution to the objectives set out in Article 21c(3), and display information on the reduction of the Union imports of fossil fuels and the diversification of energy supplies.’ ; (14) Article 31 is amended as follows: (a) paragraph 3 is amended as follows: (i) the introductory sentence is replaced by the following: ‘3. The annual report shall also include the following information:’ ; (ii) the following points are added: ‘(d) an overview of measures having a cross-border or multi-country dimension or effect included in all REPowerEU chapters, their total estimated costs and an indication of whether the total costs of those measures account for an amount that represents at least 30 % of the total estimated costs of measures included in all REPowerEU chapters; (e) the number of measures falling under Article 21c(3), point (a), included in all REPowerEU chapters, and their total estimated costs; (f) the progress of the implementation of the reforms and investments in the REPowerEU chapter, through a dedicated section which includes lessons learned after analysing the data available on final recipients and examples of best practices.’; (b) the following paragraph is inserted: ‘3a. The information referred to in points (d) and (e) of paragraph 3 shall only be included in the annual report following the approval of the assessment of all the recovery and resilience plans containing a REPowerEU chapter.’ ; (15) in Article 32, paragraph 2 is replaced by the following: ‘2. The evaluation report shall, in particular, assess to which extent the objectives have been achieved, the efficiency of the use of the resources and the European added value. It shall also consider the continued relevance of all objectives and actions as well as assess the implementation of the REPowerEU chapters and their contributions to the objectives set out in Article 21c(3).’ ; (16) the text set out in Annex I to this Regulation is inserted as Annex IVa; (17) Annex V is amended in accordance with Annex II to this Regulation.