EC gives positive preliminary assesment for 1.37 billion euro for Bulgaria under the Recovery and Resilience Plan

The European Commission said on Monday, November 7, it endorsed a positive preliminary assessment of Bulgaria's payment request for 1.37 billion euro ($1.36 billion) of grants under the Recovery and Resilience Facility for the allocation of €1.37 billion in grants to Bulgaria under the first tranche of the Recovery and Resilience Plan.

The money is under Bulgaria's first request since 31 August 2022 and will cover reforms and investments in education, smart industry, climate neutrality, digital connectivity, sustainable transport and road safety, justice, anti-money laundering, social inclusion, health and the audit and control system related to the Recovery and Resileince Facility.

"It is a pleasure to congratulate Bulgaria. According to the assessment of the European Commission's experts, Bulgaria is ready to receive a first NextGenerationEU payment. Once Member States give the green light, Bulgaria will receive €1.37 billion as a result of its good and rapid progress in implementing the first set of reforms and investments set out in the plan. Bulgaria has made important reforms and investments to strengthen the anti-money laundering framework, improve the adequacy and coverage of the minimum income scheme and the provision of social services in the country, reform pre-school, school and higher education and lifelong learning, introduce a new road safety strategy and action plan and create an enabling investment environment for the deployment of high-speed and 5G networks in the country. I am proud that NextGenerationEU will help Bulgaria make its environmental and digital transition a reality and we will continue to support Bulgaria to ensure the success of its NextGenerationEU plan," said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

In order for the funds to be disbursed, the opinion of the Economic and Financial Committee is now awaited, which is due to rule in four weeks. Once it is published, the European Commission will adopt the final decision on the disbursement of the funds in accordance with the procedure and the money can be paid to Bulgaria, the EC explained.

At a briefing at the Council of Ministers, the caretaker deputy prime minister in charge for the management of EU funds, Atanas Pekanov, said that the nearly 2.7 billion BGN in grants that Bulgaria will receive under the first tranche is about 23% of the total amount. The Bulgarian plan is for about 12 billion BGN and includes 12 priorities.

After today's "green light" from the Commission for the first tranche, the priority becomes the work on the second payment, Pekanov explained, adding that most of the laws concerning the second tranche have been written and submitted to the National Assembly for approval.

Atanas Pekanov urged to stop the speculations that Bulgaria is delaying with its Plan as well as the payments under it, and thanked for the congratulations received from EC President Ursula von der Leyen.

He reminded that the reduction of coal emissions by 40% by 2026 remains as a commitment, but at the moment there is no clear mechanism on how to do this. Some of the changes that

need to be made in order to obtain the second tranche are in the Energy Act and the introduction of the concept of fuel poverty.

The Bulgarian Recovery and Resilience Plan includes a broad set of investment and reform measures in twelve thematic components. The plan will be supported by €5.7 billion in grants.

Following today's "green light" for Bulgaria, the country also received congratulations from other representatives of the European Commission.

"Congratulations to Bulgaria for achieving the first 22 milestones and targets set out in its Recovery and Resileince Plan. Once the Commission's assessment has been reviewed by Member States, Bulgaria should receive €1.37 billion in grants. The successful implementation of Bulgaria's plan will help to improve the quality of life of its citizens, leading to positive changes in a number of sectors such as education, health and transport. It will help to prepare the economy for the future by making it greener and more digital, and more rigorous audits will boost overall confidence and efficiency. We will work closely with the Bulgarian authorities to implement the reforms and investments identified in the plan," underlined Valdis Dombrovskis, Executive Vice-President of the Commission for An Economy that Works for People.

"Today we give the green light to Bulgaria's first request for payment under the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism, after concluding that the country has met the first 22 milestones and targets of its ambitious plan. These include important reforms to support the digital transition and to improve the justice, social, education and health systems. Bulgaria has also strengthened its audit and control systems, which is key to ensuring that NextGenerationEU funds bring maximum benefits to citizens and businesses. Following the Council's approval, the Commission will allocate €1.37 billion in grants - a much needed boost of confidence at this difficult time for all our economies and a strong incentive for Bulgaria to continue on the path of investment and reform," said Paolo Gentiloni, Commissioner for the Economy.

Payments are performance-based and conditional on Member States' implementation of the investment and reforms outlined in their respective Recovery and Resilience Plans.