The 28 of March 2019, the European Commission (EC) together with the European Investment Bank (EIB) launched the new CEF Transport Blending Facility, an innovative financial instrument.
It is implemented via a cooperation framework between the European Commission and Implementing Partners to support Blending Operations, i.e. investments combining the use of grants and/or financial instruments from the EU budget and financing from the Implementing Partners (via a loan, debt, equity or any other repayable form of support).
The rolling call for proposals has been published on 15 November 2019. The CEF Transport Blending Facility supports two areas which deliver on the Commission's agenda for a clean and digital transport system:
• Deployment of the European Railway Traffic Management System (ERTMS)
• Deployment of Alternative Fuels The relevant priority is the second one. Only Actions which are part of a Project of Common Interest identified in the TEN-T Regulation may receive Union financial support in the form of CEF grant under the CEF Transport Blending Facility.
They should comply with the following:
contribute to the objectives falling within at least two of the four categories set out in Article 4 of TEN-T Regulation;
be aligned to Chapter III of TEN-T Regulation;
demonstrate European added value. Specific eligibility criteria for the Deployment of Alternative Fuels proposals are listed in APPENDIX B of the “CEF Transport Blending Facility under the Multi-Annual Work Programme 2014-2020” Works relating to the deployment of infrastructure for Alternative Fuels shall be located on, or within a maximum distance of 10 km from the trajectories of the TEN-T Core Network, or in nodes of the Core Network as listed in Regulation 1315/2013
Annex II.1 and II.2. Works relating to mobile assets concerning the deployment of alternative fuels shall be eligible provided they are used on the European transport network. Promoters can only apply for the CEF TBF grants with the support of the Implementing Partners.
The complete list of Implementing Partners can be found in the CEF Transport Blending Facility Implementing Partners Proposals to the CEF Transport Blending facility include two elements:
- a Grant Application form submitted by the applicant
- Application File submitted by the Implementing Partner Promoters must engage first with an Implementing Partner that will screen potential operations for their eligibility for a CEF TBF grant and in order to be included in the CEF TBF Project Pipeline.
Implementing Partner will engage with the project promoters to conduct the necessary appraisal in order to obtain the approval of the Implementing Partner’s governing bodies for the project. Promoters with operations included in the pipeline, will prepare a Grant Application form that and will be transmitted to the Implementing Partner, who will then submit the Application File to the European Commission that will decide on the award of the grant.
Detailed information on the application process, the proposal properties and eleigibilities is described in the Call Text[1] and in the Guide for Applicants[2].
Contact with the European Investment Advisory Hub (EIAH)
Project promoters interested in financing and blending opportunities or advisory services in the context of the CEF Transport Blending Facility may receive advice through the EIAH by sending an email request to eiah@eib.org