Report from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on the implementation of the European Energy Programme for Recovery
Date: 2010-04-27
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU programme, activity report, energy policy, project evaluation, reflation

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 27.4.2010 
COM(2010)191 final 

REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL AND THE EUROPEAN 
PARLIAMENT 

on the implementation of the European Energy Programme for Recovery 

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REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL AND THE EUROPEAN 
PARLIAMENT 

on the implementation of the European Energy Programme for Recovery 

1. 

The European Energy Programme for Recovery: origin and characteristics 

Context and motivation 

The  origin  of  the  European  Energy  Programme  for  Recovery  (EEPR)  lies  in  the  European 
Economic Recovery Plan, adopted by the Commission on 26 November 2008 as a response to 
the economic and financial crisis in Europe. The Plan called for coordinated national action, 
complemented by direct EU action, aimed at injecting purchasing power and boosting demand 
in the economy through an immediate budgetary impulse amounting to € 200 billion. In this 
context,  investing  to  modernise  Europe's  energy  infrastructure  and  production  facilities  was 
singled out as one of the main priorities and the mobilisation of additional resources from the 
EU  budget  was  proposed.  The  European  Council  endorsed  the  Plan  in  December  2008  and 
invited the Commission to present a list of concrete energy projects. Furthermore, the Second 
Strategic Energy Review adopted by the Commission in November 2008 and endorsed by the 
2009 Spring European Council was a key political document, which set the priorities for the 
EU in the energy field for the coming years.  

As  the  financial  and  economic  crisis  unfolded,  public  expenditure  interventions  were 
necessary  to  facilitate  investments  in  energy  networks  and  innovative  renewable  energy 
production and to speed up the development of carbon capture and storage technologies. As a 
result of the recession, planned projects were in danger of being delayed or withdrawn, which 
would  have  undermined  the  Union's  security  of  energy  supply  and  the  quality  of  supply  to 
end-users. The EU stepped in by proposing a series of well targeted and appropriate measures 
to help boost investments in the energy sector.  

It  was  against  this  background  that  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  adopted 
Regulation  (EC)  No  663/20091  establishing  the  European  Energy  Programme  for  Recovery 
(EEPR). The EEPR is a financial instrument whose overall objective is to stimulate recovery 
from  the  downturn  affecting  the  EU  economy  while  bringing  the  EU  closer  to  meeting  its 
energy  and  climate  policy  objectives,  namely  the  security  and  diversification  of  energy 
supply,  the  operation  of  the  internal  energy  market  and  the  reduction  of  greenhouse  gas 
emissions. 

An innovative approach 

 3 980 million 
To pursue these objectives, the EEPR is endowed with a financial envelope of €
 2 365  million  to  gas  and 
in  support  of  three  sub-programmes.  The  Regulation  allocates  €
 565 million to offshore wind electricity projects (OWE); 
electricity infrastructure projects; €
and €
 1 050 million to carbon capture and storage projects (CCS). This Union contribution is 
awarded  in  the  form  of  grants  to  the  promoters  of  the  projects  in  the  three  areas  of  the 
programme. The projects are pre-identified and listed in the Annex to the Regulation, while 

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Regulation  (EC)  No  663/2009  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  13  July  2009 
establishing  a  programme  to  aid  economic  recovery  by  granting  Community  financial  assistance  to 
projects in the field of energy. 

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the  practical  measures  to  implement  these  projects,  as  well  as  their  promoters,  are  selected 
through a call for proposals  on  the basis of detailed eligibility, selection  and  award  criteria. 
The  grants  can  cover  up  to  50%  of  the  eligible  investment  costs  in  the  case  of  gas  and 
electricity infrastructure and OWE projects, and up to 80% in the case of CCS.  

European Energy Programme for Recovery: 
allocation of the financial envelope (EEPR Regulation)

Carbon Capture and 
Storage (CCS) 
€ 1,050 million  
26%

Offshore Wind Energy 
(OWE) 
€ 565 million 
14%

Gas and electricity 
infrastructure projects 
€ 2,365 million
 60%

The  EEPR  represents  an  innovative  approach  to  Union  financing  of  infrastructure  and 
technology deployment in the energy sector. In terms of financial effort, it is the first time that 
such a large amount of funding has been made available under the EU budget. This represents 
a major change compared to the relatively small sums provided so far by the Commission in 
the  framework  of  the  Trans-European  Networks  for  Energy  (TEN-E)  programme,  the  RTD 
Framework  Programmes  and  the  Intelligent  Energy  Europe  (IEE)  programme.  On  average, 
 20, 
TEN-E,  RTD  FP7  and  IEE  provide  energy  projects  with  an  annual  envelope  of  about  €
 300  and  €
 100  million  respectively.  It  should  be  noted  however  that  the  EU  also  supports 
energy  projects  through  financial  instruments  such  as  the  Structural  Funds  as  well  as  the 
European Investment Bank loans and specific financial instruments.  

The  design  of  the  EEPR  instrument  reflects  its  specific  objectives.  From  the  perspective  of 
economic  recovery,  if  a  stimulus  plan  is  to  be  effective  money  must  be  injected  into  the 
economy  quickly.  This  principle  is  reflected  in  the  EEPR  Regulation,  which  requires  that 
legal commitments implementing the EEPR are made by 31 December 2010. Moreover, the 
Regulation requires that the criteria for awarding grants include the maturity of the measures 
proposed for EEPR funding, namely their ability to start incurring capital expenditure in 2010. 

In  order  to  maximise  the  impact  in  terms  of  both  energy  policy  and  economic  recovery 
objectives,  the  EEPR  focuses  on  a  relatively  small  number  of  highly  strategic  projects.  The 
identification of  the projects  was  driven by the EU energy policy orientations set out in  the 
Second  Strategic  Energy  Review  and  in  the  Strategic  Energy  Technology  Plan,  taking  into 
account  progress  made  in  the  implementation  of  the  TEN-E  programme  and  an  adequate 
geographical  balance,  and  consultations  with  stakeholders  in  the  areas  covered  by  the 
programme.  In  line  with  this  approach,  grants  are  awarded  on  the  basis  of  the  applicants' 
ability to contribute to the modernisation and the completion of EU-wide energy networks as 
well  as  to  the  development  and  the  deployment  of  strategic  low  carbon  technologies.  Other 

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key  award  criteria  are:  the  extent  to  which  lack  of  access  to  finance  is  delaying 
implementation of the action; the extent to which the Community grant will stimulate public 
and private investments; and the social, economic and environmental impact. 

2. 

How the EERP fits into EU energy policy 

To  deliver  secure,  competitive  and  sustainable  energy  supplies  over  the  coming  years  and 
decades,  the  EU  faces  the  urgent  task  of  expanding,  renewing  and  making  interoperable  its 
energy  infrastructure  and  decarbonising  its  energy  production  through  the  deployment  of 
strategic  low  carbon  technologies.  These  developments  are  crucial  if  the  EU  is  to  reach  by 
2020 the targets to which all Member States are committed, namely reducing greenhouse gas 
emissions  and  primary  energy  consumption  by  20%  and  increasing  the  share  of  renewable 
energy  to  20%  of  final  energy  consumption.  The  EEPR  addresses  these  challenges  with  its 
three sub-programmes. 

Gas and electricity infrastructure projects 

Investments in gas and electricity infrastructure are necessary to facilitate energy trading and 
help  a  truly  functioning  internal  energy  market  develop.  A  seamlessly  functioning  internal 
energy  market  will  provide  end-users  with  a  quality  service  at  a  lower  cost  and  will  also 
enable  the  European  Union  to  deal  effectively  with  any  supply  disruptions,  such  as  the  one 
that occurred in January 2009. 

The  network  infrastructure  for  transporting  and  trading  energy  across  the  EU  needs  to  be 
further integrated by constructing the missing links. A number of Member States, particularly 
in Eastern Europe and on the edges of the EU, need to be better connected to the rest of the 
EU.  Thus  the  EEPR  is  also  an  instrument  for  enhancing  solidarity  between  Member  States. 
Moreover,  security  of  supply  requires  integrated  energy  networks  within  the  EU,  as  well  as 
the diversification of energy transport routes and resources outside the boundaries of the EU, 
including resources that arrive in the EU in the form of liquefied natural gas (LNG).  

Within  this  framework,  the  EEPR  supports  mature  projects  that,  once  they  are  operational, 
will: 

–  supply  the  European  Union  with  about  50  Bcm/y  of  additional  gas  from  outside  Europe 
entering  through  the  pipelines  Nabucco,  ITGI-Poseidon,  GALSI,  and  the  new  liquid 
natural gas terminals in Poland and Cyprus; 

–  help strengthen the European gas pipeline network by developing new interconnections, or 
reinforcing  existing  ones,  between  Portugal  /  Spain  /  France  (bi-directional),  Germany  / 
Belgium / UK (bi-directional), Romania / Bulgaria / Greece / Italy, Slovakia / Hungary (bi-
directional), and the Baltic countries / Poland / Denmark / Germany; 

–  implement  reverse  flow  in  critical  interconnecting  parts  of  gas  transportation  systems  in 
Portugal,  Romania,  Austria,  Slovakia,  Czech  Republic,  Hungary,  Latvia,  Lithuania  and 
Poland to allow cooperation and gas trading in both directions with adjacent countries and, 
by extension, with more distant countries; 

–  help  enhance  the  European  electricity  grid  by  strengthening  interconnection  capacity 
between  Spain  and  France,  Portugal  and  Spain,  Austria  and  Hungary,  Ireland  and  the 
United Kingdom and also in Central Germany; 

–  integrate isolated regions and ‘energy islands’ by building new important interconnections 
from the Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania) to the Nordic electricity market (Finland, 

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Sweden, Denmark, Norway), as well as from Malta to Italy, and from Sicily to mainland 
Italy. 

Offshore Wind Energy (OWE) 

The  projects  selected  to  receive  an  EEPR  grant  are  forerunners  in  the  offshore  wind  sector. 
The  technologies  that  will  be  demonstrated  and  deployed  on  a  large-scale  —  innovative 
foundation structures (gravity, jackets, tripods, tripiles), multi-MW offshore turbines, modular 
based grid integration technology — are indispensable in order to achieve the ambitious EU 
goals  of  offshore  wind  penetration  in  2020  and  beyond.  The  projects  address  the  key 
challenges as identified in the Commission’s Communication on offshore wind energy and in 
the Strategic Energy Technology Plan’s Industrial Initiative for the wind energy sector2. The 
EEPR grants will secure the installation of the first large size (400 MW) offshore wind farms 
and are expected to result directly in additional carbon-free electricity production capacity of 
about 1500 MW. They play a crucial role in helping EU Member States achieve the binding 
targets for renewable electricity in 2020. The grants will also be fundamental for taking the 
first steps torwards a European offshore grid, thus enhancing trading capacity for electricity in 
the internal market.  

The  EEPR  OWE  supports  the  large  scale  testing,  manufacturing  and  deployment  of 
innovative turbines and offshore foundation structures through: 

–  4  projects  installing  large  offshore  wind  farms  in  the  German  North  Sea  (Bard  I,  Global 

Tech I, Nordsee Ost, Borkum West II) ; 

–  1 project realising an offshore wind testing facility off Aberdeen (UK) ; 

–  1 project realising the next phase of the wind farm on the Thornton Bank  in  the  Belgian 

North Sea.  

The  EEPR  OWE  also  supports  the  development  of  module-based  solutions  for  the  grid 
integration of large amounts of wind electricity generation through: 

–  1  project  providing  an  integrated  inter-connection  solution  for  the  windfarms  in  the 

Kriegers Flak area in the Baltic sea (Germany, Denmark) ; 

–  a  cable  interconnecting  the  Netherlands  and  Denmark,  using  HVDC  technology,  that 

enables the connection of offshore windfarms to the onshore grid ; 

–  an  offshore  hub  on  the  planned  HVDC  link  between  the  Shetland  islands  and  Scotland 
(UK), that will serve as a multi terminal platform for the connection of planned windfarms 
and marine energy generation. 

Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) 

Fossil fuel power plants and heavy industry are among the largest emitters of CO2, accounting 
for 52% of total CO2 emissions worldwide. Fossil fuels will continue to be used in electricity 
production  and  even  if  renewable  sources  do  gain  a  greater  share  of  the  market,  the  use  of 
coal is not expected to drop in the decades to come. Thanks to its ability to decarbonise power 
generation,  the  CCS  can  make  a  major  contribution,  along  with  energy  efficiency  and 

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COM(2008)768 and COM(2007)732 

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renewable  energy  sources,  to  achieving  our  CO2  emissions  reduction  targets.  However,  this 
technology  is  not  yet  commercially  viable  and  needs  to  be  tested.  The  EEPR  addresses  this 
problem  by  supporting  six  large  scale  CCS  demonstration  projects  that  are  expected  to 
develop  the  CCS  concept,  reduce  its  investment  and  operating  costs  and  build  up  public 
awareness  of  this  technology.  The  EEPR  represents  the  first  step  towards  the  objective  of 
making CCS-based power generation commercially viable by 2020. These pioneering projects 
can pave the way for many more to come, since they demonstrate all three main CO2 capture 
technologies,  namely  post-combustion,  oxyfuel  and  integrated  gasification  combined  cycle 
(IGCC).  They  also  use  all  of  the  main  storage  options:  onshore  as  well  as  offshore  saline 
aquifer and depleted hydrocarbon fields.  

In  this  context,  the  EEPR  supports  the  following  mature  CCS  projects  that  aim  to  be 
operational by 2015: 

–  The  project  in  Jaenschwalde  (Germany)  aims  at  demonstrating  Oxyfuel  and  post 
combustion technology on an existing power plant site. Two storage and transport options 
are being analysed. 

–  An installation of post combustion CCS technology on a new 660 MW coal power plant is 
done  by  the  project  in  Porto  Tolle  (Italy).  The  capture  part  will  treat  flue  gases 
corresponding  to  250  MW  electrical  output.  Storage  is  planned  in  an  offshore  saline 
aquifer in the Adriatic Sea. 

–  In  Rotterdam  (The  Netherlands)  post-combustion  technology  will  be  tested  on  an 
installation of 250 MW equivalent. Storage of CO2 is  planned in a depleted offshore gas 
field  near  the  plant.  The  project  is  part  of  the  Rotterdam  Climate  initiative  that  aims  at 
developing a CO2 transport and storage infrastructure for the region.  

–  The project in Belchatow (Poland) will demonstrate post combustion technology in a new 
supercritical  unit  of  a  large  lignite-fired  plant  in  Europe.  Three  different  saline  aquifer 
storage sites located close to the plant will be explored. 

–  In Compostilla (Spain) oxyfuel combustion and fluidised bed technology will be tested on 
a 30 MW pilot plant which will be upscaled by December 2015 to a demonstration plant of 
more than 320 MW. Storage is planned in a saline aquifer nearby. 

–  The project in Hatfield (United Kingdom) will demonstrate pre-combustion technology on 
a  new,  900  MW  IGCC  power  plant.  Storage  is  envisaged  in  an  offshore  gas  field  in  the 
North Sea. The project is part of the Yorkshire Forward initiative that aims at developing a 
CO2 transport and storage infrastructure for the region. 

3. 

EEPR implementation - state of play 

On 19 May 2009 the Commission launched a single call for proposals covering the three sub-
programmes,  inviting  potential  project  promoters  to  submit  proposals  by  15  July  2009.  The 
Commission  received  87  applications:  46  for  gas  and  electricity  projects,  29  for  Offshore 
Wind  Energy  and  12  for  Carbon  Capture  and  Storage.  For  each  sub-programme  a  separate 
evaluation exercise was carried out. The evaluation started in the second half of July 2009 for 
the three sub-programmes. It was completed in September for the OWE and the CCS, while 
for gas and energy infrastructure projects, due to the complexity of the projects and the large 
number of applications, the evaluation took longer and was finalised in November 2009.  

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On the basis of the evaluation committees' recommendations, the Commission prepared award 
decisions  for  each  sub-programme.  The  proposed  award  decisions  obtained  the  favourable 
opinion  of  the  relevant  committees3  and  were  submitted  to  the  European  Parliament  for 
scrutiny.  The  Commission  adopted  the  award  decisions,  on  9  December  2009  for  the  OWE 
and  CCS  sub-programmes  and  on  4 March  2010  for  the  gas  and  electricity  infrastructure 
projects.  

Sub-programme 

Proposals 
received 

Proposals 
selected 

Infrastructure 

- Gas (including reverse flow) 

- Electricity 

Offshore Wind Energy 

Carbon Capture and Storage 

46 

33 

13 

29 

12 

TOTAL (€ billion)  

43 

31 

12 

9 

6 

Grants awarded 

(€ billion) 

2.299 

1.391 

0.908 

0.565 

1.000 

3.864 

 3.98 billion) will 
It is currently estimated that almost the entire EEPR financial envelope ((€
be committed in the spring of 2010. There remains an amount of around €115 million (less 
than  3%  of  the  total)  which  can  not  be  committed.  This  amount  is  not  expected  to  change, 
unless  one  or  more  project  promoters  fail  to  take  up  the  grants  because  of  regulatory 
constraints  and  technological  or  market-related  risks.  The  precise  amount  of  uncommitted 
funds  will  be  known  in  the  autumn  of  2010.  The  Commission  departments  are  currently 
assessing  options  for  the  possible  reallocation  of  unspent  funds,  in  line  with  Recital 7  and 
Article 28 of the Regulation as well as the Commission Declaration annexed to the Regulation 

As  soon  as  the  award  decisions  had  been  adopted,  the  Commission  started  to  make  the 
individual legal commitments. In the case of the OWE and CCS, the legal commitments take 
the  form  of  grant  agreements,  to  be  signed  by  the  Commission  and  the  beneficiary.  For  the 
gas and electricity infrastructure projects, the Commission  adopts individual grant decisions 
and notifies them to the beneficiary. 

Gas and electricity infrastructure projects 

The  Commission  received  46  proposals,  amounting  to  a  request  for  financial  support  of 
 2.364  billion  in  total.  The  proposals  were  evaluated  by  an  internal  evaluation  committee, 
composed of Commission officials supported by a team of external independent experts. The 
evaluation committee recommended 43 projects for funding and the Commission decided to 
award financial support of €
 2.3 billion (31 gas and 12 electricity projects). The 43 individual 
grant decisions are being prepared and should be adopted and notified by May 2010. 

Offshore wind energy projects 

The OWE sub-programme was particularly successful, with 29 proposals asking for financial 
 565 million. 
 1.669 billion in total, largely in excess of the allocated envelope of €
support of €
Based  on  the  recommendations  of  the  evaluation  committee,  composed  of  Commission 
 565 million to the 9 highest-ranking proposals within the 
officials, the Commission awarded €

3 

The  FP7  Programme  Committee  for  the  OWE  and  CCS  sub-programmes  and  the  TEN-E  Financial 
Assistance Committee for the gas and electricity infrastructure projects. 

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€
                                                 
limits of the available budget. Four grant agreements have already been concluded while the 
remaining five are at the signature stage. 

Carbon capture and storage projects  

 1.770  billion  was 
A  total  of  12  proposals  were  submitted.  Overall,  financial  support  of  €
requested,  against  a  financial  envelope  of  €
 1.050  billion  allocated  to  the  CCS  sub-
programme.  Based  on  the  recommendations  of  the  evaluation  committee,  composed  of 
Commission officials and experts from the European Investment Bank acting as observers, the 
Commission  awarded  €
 1  billion  to  the  six  best-ranked  proposals.  Three  grant  agreements 
have been signed and three more are in progress.  

4. 

First assessment of results and achievements 

Given the short time which has elapsed since the EEPR call for proposals was launched, it is 
too  early  to  assess  the  results  of  the  programme.  However,  even  at  this  stage  of  its 
implementation, a first qualitative appreciation of the impact of the EEPR is possible. First of 
all, the success of the call for proposals must be stressed. The high number and quality of the 
proposals  received  confirms  the  relevance  of  the  EEPR  approach  and  the  readiness  of  the 
industry. 

Most  interestingly,  from  the  start  the  EEPR  appears  to  have  been  an  accelerator  of 
infrastructure investments. Indeed, the technical maturity of the selected projects meant that 
pre-feasibility  studies,  cost  and  market  analysis  and  investment  strategies,  in  some  cases 
funded by the TEN-E programme, had already been completed before the EEPR came into the 
picture.  However,  the  perspective  of  the  EU  financial  support  for  capital  expenditure  has 
proven to be decisive in the actual launching of the projects. In particular, EEPR funding has 
acted  as  a  stimulus,  attracting  co-financers  and  encouraging  them  to  make  investment 
commitments.  Thus  it  has  been  possible  to  set  up  projects  that  otherwise  would  have  been 
delayed  or  abandoned  given  the  particularly  severe  funding  constraints  prevailing  in  the 
current economic circumstances. The EU contribution will have an important leverage effect. 
In the case of gas and electricity projects, it is expected that the €
 2.3 billion of EEPR grants 
will help to mobilise up to €

 22 billion of private sector investment over the next 3 to 5 years. 

However, the growth enhancing effect of the EEPR grants is not limited to direct investments 
in the selected projects. It also spills over into the supply chain. This can already be seen in 
the OWE sector, where the projects contribute to creating or securing numerous jobs in new 
factories or production lines for the manufacturing of foundation structures and wind turbine 
components  as  well  as  their  assembly  and  offshore  installation.  Some  of  this  new 
manufacturing activity is taking place in regions where unemployment is particularly high, for 
example near the coastline of Cuxhaven in northern Germany. The OWE projects are the most 
advanced in terms of budgetary execution. As of the end of March 2010, the Commission had 
 65  million.  Further  payments,  totalling 
made  pre-financing  payments  totalling  over  €
approximately €155 million, are planned in the period April – June 2010.  

CCS  projects  are  also  making  good  progress.  The  presence  of  the  EEPR  as  co-financer  has 
been decisive in giving these projects a kick-start. The demonstration effect is already being 
felt  in  the  Rotterdam  and  Hatfield  projects,  which  are  aspiring  to  become  CCS  hubs  with  a 
potential to attract other investments for CO2 transport and storage infrastructure from other 
big CO2 emitters in the region. First orders for installations will be placed during 2010 and 
will lead to substantial capital expenditures and job creation. 

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5. 

Potential risks in project implementation and mitigation measures  

The  projects  supported  by  the  EEPR  may  present  a  high  degree  of  technical,  organisational 
and  financial  complexity  and  therefore  involve  some  level  of  risk.  Successful  project 
implementation  requires  that  all  relevant  environmental  legislation4  is  complied  with, 
construction  permits  are  obtained  on  time  and  project  promoters  stick  to  their  funding 
commitment.  The  active  cooperation  of  national,  regional  and  local  authorities  plays  a  key 
role in the administrative procedures to deliver the necessary authorisations. To address these 
risks,  the  Commission's  individual  grant  decisions  for  gas  and  electricity  projects  will  state 
that, before payments can be made, the beneficiaries must have: 

–  obtained the necessary environmental and construction permits, and  

–  signed an investment decision, namely a formal commitment by the project promoters to 

go ahead with the project, by the end of 2010.  

Should  these  conditions  not  be  met,  the  Commission  will  assess  the  situation  with  a  view, 
possibly, to cancelling the decision and de-committing the funds. 

In  some  OWE  projects,  the  main  risk  is  technological.  For  example,  one  project  will 
demonstrate offshore deployment of 6 MW turbines for the first time, while others will use 
innovative  high  voltage  direct  current  (HVDC)  technology  for  the  grid  integration  of  wind 
electricity  at  yet  to  be  proven  capacities.  In  other  projects,  the  risks  are  more  financial 
(financial  close  foreseen  in  the  next  few  months)  or  administrative  (possible  delays  with 
permits). The technical annexes to the grant agreements explain how the beneficiaries manage 
the risks involved and include plans for obtaining the necessary co-funding and permits.  

As for CCS projects, implementation is progressing smoothly. There are, however, sensitive 
issues  which  need  to  be  monitored.  First,  continued  national  funding  and  industrial 
commitment  will  be  necessary  if  the  CCS  demonstration  projects  are  to  be  successfully 
completed  by  2015.  In  addition,  Member  States  need  to  provide  the  necessary  legal 
framework  for  CO2  storage  by  transposing  the  CCS  Directive5  into  national  law.  This  is  to 
avoid delays in the delivery of CO2 storage authorisation and ultimately in the timely approval 
of  the  final  investment  decision.  Finally,  public  awareness  of  CO2  storage  safety  should  be 
properly addressed as this is critical in the implementation of the CCS projects.  

The responsible services of the Commission, in close cooperation with Member States and/or 
project  promoters,  will  ensure  project  management.  They  will  rely  on 
technical 
implementation  reports  and  cost  statements  to  be  provided  by  the  beneficiaries  on  a  regular 
basis, and will follow-up progress with on-site visits. Where appropriate, the Commission will 
be supported by external independent experts in the monitoring of the EEPR projects and the 
overall assessment of the impacts of the EEPR programme. 

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Important EU environmental acquis is to be complied with, in particular Directive 85/337/EEC on the 
assessment  of  the  effects  of  certain  plans  and  programmes  on  the  environment,  as  amended  by 
Directive 97/11/EC and Directive 2003/35/EC; Directive 2001/42/EC on the assessment of the effects 
of  certain  plans  and  programmes  on  the  environment;  the  Convention  on  Environmental  Impact 
Assessment in Transboundary Context (Espoo, 1991); and Directive 92/43/EEC on the conservation of 
natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora. 
Directive  2009/31/EC  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  23  April  2009  on  the 
geological storage of carbon dioxide 

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9 

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