NextGenerationEU: European Commission endorses positive preliminary assessment of Romania's request for €2.6 billion disbursement under Recovery and Resilience Facility

The European Commission has today endorsed a positive preliminary assessment of Romania's first payment request for €2.6 billion, of which €1.8 billion in grants and €0.8 billion in loans, under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), the key instrument at the heart of NextGenerationEU.

On 31 May 2022, Romania submitted to the Commission a payment request based on the achievement of the 21 milestones and targets selected in the Council Implementing Decision for the first instalment. They cover reforms in the areas of sustainable transport, decarbonisation and road safety, in the electricity market, in the replacement of coal in the energy mix, in improving tax and tax administration processes, in stepping up the fight against corruption, as well as reforms of the compulsory education system to prevent and reduce early school leaving, and of Romania's audit and control system for the implementation of the RRF.

With their request, the Romanian authorities provided detailed and comprehensive evidence demonstrating the fulfilment of the 21 milestones targets. The Commission has thoroughly assessed this information before presenting its positive preliminary assessment of the payment request.

The Romanian recovery and resilience plan includes a wide range of investment and reform measures in 15 thematic components. It is worth €29.2 billion in grants and loans, 13% of which (€3.7 billion) have already been disbursed to Romania in pre-financing.

Payments under the RRF are performance-based and contingent on Member States implementing the investments and reforms outlined in their respective recovery and resilience plans.

Next steps

The Commission has now sent its positive preliminary assessment of Romania's fulfilment of the milestones required for this payment to the Economic and Financial Committee (EFC), asking for its opinion. The EFC's opinion, to be delivered within a maximum of four weeks, should be taken into account in the Commission's assessment. Following the EFC's opinion, the Commission will adopt the final decision on the disbursement of the financial contribution, in accordance with the examination procedure, through a comitology committee. Following the adoption of the decision by the Commission, the disbursement to Romania would take place.

The Commission will assess further payment requests by Romania based on the fulfilment of the milestones and targets outlined in the Council Implementing Decision, reflecting progress on the implementation of the investments and reforms.

The amounts disbursed to the Member States are published in the Recovery and Resilience Scoreboard, which shows progress of the implementation of the national recovery and resilience plans in a transparent manner.

President Ursula von der Leyen said: “I have good news for Romania. Sufficient progress has been made under its national recovery and resilience plan, so it's ready to receive a first payment under NextGenerationEU. Once Member States give their greenlight, Romania will receive 2.6 billion euros as a result of its good and swift progress in implementing the plan's first set of reforms and investments. These include measures to step up the fight against corruption as well as reforms to reduce early school leaving and important preliminary steps in reforming its public pensions system. Keep up the good work, Romania! The Commission stands by your side, on your way to recovery.”

Valdis Dombrovskis, Executive Vice-President for An Economy that Works for People said: “Congratulations to Romania for meeting the first 21 milestones and targets set out in its recovery and resilience plan. Many of these will contribute to Romania's green transition, with steps to decarbonise its economy and promote sustainable transport with a focus on developing rail infrastructure. Romania is also improving its tax administration and education systems, as well as strengthening the fight against corruption. Once the Commission's assessment is reviewed and approved by Member States, Romania should receive €2.6 billion in grants and loans to help create a more resilient economy with great benefits for its people and businesses.”

Paolo Gentiloni, Commissioner for Economy, said: “Today we are giving our green light to Romania's first payment request under the Recovery and Resilience Facility, having concluded that it fulfilled the first 21 milestones and targets of its ambitious plan. These include important reforms to decarbonise Romania's economy, improve the functioning of its public administration and enhance economic and social resilience. Romania has also strengthened its audit and control systems, which is key to ensure that NextGenerationEU funds deliver maximum benefits to citizens and firms. Following the Council's approval, the Commission will disburse €2.6 billion in loans and grants: a much-needed injection of confidence at this challenging time for all our economies, and a strong encouragement for Romania to continue on this path of investments and reforms.”

For More Information

Preliminary assessment

Questions and Answers on Romania's disbursement request under NextGenerationEU

Press release: €1.8 billion in pre-financing to Romania

Daily News: €1.9 billion in additional pre-financing to Romania

Questions and Answers: Romania's €29.2 billion recovery and resilience plan

Factsheet on Romania's recovery and resilience plan

Proposal for a Council Implementing Decision

Annex to the Proposal for a Council Implementing Decision

Staff-working document

Recovery and Resilience Facility

Recovery and Resilience Scoreboard