The European Commission yesterday granted some €20 million to Malta and Cyprus together to be spent on State energy projects this year.
The funds were allocated as part of an EU Recovery Plan in which the Union is giving member states €5 billion of unspent funds from the current 2007-2013 budget to be used for specific projects related to energy, broadband internet and agriculture. The primary aim is to stimulate the European economy hit by global recession.
It is not yet known how the €20 million combined allocation to the two Mediterranean islands has been decided and how the funds will be divided between them.
Malta was lobbying for a bigger chunk of the pie in order to finance its ongoing multi-million plans for an offshore wind farm and an underwater link with the European electricity grid.
However, Commission sources yesterday told The Times that Brussels preferred to finance projects which have already reached maturity stage and which can be physically started this year.
"This package is intended to stimulate the European economy by pumping extra money directly into the economy this year. Although Malta's projects are important, we felt that they are still at planning stage and won't be able to start this year."
Asked how the €20 million are to be divided between Malta and Cyprus and which projects will benefit from the extra cash, the sources said that this has still to be discussed with the Maltese and Cypriot governments.
Malta is currently planning two major projects in the energy sector. The first is the building of an €80 million offshore wind farm on a shallow reef called is-Sikka l-Bajda, off the Mellieħa coast.
The second, costing some €100 million, is that of connecting Malta to Europe's electricity grid through a submarine cable with Sicily. A feasibility study on this project is currently being finalised by foreign experts commissioned by the government. Most of the €5 billion in the EU's recovery plan were allocated to energy projects. In fact, a total of €3.5 billion is being proposed for investment in carbon capture and storage (€1,250 million), offshore wind projects (€500 million), and gas and electricity interconnection projects (€1,750 million).
Another €1 billion will be going towards projects to extend and upgrade high-speed internet connections in rural communities.
This plan will now need the green light from the European Parliament and the member states. A commission spokesman yesterday said that the EU executive's intention is to deploy these funds to member states by the beginning of summer.