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Infrastructures : Operational programme large infrastructure might be approved this June in Brussels
Minister of European Funds Marius Nica believes that Romania's Large Infrastructure Operational Programme might be approved in Brussels this June, if officials take all the necessary steps.
In a press release issued on Monday, Nica is reported to have had a meeting with European Commissioner for Regional Policy Corina Cretu as part of a visit last week to Brussels.
The main issues discussed by the two officials related to the latest developments in operational programme large infrastructure and the list of projects for the 2007-2013 financial framework that has to be phased in into the next financial framework.
"After today's discussion, we agreed that the Romanian authorities will take all the necessary steps for the Large Infrastructure Operational Programme to be approved in Brussels this June. Also in June, we would like to submit to the European Commission a list of projects for the years 2007-2013 period that we would like phased in," said Nica.
A revised version of Romania's General Transport Master Plan that was submitted to the European Commission mentions the building of more than 1,300 km of motorways worth 13.739 billion euros, the Transport Ministry reported last week.
The document submitted on May 6, 2015 also mentions the building of expressways of an estimated value of 9.935 billion euros for 1,817 km; trans-regio roads worth 1.7 billion euros (2,887 km), Euro-trans roads worth an estimated 190.1 million euros (343 km) and ring roads worth an estimated 461 million euros (175.8 lm).
On February 25, 2015, the Romanian Government approved a memorandum on the General Transport Master Plan of Romania, under which the funds needed for building road, railway, naval and air infrastructures was estimated at 45.45 billion euros throughout 2030.
Nica and Cretu also discussed of the task force established in Brussels to come to the rescue of EU member states that have a small rate of absorption of European funds.
Nica voiced appreciation over the task force initiated by Commissioner Cretu that comes to the rescue of eight European Union member states which absorption rates are smaller than 60 per cent. The two officials underscored that the joint effort of both sides is of special importance and its deployment is in order to identify efficient ways of boosting the absorption rates under the ongoing financial framework.
"As I also said in Brussels, the work deployed all this time to boost absorption under the ongoing financial framework will generate positive outcomes that would be visible in the second part of the year. At the same time, I trust Romania to show more efficiency in the 2014-2020 period," added Nica.
As of end-April, 2015, Romania's current absorption rate under the 2007-2013 financial framework was standing at 54.22 per cent, up 1.1 per cent from end-March, according to data posted on the website of the Ministry of European Funds (MFE).