The Commission's analysis of the trans-European networks and large environmental projects and their financing requirements can be summarized as follows.
These networks of transport infrastructures will enable our citizens to travel more quickly, more safely and more cheaply, thus improving competitiveness. They will also form links to Eastern Europe and to North Africa. In total some ECU 400 billion of investments in the transport and energy trans-European networks will be required in the next 15 years, of which some ECU 250 billion by 1999.
Article 129b of the Treaty makes it clear how to proceed. The Community*1 establishes a set of guidelines that identify projects of common interest. It then supports the financial efforts of the Member States (feasibility studies, loan guarantees, or interest rate subsidies). It can also contribute to the coordination of the Member States' policies and cooperate with third countries.
The principal guidelines for the networks (master plans) have been proposed by the Commission or adopted by the Council and the Parliament. The Commission has identified a series of priority projects for the next five years - 26 transport projects (ECU 82 billion) and 8 energy projects (ECU 13 billion).
A system of information highways for the Community will provide the best means to create, manage, access and transfer information. It involves:
The environment is an integral element of the trans-European networks, for example concerning combined transport networks designed to get traffic off the roads onto rail. The Commission also has environmental programmes of sufficient size to merit eligibility for financial support from the Community. By way of an indication, these projects concern water control, urban waste water treatment, renovation of water supply distribution systems, and Mediterranean and Baltic Sea clean-ups at an estimated cost of ECU 314 billion in total over 12 years or ECU 174 billion by the end of the century. The Community could help finance some ECU 25 billion in this area of environmental concern over the period 1994-99.
The major portion of finance for these investments will be raised at the level of the Member State, either through private investors (especially in the telecoms sector) or via public enterprises. The Community can, however, play a role, as foreseen in the Treaty, by supporting the financial efforts of the Member States and mobilizing private capital*2. This requires a panoply of financial instruments, as set out in the table below, some of which exist already and two of which are new ("Union Bonds", "Convertibles"). The new instruments are needed for projects specifically included in the Master Plans and complement the lending of the European Investment Bank, which is more general. The budgetary elements remain within the Edinburgh ceilings. National budgets would not be required to support additional financing. In the case of the new instruments, the capital and interest would be repaid by the promoters of the projects, with the Community budget available to back the repayment of the Union Bonds and the capital of the European Investment Fund available in the case of the Convertibles. There would be no risk of destabilizing the capital markets given that the amounts concerned represent less than 1% of the Eurobond and bank credit markets.
Community financing of the trans-European networks
(average financing per year 1994-99)
Source: Amount in billion ecus
Community budget: 5.3
of which
TENs: 0.50
Structural Funds (TENs): 1.35
(environment): 0.60
Cohesion Fund (TENs): 1.15
(environment): 1.15
Research and development (telecoms): 0.50
(transport): 0.05
European Investment Bank (loans): 6.7
Union Bonds
(esp. transport and energy): 7.0
Convertibles guaranteed by EIF
(esp. telecoms): 1.0
TOTAL 20.0