EU set to invest EUR 865m in 5G, gigabit connectivity
5G - Photo by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash
(BRUSSELS) - The EU announced Wednesday it would invest around EUR 865 million to support projects in deployment of advanced gigabit and 5G infrastructures under its Connecting Europe Facility.
The Commission adopted the second Work Programme for the digital part of the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) Digital, which defines the scope and objectives of EU-funded actions to improve Europe's digital connectivity infrastructures. The actions are to receive around €865 million of funding from 2024 to 2027.
The objectives of Europe's '2030 Digital Decade' are to connect all citizens and business with 5G and gigabit connectivity. This is to be done by fostering public and private investments, and contributing to connectivity projects of common EU interest and to the deployment of safe, secure and sustainable high-performance infrastructure, such as Gigabit and 5G networks, across the EU.
The new CEF Digital Work Programme will support actions in the following areas:
- The deployment of 5G infrastructures in Europe, co-financing large-scale projects promoting the rollout of Gigabit and standalone 5G infrastructures, as well as the integration of edge cloud and computing capabilities in vertical sectoral applications, such as health, manufacturing, transport, and logistics;
- The deployment and upgrade of backbone networks, including quantum communication networks and submarine cables, to increase the performance, resilience, and capacity of connectivity networks within and between EU Member States, as well as between the EU and third countries;
- The deployment of operational digital platforms for transport or energy infrastructures, by optimising the energy use of information and communication technology (ICT) and reducing its environmental impact. These operational digital platforms will build on and integrate with existing and emerging European data, cloud and edge computing, and connectivity infrastructures, funded by the Digital Europe Programme and Horizon Europe.
The fourth call under the Connecting Europe Facility Digital programme will be launched in the following days. Interested stakeholders will also be able to attend info days after the launch to find out more about the priorities and main aspects of the calls, as well as the evaluation and award processes.
With a budget of up to €2 billion until 2027, under the Connecting Europe Facility Digital programme, the first two sets of calls so far funded 65 projects, including 30 backbone connectivity projects for the Digital Global Gateways, 17 projects promoting 5G for Smart Communities, and 18 projects in the area of 5G cross-border corridors.
Connecting Europe Facility – Work Programme