Austria receives a payment of 1.6 billion euros from the European Recovery Fund
The European Commission announced the allocation of 1.6 billion euros in grants to Austria as part of the NextGenerationEU recovery plan, bringing the total amount received by the country so far to 2.8 billion euros. This comes after Austria successfully met 67 targets and benchmarks set by the European Union.
Reforms and investments in key sectors including digitization, healthcare, pensions, taxes, and the gradual phase-out of fossil fuel heating systems will be funded. Overall, Austria plans to implement 54 reforms and 13 major investment projects. Among the most important of these measures are: banning fossil fuel heating systems in new buildings starting in 2025, replacing more than 30,000 traditional heating systems in existing buildings, along with major investments in pension reform and long-term care.
There is a strong focus on small and medium-sized enterprises, with more than 15,000 digitization projects being supported through this funding. These initiatives aim to enhance Austria's competitiveness, aligning with the European Union's sustainability and climate neutrality goals.
The recovery and resilience mechanism is the core of the NextGenerationEU program, established to help member states recover from the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. It aims more broadly to make Europe more sustainable, digital, and resilient to crises. At the EU level, up to €672.5 billion is being mobilized, of which €312.5 billion is in grants and €360 billion in loans.
Austria is expected to receive around 4 billion euros in grants by 2026. This funding is performance-related, meaning Austria must complete 171 goals and benchmarks within this period. In the first round of funding, Austria has already received 1.15 billion euros for 27 reforms and 32 investment projects, with a particular focus on sustainability, digitization, and improving social and cultural aspects.