Portugal to receive €1.634B more in EU recovery funds after GDP slips

  • Lusa
  • 1 July 2022

The European commission on Thursday released the updated key for the distribution of RRM grants among EU member states, as foreseen in the regulations.

The European Commission announced on Thursday that Portugal is to receive €1.634 billion more than previously planned in grants under the Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP) for spending post-pandemic recovery funds, due to lower-than-forecats gross domestic product.

“In the case of Portugal, the new maximum amount available for grants will be €15,544,449,” the commission says in a statement released on Thursday, indicating that this represents an increase of €1.634 billion under the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism (RRM).

The commission on Thursday released the updated key for the distribution of RRM grants among EU member states, as foreseen in the regulations.

“The update takes into account the difference between GDP growth estimated in the autumn 2020 economic forecast, which, at the time of adoption of the regulation, was the most recent economic forecast available, and the actual data provided by Eurostat,” it notes.

According to the commission, the update will lead to some changes in the RRM grants available to member states, and in order to “enter into force, the changes will need to be reflected in an updated Council implementing decision for the Member States affected.”

The regulation provides that 30% of the total grants available to member states is calculated on the basis of the observed loss in real GDP over 2020 and the cumulative loss of GDP in real terms between 2020 and 2021.

The European Commission in June last year approved Portugal’s RRP of €16.6 billion, including €13.9 billion in grants and €2.7 billion in loans, to be allocated under the plan between 2021 and 2026.