The European Commission announced that it has selected 134 transport projects to receive more than €7bn in EU grants and this represents the largest call under the current CEF Transport programme. Ireland is to receive €157.5m in funding for five projects, two of them at the Cork and Dublin ports are national, the other three are multi-country EU projects with participation of an Irish national entity.
Dublin port will receive €73.8m for the construction of basic port infrastructure to address the expected growth in ro-ro freight traffic. The project involves the construction of two inter-dependent berths (Berth 52 and Berth 53), double tier linkspans, and installation of shore-side electricity supply. The main benefit of the project will be increased efficiency of ro-ro operations.
Port of Cork gets €38.4m for phase two of the Ringaskiddy port redevelopment. The project concerns the construction of basic port infrastructure at the port of Cork to move port operations away from their current location in the city centre. The main benefit of the project will be increased efficiency of operations in the port of Cork.
In total, about 20 maritime ports in Ireland, Spain, Finland, the Netherlands, Germany, Malta, Lithuania, Cyprus, Croatia, Greece, and Poland receive support for infrastructure upgrades, some of which will enable them to supply shore-side electricity to ships, or transport renewable energy.
About 83% of the funding supports projects that deliver on the EU's climate objectives, improving and modernising the EU network of railways, inland waterways and maritime routes along the trans-European transport (TEN-T) network.