More than one billion euros for 6,800 funded projects since 2014 / Positive results drawn for the 2014-2020 funding period.
ERDF funds fully disbursed: Thuringia has fully utilized the funds from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) from the last funding period. Thuringia's Minister of Economic Affairs, Wolfgang Tiefensee, informed the cabinet of this today. The final deadline for disbursement was December 31, 2023. The Free State had a total of €1.26 billion available from Brussels between 2014 and 2020. "We can now announce completion: These funds have been disbursed down to the last euro to a total of 6,800 projects by companies and research institutions, in urban development and environmental protection," said Tiefensee. The ERDF is a funding instrument of the European Commission for all regions of Europe, designed to reduce development disparities in the areas of business, research, and infrastructure.
The complete disbursement is particularly welcome because the disbursement of funds had been slow for a long time – partly due to delays in major construction projects. As recently as mid-2023, only 75 percent of the funds had actually been disbursed. The fact that all funds could nevertheless be used on time is thanks to the combined efforts of ministries, authorities, and all other bodies that utilize ERDF funds in their respective areas. "The complete disbursement of funds was a bullseye and anything but a given," said Tiefensee.
The minister also gave a positive assessment of the past funding period. The majority of the funds, €367 million, went to research and technology projects, while business support accounted for a second major area with €310 million. "Research, innovation, and the competitiveness of our small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are therefore the main focus of ERDF funding in Thuringia," said Tiefensee. "We allocated well over half of the funds, almost €700 million, to this alone." Funding priorities such as "Decarbonization and Energy Efficiency" (€177 million), "Environmental and Water Protection" (€144 million), and "Sustainable Urban Development" (€126 million) followed at some distance. These three areas include, for example, projects to reduce CO2 emissions in companies, energy-efficient building renovations in municipalities, flood protection, and the modernization of public transport.
Specifically, funding from Brussels has been used since 2014 for, for example,
created more than 5,000 jobs,
subsidizes investments by 3,000 companies,
more than 880 start-ups and young companies in the start-up phase, as well as
Supported 370 companies abroad,
financed more than 400 projects for the development of new products and technologies by companies,
improved the research and working conditions of 1,150 scientists,
544 companies supported in improving their energy balance,
7,000 tons of CO2 and more than 3.5 million kWh of energy consumption saved in public buildings,
26 new, energy-efficient trams purchased, as well as
56 flood protection projects have been implemented.
"With the ERDF, Europe is strengthening Thuringia's position," said the Minister of Economic Affairs. The funding from Brussels has significantly contributed to improving Thuringia's innovation and competitiveness and to successfully managing the structural transformation of recent decades. In the last funding period as well, the Free State made optimal use of European support, thus laying the foundation for further successful development in the future.