Programme Category
Programme Name
Programme Description
The Connecting Europe Facility is a key EU funding instrument to promote growth, jobs and competitiveness through infrastructure investment at European level.
Identifier Code
Call
Summary
The objective of this call is to support the deployment of strategic networks as part of the Digital Global Gateway Strategy of the EU, contributing to strengthen the quality of connectivity within the Union as well as with third countries. Access to backbone connectivity in EU Member States may differ significantly. In certain regions a lack of adequate backbone connectivity may have an impact on the development of, and service provided by access networks, and may generate possible imbalances in the prices of services, both for network operators in these regions, as well as for the users. This can be the case, for example, for Member States that are themselves islands and/or have islands as part of their territory. For some remote territories such as islands, Outermost Regions and Overseas Countries and Territories, commercial prices and other conditions of backbone connectivity may hinder the full participation of both users and enterprises in the digital European economy.
Detailed Call Description
CEF Digital will support the deployment or upgrade of backbone networks, particularly submarine cable infrastructures, that meet any of the following conditions:
- connect at least two Member States;
- connect a Member State with one or several of its islands, outermost regions, or overseas countries and territories;
- connect one or several Member States and third countries, including accession and neighbourhood countries, directly, or indirectly via other cable infrastructures linked to the Union.
CEF Digital will not support projects that concern routes already served by at least two present or credibly planned submarine cables capable to deliver performances matching the current and foreseeable demand and compliant to EU security standards, in particular regarding ownership and high risk suppliers as described in section 8 of the CEF Digital Work Programme. Only in projects concerning territories (e.g. small islands, hard to reach mountainous regions or territories with limited population density) where backbone connectivity needs can be served using satellite infrastructure, will this technology be taken into account when assessing the lack of redundancy.
The proposed project should be self-standing by providing connectivity according to the objectives of the call, even if the action is part of or will contribute to a wider objective (e.g. a section of a longer cable). The proposal will be evaluated on the basis of its specific objectives as well as its potential contribution to the wider system (existing or credibly planned).
Τhe total project costs required to construct and deliver the described networking solution for the foreseen system lifetime, from end to end, including cable landing stations and the connectivity towards them are covered by the scope of this call.
In the case of satellite backbone solutions, only the costs linked to the construction of satellite ground stations and their interconnection with local networks are within the scope of the call. Furthermore, the proposal should justify the planned satellite constellation infrastructure on which the ground station will rely upon so that the sustainability, security and resilience of the end-to-end connectivity is also evaluated.
The proposal must describe in section 0 of the application form the technical specifications of the planned infrastructure along with the detailed price breakdown, to justify its cost-effectiveness. Any costs for operating the infrastructure during its lifetime and extra components at the landing sites not required for the basic end-toend connectivity such as data centres, hosting facilities and other services will be excluded under the call. Exceptionally, costs covering construction of the local access network can be eligible in order to take advantage of the reinforced backbone infrastructure, in areas where there is no access network capable of supporting gigabit connectivity and when such infrastructure is unlikely to be developed in the near future.
Project costs may include ancillary costs required to construct the local access network if these solutions address the identified market failure and provide a sufficient step change. In such a case, costs related to the deployment or significant improvement of the access network must not exceed 5% of the entire project costs.
Call Total Budget
Financing percentage by EU or other bodies / Level of Subsidy or Loan
The costs will be reimbursed at the funding rates fixed in the Grant Agreement (maximum 50% for the costs of studies, maximum 70% for the costs of works in outermost regions and maximum 30% for all other costs categories.
Those interested can apply for a higher project funding rate if your project concerns: strong cross-border dimension: maximum 50%.
The maximum requested grant amount should not be higher than €20.000.000 per project.
In exceptional cases, proposals combining complementary projects, which may come from different promoters, to achieve a greater geographical reach and avoid overlapping segments may benefit from a higher grant amount, not exceeding however €60.000.000. This would need to be justified through a greater impact (e.g. substantially higher geographical scale, etc.) and catalytic effect (e.g. synergy between different promoters resulting in substantial cost-efficiency gains).
The grant awarded may be lower than the amount requested.
Thematic Categories
- Information Technology
- Research, Technological Development and Innovation
Eligibility for Participation
- International Organisations
- Legal Entities
- Other Beneficiaries
- Private Bodies
- Researchers/Research Centers/Institutions
- State-owned Enterprises
Eligibility For Participation Notes
In order to be eligible, the applicants (beneficiaries and affiliated entities) must:
- be legal entities (public or private bodies)
- be established in one of the eligible countries, i.e.:
- EU Member States including Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs)
- non-EU countries (except for topics with restrictions; see below):
- countries associated to the CEF Programme or countries which are in ongoing negotiations for an association agreement and where the agreement enters into force before grant signature (list of participating countries)
Consortium composition: There are no specific eligibility conditions concerning consortium composition for this call.
Beneficiaries can include (local) operators, utilities, (local) authorities, investors and vendors i.e., entities supplying hardware (including cables, equipment, devices) or systems (including software) that are essential for the performance of the action.
Call Opening Date
Call Closing Date
National Contact Point(s)
Department of Electronic Communications – State Department for Research, Innovation and Digital Policy
Website: https://bit.ly/39IYcFZ
Address: 286 Strovolou Avenue, Strovolos, PO Box 24647, 1302 Nicosia
Telephone: +357 22814854/22814846
Fax: +357 22321925
Email: info.dec@dec.dmrid.gov.cy
Contact person:
Mr. Nikos Ioannou
Electronic Communications Officer
Telephone: +357 22814875
Fax: +357 22321925
Email: nioannou@dec.dmrid.gov.cy
EU Contact Point
For questions please contact: HADEA-CEFDIGITAL-CALLS@ec.europa.eu