Mr Olivér Várhelyi addresses the participants of the Global Gateway Seminar in Rome

Global Gateway Seminar in Rome

Deputy Prime Minister Tajani, dear Antonio,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The Global Gateway is the EU's offer to its partners worldwide to develop connectivity projects and support socio-economic development.

Supporting socio-economic development has been a central priority of my mandate. Right from the beginning, we developed specific Economic and Investment Plans for each of the three regions I am responsible for: the Western Balkans, the Eastern Partnership, and the Southern neighbourhood. These Plans have become the local legs of the Global Gateway Strategy.

Through these Plans, we are investing in transport connectivity, digital and energy infrastructure, and markets. These Plans aim to extensively boost trade and unlock private-sector investments around Europe's neighbourhood.

We aim to leverage EUR 77 billion of investments in the 23 enlargement and neighbourhood countries by 2027. The implementation is entirely on track; we have already mobilized EUR 50 billion in investments in flagship projects.

In the Western Balkans, we have mobilized EUR 16.2 billion of investments. For example:

We extended the Trans-European Transport network by constructing Railway Corridor VIII between Bulgaria and North Macedonia. Construction will continue towards Albania, so in the end, we will be able to connect Italy with the Black Sea by rail. This more than 3000 km east-west corridor would offer huge potential to each country it crosses.

We are also financing the Trans-Balkan Electricity Corridor, linking the electricity systems of Balkan countries with the EU (also linking Italy with Montenegro). Through this investment, we are also supporting the region's green transition.

This year, we have added a new Growth Plan for the Western Balkans on top of the Economic and Investment Plan. The Growth Plan offers a gradual opening of the single market. It provides an additional EUR 6 billion in financing to accelerate economic convergence and provide all the conditions to make enlargement a reality by the end of the next Commission.

The next European Commission has to be an enlargement Commission; we are creating all the conditions now to make it possible and happen.

Moving to the South Mediterranean region, we have mobilized EUR 24 billion of investments. Here, our Global Gateway projects support interconnections and open markets for EU companies.

The first undersea high-voltage electricity cable, the ELMED interconnection between Italy and Tunisia, will increase energy security and harness clean energy potential on both sides of the Mediterranean.

The Medusa project, a 7100 km state-of-the-art submarine optical fibre cable, will connect Northern African countries with the EU, increasing internet speeds in Northern Africa by 200 times for research, services, and e-trade.

We have also developed new comprehensive economic and social partnerships with Egypt and Tunisia that open huge opportunities for the private-sector investments in these countries.

Thirdly, in Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus, we have reached nearly EUR 10 billion in investments in transport and energy. For example, we support Georgia's connection with the EU through underwater electricity and digital cables.

Following the Russian war against Ukraine, we have developed a EUR 50 billion Ukraine facility, which will serve as the basis for rebuilding Ukraine and provide significant opportunities for EU private sector participation.

While public financing is critical for these projects to happen and to support new technologies at competitive prices for the greening and digitalization of economies, the private sector is essential for developing those projects at scale.

To this end we are using our full-scale toolbox to make it a success. We are addressing trade irritants and investment barriers in our policy dialogue and we have developed new tools with International Financing Institutions, to ease access to finance and de-risk your investments We also work with the EU Member States using a common approach to coordinate our investments.

Today's seminar is a prime example of this coordinated approach, and I would like to thank Deputy Prime Minister Tajani for his support.

I wish you fruitful discussions today, and I encourage you to come forward with ambitious and innovative projects to support further the implementation of our Economic and Investment Plans.