Under the reform of EU Cohesion Policy agreed at the end of 2013, all Member States are required to allocate significant shares of Cohesion Policy funding to support the shift towards a low-carbon economy, due to the immensity of the challenge in the area and the important benefits of such investments in terms of regional development, competitiveness, growth and jobs, as well as to alleviate energy poverty.
For the first time, the rules on the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) for 2014-2020 stipulate a mandatory minimum spending for the low-carbon economy: 20% of national ERDF resources in more developed regions, 15% in transition regions and 12% in less developed regions. While ring fencing also exists for the other key priorities of SME support, ICT and research and innovation, mandatory minimum allocations were only applied to the low carbon economy.