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Document 52023PC0265
Proposal for a COUNCIL IMPLEMENTING DECISION amending Council Implementing Decision (EU) (ST 12532/21 INIT; ST 12532/21 ADD 1) of 3 November 2021 on the approval of the assessment of the recovery and resilience plan for Estonia
Proposal for a COUNCIL IMPLEMENTING DECISION amending Council Implementing Decision (EU) (ST 12532/21 INIT; ST 12532/21 ADD 1) of 3 November 2021 on the approval of the assessment of the recovery and resilience plan for Estonia
Proposal for a COUNCIL IMPLEMENTING DECISION amending Council Implementing Decision (EU) (ST 12532/21 INIT; ST 12532/21 ADD 1) of 3 November 2021 on the approval of the assessment of the recovery and resilience plan for Estonia
COM/2023/265 final
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Brussels, 12.5.2023
COM(2023) 265 final
2023/0161(NLE)
Proposal for a
COUNCIL IMPLEMENTING DECISION
amending Council Implementing Decision (EU) (ST 12532/21 INIT; ST 12532/21 ADD 1) of 3 November 2021 on the approval of the assessment of the recovery and resilience plan for Estonia
{SWD(2023) 142 final}
2023/0161 (NLE)
Proposal for a
COUNCIL IMPLEMENTING DECISION
amending Council Implementing Decision (EU) (ST 12532/21 INIT; ST 12532/21 ADD 1) of 3 November 2021 on the approval of the assessment of the recovery and resilience plan for Estonia
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,
Having regard to Regulation (EU) 2021/241 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 February 2021 establishing the Recovery and Resilience Facility 1 , and in particular Article 20(1) thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,
Whereas:
(1)Following the submission of the national recovery and resilience plan (‘RRP’) by Estonia on 18 June 2021, the Commission has proposed its positive assessment to the Council. The Council approved the positive assessment by means of the Council Implementing Decision of 3 November 2021 2 .
(2)Pursuant to Article 11(2) of Regulation (EU) 2021/241, the maximum financial contribution for non-repayable financial support of each Member State should be updated by 30 June 2022 in accordance with the methodology provided therein. On 30 June 2022, the Commission presented the results of that update to the European Parliament and the Council.
(3)On 9 March 2023, Estonia submitted a modified national RRP, including a REPowerEU chapter in accordance with Article 21c of Regulation (EU) 2021/241, to the Commission.
(4)The modified RRP also takes into account the updated maximum financial contribution in accordance with Article 18(2) of Regulation (EU) 2021/241 and includes a reasoned request to the Commission to amend the Council Implementing Decision of 3 November 2021 in accordance with Article 21(1) of Regulation (EU) 2021/241 considering the RRP to be partially no longer achievable due to objective circumstances. The modifications to the RRP submitted by Estonia concern 22 measures.
(5)On 12 July 2022, the Council addressed recommendations to Estonia in the context of the European Semester. In particular, the Council recommended Estonia to expand its public investment for the green and digital transition and for energy security, including by making use of the Recovery and Resilience Facility, REPowerEU and other EU funds. The Council also recommended strengthening social protection, including by extending the coverage of unemployment benefits, in particular to those with short work spells and in non-standard forms of work. It also recommended improving the affordability and quality of long-term care, in particular by ensuring its sustainable funding and integrating health and social services. Furthermore, the Council recommended Estonia to reduce overall reliance on fossil fuels and diversify imports of fossil fuels by accelerating the deployment of renewables, including through further streamlining of permitting procedures, ensuring sufficient capacity of interconnections and strengthening the domestic electricity network. The Council recommended Estonia to increase energy efficiency, including of buildings, to reduce energy consumption. Additionally, the Council called on Estonia to intensify efforts to improve the sustainability of the transport system, including through electrification of the rail network and by increasing incentives to encourage sustainable and less polluting transport, including the renewal of the road vehicle stock. Having assessed progress in the implementation of the 2019, 2020 and 2021 country-specific recommendations at the time of submission of the modified national RRP, the Commission finds that some progress was achieved with respect to the recommendation to strengthen social protection. Limited progress has been achieved with respect to the recommendation to reduce overall reliance on fossil fuels.
(6)The submission of the modified RRP followed a consultation process, conducted in accordance with the national legal framework, involving local and regional authorities, social partners, civil society organisations, youth organisations and other relevant stakeholders. The summary of the consultations was submitted together with the modified national RRP. Pursuant to Article 19 of Regulation (EU) 2021/241, the Commission assessed the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency and coherence of the modified RRP, in accordance with the assessment guidelines set out in Annex V to that Regulation.
Updates based on Article 18(2) of Regulation 2021/241
(7)The modified RRP submitted by Estonia removes three measures to take into account the updated maximum financial contribution. Estonia has explained that, because the maximum financial contribution for Estonia decreased from EUR 969 299 213 3 to EUR 863 271 631, 4 it is no longer possible to finance all the measures of the original Estonian RRP. Estonia has explained that certain measures should be removed due to the decrease in the allocation and taking into account the cost increases and supply chain disruptions affecting the implementation of those measures.
(8)The modified RRP no longer contains certain measures under component 5 (sustainable transport) and component 6 (healthcare and social protection). This concerns measure 5.2 (investment: Construction of a section of the westbound Tallinn-Rohuküla railway), measure 5.3 (investment: Construction of the Rail Baltic multimodal joint terminal in Tallinn) and measure 6.5 (investment: Capacity building for multipurpose medical helicopters). Measure 5.2 consists of the construction of a section of the westbound Tallinn-Rohuküla railway. Measure 5.3 consists of the construction of the Rail Baltic multimodal joint terminal in Tallinn, a part of a greenfield rail transport infrastructure project that is part of the North Sea–Baltic Corridor of the Trans-European Transport Networks (TEN-T). Measure 6.5 consists of the purchase of two multifunctional medical helicopters, including ancillary equipment, maintenance supplies and initial training of personnel needed to operate the helicopters, as well as the construction of landing bases and landing sites at emergency medical centres. The description of these measures and their associated milestones and targets should therefore be removed from the Council Implementing Decision of 3 November 2021.
Amendments based on Article 21 of Regulation 2021/241
(9)The amendments to the RRP submitted by Estonia because of objective circumstances concern 19 measures.
(10)Estonia has explained that two measures are no longer achievable because of the implications of Russian aggression against Ukraine. Due to the latter, it was decided to add a bunker (underground floor) to the hospital that was planned to be built under measure 6.2 (investment: Establishment of the Northern Estonia Medical Campus). Such addition to the construction would further increase the costs, in addition to the ones resulting from high inflation and disruption of supply chains, and delay the construction works beyond 2026. This also entails the removal of the Northern Estonia Medical Campus. This concerns, respectively, milestones and targets with sequential numbers 99 to 105 of measure 6.2 (investment: Establishment of the Northern Estonia Medical Campus). Furthermore, Estonia has explained that the name of milestone with sequential number 94 of measure 6.1 (reform: A comprehensive change in the organisation of health care in Estonia) under component 6 (Healthcare and social protection) needed to be modified because, with the removal of the Northern Estonia Medical Campus, it was no longer necessary to modify the relevant legislation to include the Campus in the list of hospitals. In addition, Estonia has also explained that not all the elements of the milestone with sequential number of 96 of this same measure 6.1 (reform: A comprehensive change in the organisation of health care in Estonia) under component 6 (Healthcare and social protection) can be achieved within the indicative timeline. The delay is due to the necessity to give priority to the legislative work and issuing guidance to nurses who provided support to refugees from Ukraine and only concerns the establishment of a new reimbursement system for nurses. The amendments to the reimbursement system for doctors and pharmacists are not affected by this delay. Therefore, the milestone with sequential number 96 has been split into two milestones and the establishment of the reimbursement system for nurses postponed to Q2 2024. On this basis, Estonia has requested to amend two milestones in measure 6.1 and remove the aforementioned milestones and targets from measure 6.2 and the Council Implementing Decision should be amended accordingly.
(11)Estonia has explained that three measures are no longer achievable at the cost estimated in the original RRP because high inflation and supply chain disruptions have increased the estimated costs of the measures considerably. Inflation was high throughout 2022 and peaked in August 2022 with the harmonised index of consumer prices growing by 25.2%, compared to August 2021. High inflation has been mainly caused by energy prices, which increased notably due to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. However, other prices have also increased fast. For example, growth in construction prices accelerated significantly in 2021 mainly due to supply disruptions of building materials, and price growth accelerated even further in the first quarters of 2022 due to shortages of building materials and labour force in relation to the Russian aggression against Ukraine. According to Estonia, this has made it impossible to procure certain large-scale investments that were included in the original RRP at the prices forecast in 2020. This concerns milestones and targets with sequential numbers 74 and 75 of measure 4.5 (investment: Programme to strengthen the electricity grid to increase renewable energy production capacity and adapt to climate change (such as protection against storms)), milestones and targets with sequential numbers 76 and 77 of measure 4.6 (investment: Programme to boost energy production in industrial areas) and milestones and targets with sequential numbers 78 and 79 of measure 4.7 (investment: Pilot Energy Storage Programme) under component 4 (Energy and energy efficiency). On this basis, instead of decreasing the goals of the corresponding targets compared to the original plan, Estonia has retained those measures in the plan by compensating their increased estimated costs through resources freed up by the removal of other measures under Article 21 of Regulation 2021/241. The description of these measures and their associated milestones and targets remains unchanged.
(12)Estonia has explained that one measure is no longer achievable within the timeline nor at the costs estimated in the original RRP because high inflation and supply chain disruptions have caused delays in construction works and increased the costs of the measure considerably. This concerns target with sequential number 91 of measure 5.4 (investment: Construction of the Tallinn Old Port tram line) under component 5 (Sustainable transport). On this basis, Estonia has requested to extend the implementation timeline and to use the resources freed up by the removal of other measures under Article 21 of Regulation 2021/241 to cover the price increases of this measure and the Council Implementing Decision should be amended accordingly.
(13)Estonia has explained that two measures are no longer achievable because of a significant rise in wage costs and labour shortages in the IT sector. This concerns target with sequential number 6 of measure 1.2 (investment: Development of e-construction) and targets with sequential numbers 8 and 9 of measure 1.3 (investment: Development of digital waybills services) under component 1 (Digital transformation of enterprises). On this basis, Estonia has requested to decrease the corresponding targets of these two measures, compared to the original RRP and the Council Implementing Decision should be amended accordingly.
(14)Estonia has explained that four measures are no longer achievable because supply chain disruptions, unexpected problems, delays with procurements and procedures have led to a delay in the implementation of the measures. This concerns target with sequential number 61 of measure 3.8 (investment: Construction of very high capacity broadband networks) under component 3 (Digital state). On this basis, Estonia has requested to extend the implementation timeline of this target. In the case of one investment, in addition to the reasons mentioned above, Estonia has explained that the milestone with sequential number 42 of measure 2.7 (investment: Creating opportunities for the uptake of renewables-based green hydrogen technologies) under component 2 (Accelerating the green transition in enterprises) is no longer achievable within the timeline because Estonia has to re-design its call for proposals based on the final content of the amendment to the General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER), which was approved after Estonia designed the original call for proposals. On this basis, Estonia has requested to extend the implementation timelines of this milestone. In the case of one reform and one investment, in addition to the reasons mentioned above, the administrative workflow has been disrupted because of the need to quickly integrate the people fleeing the war in Ukraine. This concerns target with sequential number 14 of measure 1.4 (reform: Skills reform for the digital transformation of businesses) under component 1 (Digital transformation of enterprises) and target with sequential number 26 of measure 2.2 (investment: Green skills to support the green transition of enterprises) under component 2 (Accelerating the green transition in enterprises). On this basis, Estonia has requested to extend the implementation timeline of these two targets and to change the name of the IT platform for the registration of the training activities related to measure 1.4. The Council Implementing Decision should be amended accordingly.
(15)Estonia has further requested to use the remaining resources freed up by the removal of measures under Article 21 of Regulation 2021/241 to increase the ambition of two measures and to include five new measures in the modified RRP. In one case, the increased ambition takes the form of increased targets. This concerns targets with sequential numbers 35 and 36 of measure 2.5 (investment: Deployment of resource-efficient green technologies) under component 2 (Accelerating the green transition in enterprises). On this basis, Estonia has requested to increase the aforementioned targets. In another case, the increased ambition takes the form of an additional target. This concerns target with sequential number 69a of measure 4.3 (investment: Support for the renovation of small residential buildings) under component 4 (Energy and energy efficiency). On this basis, Estonia has requested to add the target of this measures to the plan. The inclusion of five new measures concerns milestones and targets with sequential numbers 43a, 43b and 43c of measure 2.8 (investment: Supply security investment support) under component 2 (Accelerating the green transition in enterprises), milestones with sequential numbers 80a, 80b and 80c of measure 4.8 (investment: Boosting offshore wind farms development) under component 4 (Energy and energy efficiency), milestones and targets with sequential numbers 84a and 85a of measure 5.2.a (investment: Multifunctional work vessel) and milestones and targets with sequential numbers 86a and 87a of measure 5.3.a (Investment: Construction of the Rail Baltic viaducts) under component 5 (Sustainable transport) and milestones and targets with sequential numbers 99a and 100a of measure 6.2.a (Construction of TERVIKUM) under component 6 (Healthcare and social protection). On this basis, Estonia has requested to add the milestones and targets of these five measures to the plan and the Council Implementing Decision should be amended accordingly.
(16)The Commission considers that the reasons put forward by Estonia justify the update pursuant to Article 18(2) of Regulation (EU) 2021/241 and the amendment pursuant to Article 21(2) of that Regulation.
Corrections of clerical errors
(17)One clerical error has been identified in the text of the Council Implementing Decision of 3 November 2021 affecting two targets in one measure. The Council Implementing Decision should be amended to correct this clerical error that does not reflect the content of the RRP submitted to the Commission on 18 June 2021, as agreed between the Commission and Estonia. This clerical error relates to targets with sequential numbers 39 to 40 of measure 2.6 (investment: Green Fund) under component 2 (Accelerating the Green Transition in Enterprises). These corrections do not affect the implementation of the measure concerned.
The REPowerEU chapter based on Article 21c of Regulation 2021/241
(18)The REPowerEU chapter includes one scaled-up reform and two new investments. Reform 8.1 aims at facilitating the deployment of renewable energy sources. In particular, building on reform 4.4, the reform will identify suitable areas for deploying wind energy, streamline the permitting framework for renewable energy projects with a focus on wind energy and build up capacity in permitting authorities. Investment 8.2 aims at increasing the capacity of the electricity distribution network to increase the access of renewable energy production facilities to the network. Investment 8.3 has two aims. Firstly, it aims at creating the necessary regulatory, organisational and financial conditions to increase the production and use of sustainable biogas and sustainable biomethane. Secondly, investment 8.3 aims at increasing the installed capacity of production of sustainable biomethane. The contribution of the REPowerEU measures to deploying renewable energy sources should assist in overcoming energy supply shortages and therefore reducing the risk of high energy prices. This should benefit all consumers including the most vulnerable ones. Estonia has also reported to be using resources from its national budget to fund targeted measures addressing energy poverty.
(19)The Commission has assessed the modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter against the assessment criteria laid down in Article 19(3) of Regulation 2021/241.
Balanced response contributing to the six pillars
(20)In accordance with Article 19(3), point (a), of and Annex V, criterion 2.1, to Regulation (EU) 2021/241, the modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter represents to a large extent (Rating A) a comprehensive and adequately balanced response to the economic and social situation, thereby contributing appropriately to all of the six pillars referred to in Article 3 of that Regulation, taking into account the specific challenges faced by and the financial allocation for the Member State concerned.
(21)The Commission considers that the modification of the plan along with the REPowerEU chapter only impacts the assessment of the contribution of the RRP to the first pillar on the green transition. For the other pillars, the nature and extent of the proposed modifications to the RRP do not have an impact on the previous assessment of the plan representing to a large extent a comprehensive and adequately balanced response to the economic and social situation, and on its appropriate contribution to all six pillars referred to in Article 3 of Regulation (EU) 2021/241. The modification will continue strengthening the country's health and economic, social and institutional resilience, as described in the fifth pillar. In particular, the replacement of the Estonian Northern Medical Campus with the TERVIKUM will contribute to improving the resilience and accessibility of the healthcare system in Estonia. For the sustainable transport component, the new measures such as construction of Rail Baltic viaducts and a multifunctional work vessel will continue to address the shift to more sustainable transport under the green pillar and improving transport connectivity under the fourth pillar on social and territorial cohesion similarly to what the previous measures on construction of Rail Baltic multimodal joint terminal and construction of a section of the westbound Tallinn-Rohuküla railway would have contributed.
(22)Regarding the first pillar, Estonia’s modified RRP along with the REPowerEU chapter includes additional measures to address green challenges, in particular under component 2 (Green transition of enterprises), component 4 (Energy efficiency), component 5 (Sustainable transport) and component 8 (REPowerEU chapter).
(23)Green transition related challenges are addressed under a new investment 2.8 in component 2 that aims to support the transition of industrial companies from fossil energy to alternative energy sources. The eligible alternative energy sources are wind, solar, sustainable biogas and geothermal energy, electrification and connection to efficient district heating systems. The fuel switch will have a positive effect in the context of climate change mitigation, energy security and affordability.
(24)An important effort is made by the measure aiming at boosting offshore wind farms development under component 4 that contributes to develop renewable energy resources and thereby increases the share of renewable energy in Estonian energy mix. The construction of new renewable energy production facilities will help to switch to climate-neutral energy production and decrease reliance on fossil fuels.
(25)The newly added sustainable transport measures under component 5 contribute to developing greener transport modes and to increasing the share of climate-friendly transport modes, mainly with the help of rail and maritime transport. The construction of five Rail Baltic viaducts will contribute to the development of a new electrified railway connection, while a new low-emission multifunctional vessel will, among other uses, contribute to protection of biodiversity. These investments will help Estonia to foster a shift to more climate-friendly transport modes and contribute to long-term emission reduction in the transport sector.
(26)The measures in the REPowerEU chapter contribute to achieving the Union’s 2030 climate targets and the objective of EU climate neutrality by 2050 as they aim to incentivise uptake of renewable energy. More precisely, under component 8, Estonia intends to take measures that will facilitate the deployment of renewable energy sources, increase the access of renewable energy production to the electricity distribution network and increase the production and uptake of sustainable biomethane. Four out of the five new measures in the modified plan and all three measures in the REPowerEU chapter are expected to significantly contribute to the green transition, including biodiversity, or to addressing the challenges resulting therefrom.
Addressing all or a significant subset of challenges identified in country-specific recommendations
(27)In accordance with Article 19(3), point (b), of and Annex V, criterion 2.2, to Regulation (EU) 2021/241, the modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter is expected to contribute to effectively addressing all or a significant subset of challenges (Rating A) identified in the relevant country-specific recommendations addressed to Estonia, including fiscal aspects thereof, or challenges identified in other relevant documents officially adopted by the Commission in the context of the European Semester. In particular, the modified RRP takes into account the energy- related country-specific recommendation of 2022.
(28)The modified RRP includes an extensive set of mutually reinforcing reforms and investments that contribute to effectively addressing all or a significant subset of the economic and social challenges outlined in the country-specific recommendations addressed to Estonia by the Council in the context of the European Semester in 2022. In particular on energy, the Council recommended to reduce the overall reliance on fossil fuels and diversify imports of fossil fuels by accelerating the deployment of renewables, including through further streamlining of permitting procedures, ensuring sufficient capacity of interconnections and strengthening the domestic electricity network. The new investments and reforms aim to increase energy security, facilitate offshore wind deployment, increase the capacity in the distribution network, streamline permitting procedures for renewable energy projects and stimulate the production and use of sustainable biomethane. As a result, the measures should help to reduce the overall reliance on fossil fuels by accelerating the deployment of renewables as recommended to Estonia in the country-specific recommendations of 2022. The modified RRP has also increased the ambition in achieving higher targets in investing in renovation of small residential buildings and in deploying resource-efficient green technologies in line with the country-specific recommendation of 2022. Estonia has also been addressing the challenges to diversify imports of fossil fuels and to ensure sufficient capacity of interconnections without resources from the RRP. Regarding the diversification of imports of fossil fuels, Estonia’s efforts have enabled it to stop buying Russian gas by cooperating for instance with Finland to put in place a floating storage and regasification unit. Regarding interconnection capacity, Estonia continues its efforts to synchronise its electricity network with the EU electricity network. The sustainability of the transport system will be improved by the investment in the Rail Baltic viaducts and a multifunctional vessel in line with the country-specific recommendation of 2022 on low-emission transport. The construction of TERVIKUM (a new health centre in the city of Viljandi) will promote the provision of health and social services in an integrated way. This will help to address the country-specific recommendations on improving the provision of health and social services in an integrated way.
(29)The RRP provides a basis for further reforms in the social and healthcare sectors in order to address health workforce shortages, improve the quality of and access to long-term care for all people with care needs, broaden the coverage of unemployment benefits and reduce the gender pay gap, in particular by increasing wage transparency. The measures included in the RRP to address the decarbonisation of the economy are mainly related to investments. In terms of reforms, the concrete actions to phase out oil shale are expected to be set out in the National Development Plan of the Energy Sector only at the end of 2025.
(30)The recommendations related to ensuring that the growth of nationally-financed current expenditure is in line with an overall neutral policy stance, taking into account continued temporary and targeted support to households and firms most vulnerable to energy price hikes and to people fleeing Ukraine is to be considered to fall outside the scope of Estonia’s RRP, notwithstanding that Estonia is projected to continue using the non-repayable support from the Recovery and Resilience Facility in 2023 to finance additional investment in support of the recovery.
Do no significant harm
(31)In accordance with Article 19(3), point (d), of and Annex V, criterion 2.4, to Regulation (EU) 2021/241, the modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter is expected to ensure that no measure (Rating A) for the implementation of reforms and investments projects included in this RRP does significant harm to environmental objectives within the meaning of Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2020/852 of the European Parliament and of the Council 5 (the principle of ‘do no significant harm’).
(32)The modified plan assesses compliance with the ‘do no significant harm’ principle following the methodology set out in the Commission’s technical guidance on the application of ‘do no significant harm’ under the Recovery and Resilience Facility Regulation (2021/C58/01). The assessment is done systematically for each modified reform and investment following the two-step approach. The assessment concludes that for all modified measures, there is either no risk of significant harm or, where a risk is identified, a more detailed assessment is performed demonstrating the absence of significant harm. Estonia has reported on the detailed assessment for the new measures, including those in the REPowerEU chapter. None of the measures in the REPowerEU chapter required a derogation from the ‘do no significant harm’ principle. Where needed, the requirements of the ‘do no significant harm’ assessment are enshrined in the design of a measure and specified in a milestone or target of this measure. Based on the information provided, it can be concluded that no measure does significant harm to environmental objectives within the meaning of Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2020/852.
Contribution to the REPowerEU objectives
(33)In accordance with Article 19(3), point (da), of and Annex V, criterion 2.12, to Regulation (EU) 2021/241, the REPowerEU chapter is expected to effectively contribute to a large extent (Rating A) to energy security, the diversification of the Union’s energy supply, an increase in the uptake of renewables and in energy efficiency, an increase of energy storage capacities or the necessary reduction of dependence on fossil fuels before 2030.
(34)The implementation of the measures included in the REPowerEU chapter are expected to contribute notably to supporting the objectives in Article 21c(3), points (b) and (e) of Regulation (EU) 2021/241. The reform on permitting of renewable energy projects and a measure on sustainable biomethane contributes to objective 21(c)(3)(b) of that Regulation, that is, diversification of the Union’s energy supply by increasing the share and accelerating the deployment of renewable energy and increasing the production and uptake of sustainable biomethane. The investment on the electricity network addresses objective 21(c)(3)(e) of that Regulation, that is, on the necessary reduction of dependence on fossil fuels before 2030 by improving internal transmission and removing distribution bottlenecks and accelerating the integration of renewable energy sources.
(35)The REPowerEU measures are coherent with Estonia’s policy framework aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing the share of renewable energy sources. The measures also reinforce those included in the original RRP on energy storage, strengthening the electricity network and promoting renewable energy in industrial areas as they will eventually result in increasing shares of renewable energy.
(36)The REPowerEU measures have therefore a very strong focus on the deployment of renewable energy sources and their integration into the electricity network which will allow Estonia to increase the share of domestic energy sources in its energy mix. This will reduce the need for importing fuel sources and therefore increase the country’s energy security.
Measures having a cross-border or multi-country dimension or effect
(37)In accordance with Article 19(3), point (db), of and Annex V, criterion 2.13, to Regulation (EU) 2021/241, the measures included in the REPowerEU chapter are expected to a large extent (Rating A) to have a cross-border or multi-country dimension or effect. Within the meaning of the amended Regulation (EU) 2021/241, all three measures in the REPowerEU chapter and therefore 100% of its estimated costs, have a cross-country or multi-country dimension or effect. The measures in the REPowerEU chapter will directly contribute to the production and integration of renewable energy sources into the network. As a result, they will contribute to reducing the dependency on fossil fuels and to reducing energy demand and are therefore considered as having a positive cross-border effect, as established in the Commission’s guidance in the context of REPowerEU.
Contribution to the green transition including biodiversity
(38)In accordance with Article 19(3), point (e), of and Annex V, criterion 2.5, to Regulation (EU) 2021/241, the modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter contains measures that contribute to a large extent (Rating A) to the green transition, including biodiversity, or to addressing the challenges resulting therefrom. The measures supporting climate objectives account for an amount which represents 59.4% of the recovery and resilience plan’s total allocation and 77.6% of the total estimated costs of measures in the REPowerEU chapter calculated in accordance with the methodology set out in Annex VI to that Regulation. In accordance with Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2021/241, the modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter is consistent with the information included in the National Energy and Climate Plan 2021-2030.
(39)In addition to the measures in the green transition in enterprises, energy and energy efficiency and sustainable transport components included in the original Estonian RRP, the modified RRP extends measures on energy efficiency, energy storage and reinforcing the electricity network. With the new measures, Estonia puts emphasis on removing barriers for wind energy deployment and incentivises uptake of renewable energy sources by companies. The addition of an investment into a multifunctional pollution-control vessel also prioritises biodiversity, which was not explicitly covered in the original plan.
(40)Regarding the contribution of the measures of the REPowerEU chapter in Estonia’s RRP to achieving the 2030 climate targets and the objective of EU’s climate neutrality by 2050, they aim to incentivise uptake of renewable energy more broadly on one hand and to develop production of sustainable biogas and sustainable biomethane of local resources more specifically on the other. More precisely, under component 8 Estonia has foreseen measures that will facilitate the deployment of renewable energy sources, increase the access of renewable energy production to the electricity distribution network and increase the production and uptake of sustainable biomethane in line with Directive (EU) 2018/2001.
(41)These measures will have a lasting impact by accelerating the phase out of fossil fuels towards a durable renewable energy system in Estonia. They will considerably reduce the greenhouse gas intensity of the energy used in Estonia and by that contribute to the attainment of the 2030 climate targets and the objective of the Union climate neutrality by 2050.
(42)Given the decreased maximum financial contribution of Estonia’s RRP and the inclusion of new measures incentivising green transition, the climate contribution of the plan has increased from 41.5% to 59.4%.
Contribution to the digital transition
(43)In accordance with Article 19(3), point (f), of and Annex V, criterion 2.6, to Regulation (EU) 2021/241, the modified RRP contains measures that contribute to a large extent to the digital transition or to addressing the challenges resulting from it. The measures supporting digital objectives account for an amount which represents 24.1% of the of the modified RRP’s total allocation, calculated in accordance with the methodology set out in Annex VII of that Regulation.
(44)The positive assessment of the contribution to the digital transition provided in the Council Implementing Decision of 3 November 2021 remains valid. The modified recovery and resilience plan entails small modifications to four measures regarding the digital transition and does not include new measures that contribute to the digital transition.
(45)Given the decreased maximum financial contribution of Estonia’s RRP, the digital contribution of the plan, excluding the REPowerEU chapter in accordance with Article 21c(5), has increased from 21.5% to 24.1%.
Monitoring and implementation
(46)In accordance with Article 19(3), point (h), of and Annex V, criterion 2.8, to Regulation (EU) 2021/241, the arrangements proposed in the modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter are adequate (Rating A) to ensure effective monitoring and implementation of the RRP, including the envisaged timetable, milestones and targets, and the related indicators.
(47)The nature and extent of the proposed modifications to Estonia’s recovery and resilience plan do not have an impact on the previous assessment of the effective monitoring and implementation of the recovery and resilience plan. The milestones and targets that accompany the modified measures, including those in the REPowerEU chapter, are clear and realistic and the proposed indicators for those milestones and targets are relevant, acceptable and robust.
Costing
(48)In accordance with Article 19(3), point (i), of and Annex V, criterion 2.9, to Regulation (EU) 2021/241, the justification provided in the modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter on the amount of the estimated total costs of the RRP is to a medium extent (Rating B) reasonable and plausible, is in line with the principle of cost efficiency and is commensurate to the expected national economic and social impact.
(49)According to the information provided, the assessment of the cost estimates for the new investments and the REPowerEU measures show that most of the costs are reasonable and plausible even though the evidence shows varying degrees of details and depth of calculations. In some cases, details on the methodology and assumptions used to make the cost estimates were limited, partly due to the novelty of the measures, or less clear preventing an A rating under this assessment criterion. Furthermore, the changes in the cost estimates for amended measures were justified and proportional and as such the reasonability and plausibility of these cost estimates were not altered compared to the original RRP. Finally, the estimated total costs of the modified RRP are in line with the principle of cost-efficiency and commensurate to the expected national economic and social impact.
Coherence of the RRP
(50)In accordance with Article 19(3), point (k), of and Annex V, criterion 2.11, to Regulation (EU) 2021/241, the modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter, includes to a medium extent (Rating B) measures for the implementation of reforms and public investment projects that represent coherent actions.
(51)The modifications to the RRP display coherence within each component and show thematic interlinkages and synergies between the different components, in particular those related to the green transition and the newly added REPowerEU chapter. The measures in the REPowerEU chapter have further improved coherence by reinforcing measures in the original RRP on energy storage, strengthening the electricity network and promoting renewable energy in industrial areas. In particular, the REPowerEU measures consist of a reform and investments that aim to increase the production and integration of renewable energy sources. The measure to support energy-efficient renovations in private residences has also been extended significantly compared to the original RRP. The new investment to boost offshore wind development is closely linked to existing measures to increase the share of renewable energy and should result in removing the height restrictions on wind turbines in the Gulf of Riga and three islands, therefore unlocking Estonia’s offshore wind potential. The new investment in health infrastructure ensures that improved access to health care, as envisaged in the original RRP, is still ensured. At the same time, some of the limitations related to coherence of the original plan have not been addressed. The modified plan overall remains stronger on investments than on reforms and the social dimension of the plan has not been strengthened. Concrete actions to phase out oil shale are not included in the RRP and only expected to be set out in the National Development Plan of the Energy Sector at the end of 2025 and broader reforms, such as green taxation, have not been added.
Any other assessment criteria
(52)The Commission considers that the modifications put forward by Estonia do not affect the positive assessment of the RRP set out in the Council Implementing Decision of 3 November 2021 regarding the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency and coherence of the RRP against the assessment criteria laid down in Article 19(3), points (c), (g), and (j).
Consultation process
(53)During the preparation of the modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter, Estonia benefited from support through Regulation (EU) 2021/240 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 February 2021 establishing a Technical Support Instrument (Project title “Support to REPowerEU”). In the context of the preparation of the report, which provided input for the design on measures under REPowerEU, stakeholders were inclusively involved.
(54)In the implementation of the modified plan including the REPowerEU chapter, the stakeholders are consulted for the adoption of the relevant implementing acts for each measure as well as regularly updated on the progress of the implementation of the plan in Estonia’s annual event on the implementation of the Estonian RRP. To ensure ownership by the relevant actors, it is crucial to involve all local authorities and stakeholders concerned, including social partners, throughout the implementation of the investments and reforms included in the modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter.
Positive assessment
(55)Following the positive assessment of the Commission concerning the modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter, with the finding that the plan satisfactorily complies with the criteria for assessment set out in Regulation (EU) 2021/241, in accordance with Article 20(2) of and Annex V to that Regulation, the reforms and investment projects necessary for the implementation of the modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter, the relevant milestones, targets and indicators, and the amount made available from the Union for the implementation of the modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter in the form of non-repayable financial support should be set out.
Financial contribution
(56)The estimated total cost of the modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter of Estonia is EUR 953 330 000. As the amount of the estimated total costs of the modified RRP including REPowerEU chapter is higher than the updated maximum financial contribution available for Estonia, the financial contribution calculated in accordance with Article 11 allocated for Estonia’s modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter should be equal to the total amount of the financial contribution available for Estonia’s modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter. This amount is equal to EUR 953 184 800.
(57)Pursuant to Article 21a(5) of Regulation (EU) 2021/241, on 28 February 2023 Estonia submitted a request for the allocation of the revenue referred to in Article 21a (1) of that Regulation, shared between Member States on the basis of the indicators set out in the methodology in Annex IVa to Regulation (EU) 2021/241. The estimated total costs of the measures referred to in Article 21c(3), points (b) to (f) included in the REPowerEU chapter is EUR 90 040 000. As this amount is higher than the allocation share available for Estonia, the additional non-repayable financial support available for Estonia should be equal to the allocation share. This amount is equal to EUR 83 297 553.
(58)Additionally, in accordance with Article 4a of Regulation (EU) 2021/1755, on 28 February 2023 Estonia submitted a reasoned request to transfer all its provisional allocation from the resources of the Brexit Adjustment Reserve to the Facility, amounting to EUR 6 615 616. That amount should be made available to support the reforms and investments in the REPowerEU chapter as additional non-repayable financial support.
(59)The total financial contribution available to Estonia should be EUR 953 184 800.
REPowerEU Pre-financing
(60)Estonia has requested the following funding for the implementation of its REPowerEU chapter: transfer of EUR 6 615 616 from the provisional allocation from the resources of the Brexit Adjustment Reserve, and EUR 83 297 553 from the revenue from the Emissions Trading System under Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council.
(61)For those amounts, pursuant to Article 21d of Regulation (EU) 2021/241, on 9 March 2023 Estonia requested pre-financing of 20% of the funding requested. Subject to available resources, that pre-financing should be made available to Estonia subject to the entry into force of, and in accordance with an agreement to be concluded between the Commission and Estonia pursuant to Article 23(1) of Regulation (EU) 2021/241 (the 'financing agreement').
(62)Council Implementing Decision of 3 November 2021 on the approval of the assessment of the recovery and resilience plan for Estonia should therefore be amended accordingly. For the sake of clarity, the Annex to that Implementing Decision should be replaced entirely.
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
Article 1
Implementing Decision (EU) of 3 November 2021 on the approval of the assessment of the recovery and resilience plan for Estonia is amended as follows:
(1) Article 1 is replaced by the following:
“Article 1
The assessment of the modified RRP of Estonia on the basis of the criteria provided for in Article 19(3) of Regulation (EU) 2021/241 is approved. The reforms and investment projects under the RRP, the arrangements and timetable for the monitoring and implementation of the RRP, including the relevant milestones and targets, the relevant indicators relating to the fulfilment of the envisaged milestones and targets, and the arrangements for providing full access by the Commission to the underlying relevant data are set out in the Annex to this Decision.”;
(2) In Article 2, paragraphs 1 and 2 are replaced by the following:
“1. The Union shall make available to Estonia a financial contribution in the form of non-repayable support amounting to EUR 953 184 800 6 . That contribution includes:
1. an amount of EUR 759 545 893 that shall be available to be legally committed by 31 December 2022;
2.an amount of EUR 103 725 738 that shall be available to be legally committed from 1 January 2023 until 31 December 2023;
3.an amount of EUR 83 297 553 7 , in accordance with Article 21a(6) of Regulation (EU) 2021/241, exclusively for measures referred to in Article 21c of that Regulation, with the exception of measures referred to in Article 21c (3), point (a);
4.an amount of EUR 6 615 616, transferred from the Brexit Adjustment Reserve to the Facility.
2. The Union financial contribution shall be made available by the Commission to Estonia in instalments in accordance with the Annex to this Decision. An amount of EUR 126 008 898 shall be made available as pre-financing in accordance with Articles 13 of Regulation (EU) 2021/241.
An amount of EUR 17 982 634 shall be made available as pre-financing in accordance with Article 21d of Regulation (EU) 2021/241. That pre-financing may be disbursed by the Commission in up to two payments.
The pre-financing and instalments may be disbursed by the Commission in one or several tranches. The size of the tranches shall be subject to the availability of funding.”;
(3) The Annex is replaced by the text in the Annex to this Decision:
Article 2
This Decision is addressed to the Republic of Estonia.
Done at Brussels,
For the Council
The President
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Brussels, 12.5.2023
COM(2023) 265 final
ANNEX
to the
Proposal for a COUNCIL IMPLEMENTING DECISION
amending Council Implementing Decision (EU) (ST 12532/21 INIT; ST 12532/21 ADD 1) of 3 November 2021 on the approval of the assessment of the recovery and resilience plan for Estonia
{SWD(2023) 142 final}
ANNEX
SECTION 1: REFORMS AND INVESTMENTS UNDER THE RECOVERY AND RESILIENCE PLAN
1.Description of Reforms and Investments
A. COMPONENT 1: Digital transformation of enterprises
The objective of this component of the Estonian recovery and resilience plan is to foster the digital transformation of Estonian companies and their competitiveness, in particular on export markets. It shall provide financial support to companies of all sectors, with a focus on SMEs and microenterprises, at different stages of their digital transformation, as well as specific contributions to the adoption and deployment of digital solutions in the construction and road freight transport sectors. Moreover, the component shall address the key issue of digital skills, through awareness-raising of SME managers and support to the upskilling and retraining of specialists in information and communication technologies (ICT).
Actions aimed at supporting the identification of export opportunities and the promotion of Estonian companies abroad shall be carried out in synergy with the activities of Enterprise Estonia.
The component supports addressing the Country Specific Recommendations on investment in the digital transition (Country Specific Recommendation 3 in 2020) and on skills shortages (Country Specific Recommendation 2 in 2019).
It is expected that no measure in this component does significant harm to environmental objectives within the meaning of Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2020/852, taking into account the description of the measures and the mitigating steps set out in the recovery and resilience plan in accordance with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01).
A.1. Description of the reforms and investments for non-repayable financial support
1.1. Investment: Digital transformation in enterprises
The objective of the measure is to foster the digital transformation of businesses with a particular focus on SMEs and micro-enterprises.
The measure consists in providing financial support to SMEs and micro-enterprises located in Estonia from all sectors for activities and investments relevant to their digital transformation. This financial support, which shall be complemented with the companies’ own resources, shall cover one or several of the following aspects:
-the adoption of digital technologies,
-the development of industrial data clouds,
-industrial research, development, testing and piloting activities,
-feasibility studies, advisory and support services,
-training of staff.
The funding shall be allocated through open calls for proposals.
In order to ensure that the measure complies with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01), the eligibility criteria contained in terms of reference for the calls for proposals shall exclude the following list of activities: (i) activities related to fossil fuels, including downstream use 1 ; (ii) activities under the EU Emission Trading System (ETS) achieving projected greenhouse gas emissions that are not lower than the relevant benchmarks 2 ; (iii) activities related to waste landfills, incinerators 3 and mechanical biological treatment plants 4 ; and (iv) activities where the long-term disposal of waste may cause harm to the environment. The terms of reference shall additionally require that only activities that comply with relevant EU and national environmental legislation may be selected.
The implementation of the measure shall be completed by 31 December 2025.
1.2.Investment: Development of e-construction
The objective of the measure is to contribute to the acceleration of the digital transformation of the construction sector in order to increase its productivity, reduce its environmental footprint and improve the quality of buildings. This investment is also expected to foster a wider and more efficient sharing of data among stakeholders.
The measure consists of three different strands:
(I)the development of software interfaces between the national e-construction platform (which is being developed under the responsibility of the Construction and Housing Department of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications) and existing public and private information systems used in the sector, in order to, inter alia, automate the verifications of the compliance of buildings with various regulatory requirements, as well as the delivery of certificates and authorisations; this includes the training of users of the e-construction platform (including the development of training material);
(II)the support to the introduction of international standards and best practices in relation to the digitalisation of construction and building maintenance, including through the introduction of a construction data classification system, the creation of a database on construction materials and construction products, the introduction of BIM (Building Information Modelling) in the field of property maintenance;
(III)the support to projects (selected through open calls for proposals) aiming at implementing digital construction tools and developing (also prototyping) innovative private and public services connected to the national e-construction platform.
The implementation of the measure shall be completed by 31 December 2025.
1.3.Investment: Development of digital waybills services
The objective of the measure is to support the digitalisation of the exchange of information in road freight transport through the introduction of digital waybills, in accordance with the Regulation (EU) 2020/1056 on electronic freight transport information (eFTI), thus contributing to the smooth functioning of the internal market.
The measure consists in supporting:
(I)service providers in the establishment of eFTI platforms to enable the deployment of digital waybills (eCMR - electronic Consignment Note),
(II)transport and logistics enterprises in the interfacing of their systems and processes with the eFTI platforms, enabling them to use digital waybills (eCMR).
The corresponding projects shall be selected through two distinct calls for proposals.
The implementation of the measure shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
1.4.Reform: Skills reform for the digital transformation of businesses
The objective of the reform is to contribute to strengthening the capacity of businesses at management level to steer and foster the digital transition, as well as to ensuring the availability of sufficient ICT professionals possessing up-to-date skills and knowledge, so that Estonian companies can fully seize the opportunities offered by the digital transition. It also aims at offering new career opportunities to both employed and unemployed people through upskilling and retraining in ICT, as well as through a better recognition of skills acquired outside formal learning. The measure also aims to contribute to increasing the participation of women in ICT training and ICT professions.
The measure consists of the four following strands:
(I)the training of managers in companies (SMEs in particular), in order to increase their ICT skills and knowledge, and raise their awareness about the potential gains from the use of ICT,
(II)a revision of the content and organisation of the training of ICT experts, taking into account the latest technological developments, the growing importance of cybersecurity and the needs of companies,
(III)a pilot for the redesign of the qualification framework for ICT specialists,
(IV)the upskilling and retraining of ICT specialists, including in cybersecurity.
The implementation of the measure shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
1.5.Reform: Supporting the competitiveness of enterprises in foreign markets
The objective of the measure is to increase the export capacity and competitiveness of Estonian companies, including notably those of the ICT sector. The measure is expected to be particularly relevant for SMEs. It shall also take advantage of the possibilities offered by digital tools.
The measure consists of three sub-measures:
(I)the development of export strategies aimed at specific countries or regions;
(II)the establishment of business centres located in key export markets;
(III)the promotion of Estonian products and services (from the ICT sector in particular) through physical, virtual or hybrid missions and events.
The implementation of the measure shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
1.5.1.Sub-reform: Country and regional strategies
This sub-reform consists in the development of a series of comprehensive export strategies addressing key target countries and regions, i.e. those which represent a high growth potential for Estonian companies. They shall include specific chapters on export opportunities for the ICT sector and, more broadly, digital solutions developed in different application areas (such as governance, education or transport).
These strategies aim at providing advice to companies entering or already operating in the concerned markets.
The countries and regions to be addressed by the strategies shall be identified through an analysis to be carried out as part of the implementation of this sub-measure.
The implementation of this measure shall be carried out in synergy with the activities of Enterprise Estonia, among other partners.
1.5.2.Sub-reform: Innovative business centres in key export markets
This sub-reform consists in establishing business centres in seven foreign countries (inside and/or outside the Union) considered as important export markets. These business centres shall contain suitable equipment for physical, virtual as well as hybrid meetings, receptions and presentations which will be organised by Estonian enterprises across all sectors targeting the particular market. That equipment can also be used outside events, for introduction to any potential client of a cluster or a particular enterprise in Estonia. The business centres shall contribute to the promotion of Estonian companies, support them locally in their export activities, and help attract foreign investors. The activities of the business centres shall be carried out in synergy with the activities of Enterprise Estonia, among other partners.
The location of the business centres shall be identified after an analysis to be carried out as part of the implementation of this sub-measure.
1.5.3.Sub-reform: Global e-export impact groups and virtual stages
This sub-reform consists in setting up groups of representatives of both public authorities and other stakeholders, including notably private companies, and supporting the promotion of Estonian products and services (from the ICT sector in particular) by these groups, through missions and participation in physical, virtual or hybrid events.
The implementation of this sub-reform also includes the reinforcement of the promotion of Estonian products and services at major events with the use of digital tools. The so-called ‘virtual stages’ shall create more opportunities of participation for Estonian stakeholders and showcase Estonian digital solutions. These ‘virtual stages’ shall consist of technical solutions combining physical and digital elements to enable either an export-related event in Estonia to reach global audiences, or Estonian exporters to participate in global events organised abroad.
The implementation of this measure shall be carried out in synergy with the activities of Enterprise Estonia, among other partners.
A.2. Milestones, targets, indicators, and timetable for monitoring and implementation for non-repayable financial support
|
Sequential Number |
Related Measure (Reform or Investment) |
Milestone / Target |
Name |
Qualitative indicators (for milestones) |
Quantitative indicators (for targets) |
Indicative timeline for completion |
Description of each milestone and target |
|||
|
Unit of measure |
Baseline |
Goal |
Quarter |
Year |
||||||
|
1 |
1.1 Digital transformation in enterprises |
Milestone |
Call for proposals with award criteria and award conditions |
Publication of the notice of the call for proposals |
Q2 |
2022 |
A call for proposals to support the digital transformation of businesses, together with the award criteria, shall be published by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications. The evaluation criteria and the conditions for granting support shall be defined on the basis of an analysis of the needs of Estonian companies and the expected impact of the measure. Eligibility criteria shall also ensure that the selected projects comply with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01) through the use of an exclusion list and the requirement of compliance with the relevant EU and national environmental legislation. |
|||
|
2 |
1.1 Digital transformation in enterprises |
Target |
Award of grants |
Number of enterprises being awarded a grant |
0 |
110 |
Q4 |
2023 |
Number of enterprises to which grants shall be awarded by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications to support their digital transformation in accordance with the call for proposals. |
|
|
3 |
1.1 Digital transformation in enterprises |
Target |
Award of grants |
Number of enterprises being awarded a grant |
110 |
230 |
Q4 |
2025 |
Number of enterprises to which grants shall be awarded by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications to support their digital transformation in accordance with the call for proposals. |
|
|
4 |
1.2 Development of e-construction |
Milestone |
Adoption of international standards and best practices for the use of digital technologies in construction |
Adoption of international standards and best practices |
Q4 |
2024 |
The work on the adoption of international standards and best practices for the use of digital technologies in construction and the management of buildings shall be led and co-ordinated by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications, with the introduction of a construction data classification system, the creation of a publicly available database for construction materials and construction products and the introduction of building information modelling in the field of property maintenance. |
|||
|
5 |
1.2 Development of e-construction |
Milestone |
Availability of public services on the e-construction platform |
Entry into service of interfaces between the e-construction platform and the related public services |
Q4 |
2025 |
The public services provided for in the e-construction development plan shall be developed, operational and made public on the e-construction platform. Training material shall also be made available to users. This includes services related to the built environment – such as building and planning permits, building registry (logbook), and the renovation passport. |
|||
|
6 |
1.2 Development of e-construction |
Target |
Completion of development and prototyping projects |
Number of projects completed |
0 |
102 |
Q4 |
2025 |
Number of completed projects for development and/or implementation of digital construction tools and prototypes of innovative digital solutions drawing on the e-construction platform. |
|
|
7 |
1.3 Development of digital waybills services |
Target |
eFTI (electronic Freight Transport Information) platforms development |
Number of projects launched |
0 |
5 |
Q2 |
2023 |
Number of projects developing an eFTI platform which have received a positive grant decision. |
|
|
8 |
1.3 Development of digital waybills services |
Target |
eCMR (electronic Consignment Note) interface developments |
Number of projects launched |
0 |
200 |
Q4 |
2024 |
Number of projects enabling transport and logistics operators to be connected to eFTI platforms and use eCMR which have received a positive grant decision. |
|
|
9 |
1.3 Development of digital waybills services |
Target |
Total number of projects completed |
Number of projects completed |
0 |
205 |
Q4 |
2025 |
Number of eFTI and eCMR projects completed, contributing to the deployment of digital waybills. |
|
|
10 |
1.3 Development of digital waybills services |
Milestone |
Ex-post evaluation of the development and deployment of the digital waybills |
Adoption of ex-post evaluation report by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications |
Q2 |
2026 |
An external body shall analyse the impact of the support measure on the road freight transport sector and deliver an evaluation report, which shall be adopted by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications. |
|||
|
11 |
1.4 Skills reform for the digital transformation of businesses |
Milestone |
Entry into force of secondary legislation setting out the terms of support for the development of digital skills |
Entry into force of secondary legislation |
Q2 |
2022 |
The secondary legislation necessary for the application and allocation of support shall enter into force. The conditions for support shall be established through a ministerial decree, which shall be coordinated with the Ministry of Finance and the State Shared Service Centre. The ministerial decree shall consist of the following elements: -objective of the measure, -description of supported activities, -beneficiaries and target groups, -conditions for implementation, -eligible costs and used simplifications, -conditions for payments, conditions for reporting and monitoring. |
|||
|
12 |
1.4 Skills reform for the digital transformation of businesses |
Target |
Enrolment in training activities |
Number of participants |
0 |
500 |
Q4 |
2023 |
Number of people enrolled in training activities supported under this measure, consisting of awareness-raising for SME managers, and upskilling and retraining for ICT specialists. A minimum of 35% of participants enrolled in these training activities shall be women. |
|
|
13 |
1.4 Skills reform for the digital transformation of businesses |
Target |
Completion of training activities |
Number of participants |
0 |
2000 |
Q2 |
2026 |
Number of people having completed their training course through the training activities supported under this measure, including awareness-raising for SME managers, and upskilling and retraining for ICT specialists. A minimum of 35% of participants having completed these training activities shall be women. |
|
|
14 |
1.4 Skills reform for the digital transformation of businesses |
Target |
Number of new upskilling and retraining modules |
Number of curricula registered in Estonia’s Adult training information system |
0 |
5 |
Q4 |
2024 |
Number of upskilling and retraining modules developed with detailed training content, structure and training materials to provide training related to digital skills. New curricula developed for these modules shall be registered in Estonia’s Adult training information system. |
|
|
15 |
1.4 Skills reform for the digital transformation of businesses |
Target |
Review of qualification standards for ICT specialists. |
Number of qualification standards analysed and adapted as and if needed |
0 |
5 |
Q4 |
2024 |
Number of established qualification standards for ICT specialists from the national register of qualification standards which have been analysed and adapted as and if needed. |
|
|
16 |
1.5 Supporting the competitiveness of enterprises in foreign markets 1.5.1 Country and regional strategies |
Milestone |
Preparation of the development of strategies |
Completion of preparatory tasks |
Q2 |
2022 |
The preparatory tasks needed to draw up export strategies shall be completed. These tasks include: -an analysis of which external markets are important to develop strategies, -an analysis of the interests of businesses, a mapping of the needs of exporting enterprises to increase their competitiveness on export markets, the ranking of the needs. |
|||
|
17 |
1.5 Supporting the competitiveness of enterprises in foreign markets 1.5.1 Country and regional strategies |
Milestone |
Procurement of studies |
Signature of contracts |
Q2 |
2024 |
Tenders for drawing up strategies and product packages with a view to obtaining detailed market information on foreign markets shall be carried out by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The corresponding contracts shall be signed. |
|||
|
18 |
1.5 Supporting the competitiveness of enterprises in foreign markets 1.5.1 Country and regional strategies |
Target |
Number of country and regional export strategies |
Number of strategies published |
0 |
13 |
Q2 |
2026 |
Number of national and/or regional export strategies which shall be developed. These strategies shall contain comprehensive analyses and provide proactive smart advice for companies entering and operating in foreign markets. |
|
|
19 |
1.5 Supporting the competitiveness of enterprises in foreign markets 1.5.2 Innovative business centres in key export markets |
Milestone |
Preparatory analysis to define the content and the locations of business centres |
Delivery of a preparatory analysis |
Q2 |
2022 |
A preparatory analysis allowing the definition of the content and the locations of the business centres shall be prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The analysis shall reveal where to set up business centres to increase demand for Estonian-made products and services in export markets. |
|||
|
20 |
1.5 Supporting the competitiveness of enterprises in foreign markets 1.5.2 Innovative business centres in key export markets |
Target |
Number of business centres opened |
Number of business centres |
0 |
7 |
Q2 |
2026 |
Number of business centres opened by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to support companies in entering and operating in important export markets, as well as to help them to promote Estonian-made products and services in a way that takes into account the specificities of local business environment and culture. |
|
|
21 |
1.5 Supporting the competitiveness of enterprises in foreign markets 1.5.3 Global e-export impact groups and virtual stages |
Milestone |
Setting-up of impact groups and selection of destinations for global digital missions |
Decisions on the composition of the impact groups and the destinations of the global digital missions |
Q2 |
2022 |
Based on an analysis, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs shall select global digital mission destinations and impact groups to increase the added value of Estonian digital services exports, increase the export capacity of Estonian companies, among which ICT companies in particular, and attract additional foreign investments for innovation. |
|||
|
22 |
1.5 Supporting the competitiveness of enterprises in foreign markets 1.5.3 Global e-export impact groups and virtual stages |
Target |
Number of missions carried out by the global impact groups and number of major events in which Estonia was represented through ‘virtual stages’ |
Total of number of missions and events carried out |
0 |
29 |
Q2 |
2026 |
At least 14 missions shall be carried out by the global impact groups set up by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to increase the added value of Estonian digital services exports, increase the export capacity of Estonian companies, among which ICT companies in particular, and attract additional foreign investments for innovation. Estonia shall be represented through ‘virtual stages’ in at least 15 events. |
|
B.COMPONENT 2: Accelerating the green transition in enterprises
Description of the reforms and investments for non-repayable financial support
The objective of the component of the Estonian recover and resilience plan is to speed up the green transition in the business sector in Estonia and to seize the business opportunities it represents. The component consists of two reforms and six investments and aims to support the development of green technologies, increase green R&D and innovation capabilities and resource efficiency, introduce new business models and improve skills and expertise in fields related to the green transition. The measures under this component aim for a comprehensive approach to the green transition addressing key market failures and facilitating the technological and behavioural breakthrough to increase the competitiveness of the business sector. The measures also support further development of the capital market and business environment.
The component supports addressing the Country Specific Recommendations on supporting the innovation capacity of small and medium-sized enterprises and focussing investment on the green transition, ensuring sufficient access to finance (Country Specific Recommendation 3 in 2020), on skills shortages (Country Specific Recommendation 2 in 2019) and reducing reliance on fossil fuels (Country Specific Recommendation 4 in 2022).
It is expected that no measure in this component does significant harm to environmental objectives within the meaning of Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2020/852, taking into account the description of the measures and the mitigating steps set out in the recovery and resilience plan in accordance with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01).
2.1. Reform: Green transition of enterprises
The objective of the reform is to improve the green transition in the business sector, which is expected to have economic, environmental and social benefits by making existing businesses more efficient and environmentally friendly (resource efficiency, new green transition certificates and market authorisations for products) and by supporting the emergence of new green technology companies (development and deployment of green technologies, new opportunities for the valorisation of bio-resources).
The reform shall consist of the set-up of a broad-based Green Transition Task Force to foster cooperation between the green technology stakeholders and the adoption of legislation necessary for the implementation of the five complementary investments: 1. Green skills to support the green transition of companies; 2. Green technology development programmes; 3 Modernisation of the business models in manufacturing companies; 4. Deployment of resource efficient green technologies; and 5. Green Fund.
The reform is interlinked with Component 1 as digitalisation and automation are contributing to the development of green technologies and green transition in the business sector.
The implementation of the reform shall be completed by 31 December 2022.
2.2. Investment: Green skills to support the green transition of enterprises
The objective of the investment is to ensure the availability of high-quality expertise to implement the green transition in enterprises. The investment consists of the introduction of up-to-date upskilling and retraining programmes for adults and the modernisation of study programmes in higher and vocational education, as well as the development and piloting more flexible training programmes offering micro credentials, taking into account future needs of the green economy.
Green skills are defined as skills needed for jobs that contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, improving energy and resource efficiency and include a wider introduction of circular economy principles. In cooperation with stakeholders, professional standards and skills profiles shall be updated and, where appropriate, new profiles shall be developed, specifying the expected learning outcomes and selecting specific areas with the greatest impact on the green transition. Retraining opportunities shall be provided to people working in sectors already affected by the green transition (energy, transport, waste management; new industries and sectors with a potential for creation of jobs stemming from or linked to the green transition) and to those wishing to change their career.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
2.3. Investment: Green technologies development programmes
The investment aims to contribute to the green transition of the companies by fostering the development and spreading of innovative green technologies. The investment is expected to increase the number of research-intensive green technology companies in the market and support the start-up ecosystem. The investment consists of support to start-ups and development clusters with a focus on integrated green technology solutions through various development services (including accelerators, incubation, business development, prototype development, piloting) and improvement of the cooperation between different types of organisations and actors that are already active on the market (academia, businesses, other stakeholders).
The focus of the investment shall be on energy and resource efficiency, promoting the circular economy, new business models, digitalisation and automation. The projects supported under the investment shall contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing resource productivity in Estonia.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
2.4. Investment: Modernisation of the business models in manufacturing companies
The objective of the investment is to support the change of business models in manufacturing to ensure the compliance of Estonian products with environmental and climate objectives, including with circular economy principles, and raise competitiveness of manufacturing companies. The measure shall support projects modernising the business models of manufacturing companies related to climate and environmental objectives. The projects shall be selected on the basis of a call for proposals.
In order to ensure that the measure complies with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01), the eligibility criteria contained in terms of reference for the call for proposals shall exclude the following list of activities: (i) activities related to fossil fuels, including downstream use 5 ; (ii) activities under the EU Emission Trading System (ETS) achieving projected greenhouse gas emissions that are not lower than the relevant benchmarks 6 ; (iii) activities related to waste landfills, incinerators 7 and mechanical biological treatment plants 8 ; and (iv) activities where the long-term disposal of waste may cause harm to the environment. The terms of reference shall additionally require that only activities that comply with relevant EU and national environmental legislation may be selected.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 31 December 2025.
2.5. Investment: Deployment of resource-efficient green technologies
The objective of the investment is to improve the resource efficiency of companies, including energy efficiency, with a particular focus on the valorisation of underutilised bio-resources such as residues and by-products. The investment aims to support innovation in production technology and product development in enterprises and contributes to circular economy solutions.
The measure shall support two kinds of investments:
-promoting resource-efficient green technologies for industrial plants;
-valorisation of bio-resources.
The projects shall be selected on the basis of a call for proposals. The main criteria for selecting projects to receive a grant shall include, according to relevance, efficiency in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, resource efficiency, cost-effectiveness, reducing of residues and waste generation, added value to bio-resources and innovativeness of the solutions to be developed.
In order to ensure that the measure complies with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01), the eligibility criteria contained in terms of reference for the call for proposals shall exclude the following list of activities: (i) activities related to fossil fuels, including downstream use 9 ; (ii) activities under the EU Emission Trading System (ETS) achieving projected greenhouse gas emissions that are not lower than the relevant benchmarks 10 ; (iii) activities related to waste landfills, incinerators 11 and mechanical biological treatment plants 12 ; and (iv) activities where the long-term disposal of waste may cause harm to the environment. The terms of reference shall additionally require that only activities that comply with relevant EU and national environmental legislation may be selected.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
2.6. Investment: Green Fund
The objective of the investment is to provide capital for the development of new green technologies in strategic areas such as energy, agriculture, food industry, transport and logistics, materials and chemical industries. The Green Fund shall provide funding for companies and sectors whose products, services or processes are characterised by research-intensive green technologies and whose activities contribute to solving environmental problems, developing new products, services or technologies that reduce or capture greenhouse gas emissions or are driven by eco-design requirements. Investments shall be made in sustainable projects, taking into account the EU Taxonomy Regulation.
The measure shall be implemented as a financial instrument as part of a broader green technology investment programme that provides equity investments to companies in the form of direct equity investments and through venture capital funds, managed by the public fund manager SmartCap.
The measure shall comply with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01). The legal agreement signed between Estonia and SmartCap and the subsequent investment policy of the Green Fund shall:
I.require the application of the Commission’s technical guidance on sustainability proofing for the InvestEU Fund; and
II.require companies that derived more than 50% of their revenues during the preceding financial year from the following activities and/or assets to adopt and publish green transition plans: (i) activities and assets related to fossil fuels, including downstream use 13 ; (ii) activities and assets under the EU Emission Trading System (ETS) achieving projected greenhouse gas emissions that are not lower than the relevant benchmarks 14 ; (iii) activities and assets related to waste landfills, incinerators 15 and mechanical biological treatment plants 16 ; and (iv) activities and assets where the long-term disposal of waste may cause harm to the environment; and
III.require the verification of legal compliance with the relevant EU and national environmental legislation of the beneficiary by SmartCap for all transactions, including those exempted from sustainability proofing.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
2.7. Investment: Creating opportunities for the uptake of renewables-based green hydrogen technologies
The objective of the investment is to support the deployment and piloting of hydrogen integrated value chains from energy production and supply solutions to final consumption in different application areas.
The projects to be supported shall be selected following a call for proposals. The call for proposals is open for projects from all economic sectors. The electricity used to produce hydrogen shall be produced from renewable energy and the consumption of green hydrogen shall take place in Estonia.
In order to ensure that the measure complies with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01), the eligibility criteria contained in terms of reference for the call for proposals shall exclude the following list of activities: (i) activities related to fossil fuels, including downstream use 17 ; (ii) activities under the EU Emission Trading System (ETS) achieving projected greenhouse gas emissions that are not lower than the relevant benchmarks 18 ; (iii) activities related to waste landfills, incinerators 19 and mechanical biological treatment plants 20 ; and (iv) activities where the long-term disposal of waste may cause harm to the environment. The terms of reference shall additionally require that only activities that comply with relevant EU and national environmental legislation may be selected.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
2.8. Investment: Supply Security Investment Support
The objective of the investment is to support the transition of companies from fossil energy sources to alternative energy supply sources. The eligible alternative energy supply sources are the following:
·renewable energy sources within the meaning of the Renewable Energy Directive 2018/2011/EU (RED II);
·behind-the-meter storage applications;
·electrification; and
·connection to efficient district heating systems in line with Directive 2012/27/EU (Energy Efficiency Directive).
The supported activities shall include the purchase, installation and related construction works of equipment necessary for the switch to alternative energy supply sources as listed above.
In order to ensure that the measure complies with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01), the eligibility criteria contained in terms of reference for the call for proposals shall ensure that only the alternative energy supply sources listed above shall be supported. Renewable energy sources supported shall be in line with Directive 2018/2011/EU and, notably, for bioenergy, sustainability and greenhouse gas emission savings criteria set out in Articles 29-31 and the rules on food and feed-based bioenergy set out in Article 26 of the latter Directive shall be respected. Geothermal activities shall not include exploration or extraction of either oil or gas nor the equipment used for such purposes. It shall be ensured that methane releases are minimised and remain well below the threshold of 20 000 tonnes CO2eq/year. The eligibility criteria in the call for proposals shall exclude activities under the EU Emission Trading System (ETS) achieving projected greenhouse gas emissions that are not lower than the relevant benchmarks. Where the activity achieves projected greenhouse gas emissions that are not significantly lower, but still lower than the relevant benchmarks, an explanation of the reasons why this is not possible should be provided. Benchmarks established for free allocation for activities falling within the scope of the Emissions Trading System, as set out in the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/447.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
B.2. Milestones, targets, indicators, and timetable for monitoring and implementation for non-repayable financial support
|
Sequential Number |
Related Measure (Reform or Investment) |
Milestone / Target |
Name |
Qualitative indicators (for milestones) |
Unit of measure |
Quantitative indicators (for targets) |
Indicative timeline for completion |
Description of each milestone and target |
||
|
Baseline |
Goal |
Quarter |
Year |
|||||||
|
23 |
2.1 Green transition of enterprises |
Milestone |
Creation of a Green Transition Task Force to implement and monitor the green transition |
Set up of a task force and working groups |
Q4 |
2021 |
The Ministry of the Environment shall reform the existing Working Group on Green Technology (set up in 2020) into the RRP’s Green Transition Task Force to coordinate the measures on the green transition of companies and improve cooperation and exchange of information among the public sector, stakeholders and interest groups. The necessary working groups shall be set up for specific measures. |
|||
|
24 |
2.1 Green transition of enterprises |
Milestone |
Adoption of the Circular Economy Action Plan by the Green Transition Task Force |
Circular Economy Action Plan adopted |
Q4 |
2022 |
The Green Transition Task Force shall review the existing Circular Economy activities and different action plans into a single Circular Economy Action Plan that will lead the Estonian transition to Circular Economy. |
|||
|
25 |
2.2 Green skills to support the green transition of enterprises |
Milestone |
Entry into force of secondary legislation setting out the terms of support for the development of green skills |
Entry into force of secondary legislation |
Q2 |
2022 |
The secondary legislation necessary for the application and allocation of support shall enter into force. It shall contain provisions ensuring that any action supported under this measure is focused on areas contributing to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions or the adaptation to climate change. |
|||
|
26 |
2.2 Green skills to support the green transition of enterprises |
Target |
Number of upskilling and retraining modules |
Number of modules |
0 |
5 |
Q4 |
2024 |
Number of upskilling and retraining modules developed including detailed training content, structure and training materials to provide training related to green skills. |
|
|
27 |
2.2 Green skills to support the green transition of enterprises |
Target |
People taking part in upskilling and retraining programmes |
Number of participants |
0 |
2830 |
Q2 |
2026 |
Number of people having completed one of the training courses supported through this measure. |
|
|
28 |
2.3 Green technologies development programme |
Milestone |
Establishment of a working group to plan and set up the development programme |
Recruitment of a project manager and set up of a working group |
Q4 |
2021 |
A project manager shall be recruited and a broad-based group of stakeholders shall be set up to coordinate investment planning and implementation. The role of the project manager shall be set out to gather information from market participants and design the necessary support measures and procurement. The working group shall be composed of parties involved in the development of entrepreneurship and shall undertake to meet at least three times a year to take stock of developments in investment- related activities and provide recommendations for further action. The working group shall draw up provisions related to the selection of actions to be supported under the development programme in such a way that it is ensured that each action directly contributes either to lowering greenhouse gas emissions or supporting adaptation to climate change. |
|||
|
29 |
2.3 Green technologies development programme |
Milestone |
Set up of the Green Technologies Development Programme |
Contracts signed for all development clusters and support measures designed and opened |
Q2 |
2024 |
The public procurement processes for at least 5 development clusters shall be completed and the contracts shall be awarded to the winning parties. Support measures shall be designed and their first rounds shall be opened to at least 10 start-ups. The selection processes shall ensure that each supported action directly contributes either to lowering greenhouse gas emissions or supporting adaptation to climate change. |
|||
|
30 |
2.3 Green technologies development programme |
Target |
Number of clusters supported through the Green Technology Development Programme |
Number of clusters |
0 |
5 |
Q2 |
2026 |
Number of clusters supported by the development programme. |
|
|
31 |
2.3 Green technologies development programme |
Target |
Number of startups supported through the Green Technology Development Programme and which have received private investment |
Number of startups |
0 |
10 |
Q2 |
2026 |
Number of start-ups supported by the development programme and which have received resources from private investors during or after the development programme. |
|
|
32 |
2.4 Modernisation of the business models in manufacturing companies |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the ministerial decree setting out the terms and conditions of grant eligibility |
Entry into force of the ministerial decree |
Q2 |
2022 |
The conditions for granting support shall be enacted by a decree of the responsible minister. The requirements set shall include eligibility criteria to ensure that the selected projects comply with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01) by means of an exclusion list and compliance with relevant EU and national environmental legislation. The selection/eligibility criteria shall specify that the supported activities and/or enterprises contribute to a climate-neutral economy, resilience and climate change adaptation including circular economy objectives such as in-house implementation of circular economy principles, transfer of transport and storage of companies to new foundations. |
|||
|
33 |
2.4 Modernisation of the business models in manufacturing companies |
Target |
Number of projects supported |
Number of projects |
0 |
70 |
Q4 |
2025 |
Projects having received a grant disbursement in accordance with the eligibility conditions set out in the call for proposals to introduce business models that support the transition to a climate-neutral economy, resilience and adaptation to climate change, including circular economy objectives. |
|
|
34 |
2.5 Deployment of resource efficient green technologies |
Milestone |
Publication of call for proposals for grants |
Publication of the notice for calls for proposals for grants |
Q2 |
2022 |
Call for proposals to support resource-efficient green technologies and the valorisation of bio-resources shall be published and open for applications, including eligibility criteria to ensure that the selected projects comply with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01) by means of an exclusion list and compliance with relevant EU and national environmental legislation. The selection/eligibility criteria shall specify that the supported activities and/or enterprises contribute to a climate-neutral economy, resilience and climate change adaptation |
|||
|
35 |
2.5 Deployment of resource efficient green technologies |
Target |
Number of projects awarded grants following the call for proposals |
Number of projects |
0 |
36 |
Q4 |
2023 |
Award of grants to 36 projects selected under the competitive call for proposals, for green technologies for industrial plants and for valorisation of bioresources, in compliance with the terms of reference. |
|
|
36 |
2.5 Deployment of resource efficient green technologies |
Target |
Number of projects completed |
Number of projects |
0 |
36 |
Q2 |
2026 |
Number of completed projects to improve resource efficiency through the enhancement of green technologies and bio-resources, on the basis of calls for proposals and established eligibility criteria. |
|
|
37 |
2.6 Green Fund |
Milestone |
Signature of contractual agreement between the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications and SmartCap |
Signature of contractual agreement |
Q4 |
2021 |
A contractual agreement shall be signed between the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications and SmartCap to manage the Green Fund, which shall contain: -Investment objectives to invest in enterprises and activities contributing to a climate-neutral economy and to improving resilience to climate change, including awareness-raising measures, Eligibility criteria for compliance with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01) of supported beneficiaries through the use of sustainability proofing, an exclusion list and the requirement of compliance with the relevant EU and national environmental legislation. |
|||
|
38 |
2.6 Green Fund |
Milestone |
Adoption of the investment policy document by SmartCap |
Investment policy document adopted by SmartCap |
Q4 |
2021 |
SmartCap shall adopt the investment policy for the Green Fund, in line with the contractual agreement signed between the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications and SmartCap, including the investment objectives and the eligibility criteria to ensure compliance with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01) of supported beneficiaries under this measure through the use of sustainability proofing, the requirement of compliance with the relevant EU and national environmental legislation, and the requirement for beneficiaries that derived more than 50% of their revenues during the preceding financial year from activities or assets in the exclusion list to adopt and publish green transition plans. |
|||
|
39 |
2.6 Green Fund |
Target |
Volume of investments in venture capital funds or equity investments in enterprises |
Volume of invested capital (in EUR) |
0 |
55 000 000 |
Q4 |
2024 |
At least EUR 55 million (excluding operating expenditures) shall be invested by the Green Fund in venture capital funds or enterprises in line with the investment policy. |
|
|
40 |
2.6 Green Fund |
Target |
Volume of investments in venture capital funds or equity investments in enterprises |
Volume of invested capital (in EUR) |
55 000 000 |
90 000 000 |
Q2 |
2026 |
At least EUR 90 million (excluding operating expenditures) shall be invested by the Green Fund in venture capital funds or enterprises in line with the investment policy. |
|
|
41 |
2.7 Creating opportunities for the uptake of renewables- based green hydrogen technologies |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the ministerial decree setting out the terms and conditions for granting support |
Entry into force of the ministerial decree |
Q4 |
2022 |
Development of project selection criteria, and entry into force of the ministerial decree on the conditions for granting support for projects related to integrated green hydrogen technologies. The terms of reference for this support shall include eligibility criteria that ensure that the objectives of the selected projects comply with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01) through the use of an exclusion list and the requirement of compliance with the relevant EU and national environmental legislation. |
|||
|
42 |
2.7 Creating opportunities for the uptake of renewables-based green hydrogen technologies |
Milestone |
Technologies and equipment for green hydrogen production |
Procurement, installation and start of operation of technologies and equipment |
Q3 |
2025 |
The necessary equipment for green hydrogen production shall be purchased, installed and put in operation by project promoters selected in the call for proposals. |
|||
|
43 |
2.7 Creating opportunities for the uptake of renewables-based green hydrogen technologies |
Target |
Grants allocated to renewables-based green hydrogen technologies representing at least EUR 49.49 million |
EUR |
0 |
49 490 000 |
Q2 |
2026 |
Grants shall be allocated to investments in renewables based green hydrogen technologies in line with the investment policy, representing at least EUR 49.49 million |
|
|
43a |
2.8 Supply security investment support |
Milestone |
Publication of the call for proposals for grants |
Publication of the notice for call for proposals for grants |
Q4 |
2023 |
A call for proposals to support investment projects for the transition of companies from fossil energy sources to alternative energy supply sources shall be published and open for applications, including eligibility criteria to ensure that the selected projects comply with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01) by means of requirements related to supported eligible alternative energy sources and supported activities as set out in the measure description and compliance with relevant EU and national environmental legislation. |
|||
|
43b |
2.8 Supply security investment support |
Target |
Number of projects awarded following the call for proposals |
Projects awarded |
0 |
70 |
Q4 |
2024 |
At least 70 projects awarded support for investments for the transition of companies from fossil energy sources to alternative energy supply sources. The projects shall be in compliance with the eligibility criteria set out in the call for proposals. |
|
|
43c |
2.8 Supply security investment support |
Target |
Number of projects completed |
Projects completed |
0 |
70 |
Q2 |
2026 |
At least 70 projects supporting the investments for the transition of companies from fossil energy sources to alternative energy supply sources shall be completed. The projects shall be in compliance with the eligibility criteria set out in the call for proposals. |
|
C.COMPONENT 3: Digital State
Building on the successful deployment of digital technologies for the delivery of public services in Estonia over the last years, this component of the Estonian recovery and resilience plan aims at upgrading the digital government services further, in particular in terms of user-centricity and resilience (including in light of the growing cybersecurity threats). The component features measures allowing to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the latest technologies, especially artificial intelligence, but also significant redesigns of both front-end and back-end services. They shall benefit both citizens and businesses. Specific actions are foreseen in order to reinforce the country’s capacities to combat money laundering. The support to the deployment of very high capacity networks in rural areas is also expected to ensure wider access to online services and, more generally, contribute to the further digital transformation of the country.
The component supports addressing the Country Specific Recommendations on investment in the digital transition (Country Specific Recommendation 3 in 2020) and on the anti-money laundering framework (Country Specific Recommendation 1 in 2019 and Country Specific Recommendation 4 in 2020).
It is expected that no measure in this component does significant harm to environmental objectives within the meaning of Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2020/852, taking into account the description of the measures and the mitigating steps set out in the recovery and resilience plan in accordance with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01).
C.1. Description of the reforms and investments for non-repayable financial support
3.1.Reform: Creation and development of a centre of excellence for data governance and open data
The objective of the measure is to foster a better management of the data collected and held by the Estonian public authorities. It aims at improving the quality of the data, increase its use for decision-making as well as its availability as open data, so that it may also be reused by other stakeholders.
The measure consists of:
-the creation of a centre of excellence within Statistics Estonia (the Estonian government agency responsible for producing official statistics) to coordinate and support the development of data governance in other public authorities,
-the development of data governance and data sharing tools/information systems,
-the implementation of projects aiming at improving the quality of data held by public authorities and increasing the availability of open data.
The implementation of the measure shall be completed by 31 December 2025.
3.2.Reform: Development of event services and proactive digital public services for individuals
The objective of the measure is to improve the efficiency of the delivery of public services and reduce the administrative burden for citizens.
The measure consists in redesigning a series of public services (and the underlying IT systems) in order to enable their automatic and proactive delivery on the basis of life or business events experienced by citizens (such as a marriage, the birth of a child or the creation of an enterprise). It shall notably allow a better integration of IT systems across different public authorities and contribute to the implementation of the once-only principle.
The implementation of the measure shall be completed by 31 December 2025.
3.3.Reform: Development of event services and digital gateway for entrepreneurs
The objectives of the measure are to improve the efficiency and the quality of the delivery of public services and reduce the administrative burden for entrepreneurs.
The measure consists in establishing one digital gateway for the delivery of public services to entrepreneurs and redesigning a series of services (and the underlying IT systems) in order to interface them with the gateway, supporting the user-friendliness of services, the implementation of the once-only principle and, whenever possible, enabling the proactive delivery of information based on events experienced by businesses.
It shall take into account the solutions developed in the context of the implementation of Regulation (EU) 2018/1724 establishing a single digital gateway to provide information, procedures, assistance and problem solving services.
The implementation of the measure shall be completed by 31 December 2025.
3.4.Investment: #Bürokratt programme (national virtual assistant platform and ecosystem)
The objective of the measure is to improve the user-friendliness and accessibility of public services in Estonia.
The measure consists in developing a speech- and text-based AI virtual assistant for the access to online public services. The work shall build on pilot projects already carried out in 2020 and 2021.
The implementation of the measure shall be completed by 31 December 2025.
3.5.Investment: Reconfiguration of basic digital services and safe transition to cloud infrastructure
The objective of the measure is to increase the resilience, the security and the reliability of the IT systems and services of the Estonian public authorities through their migration to a private cloud and through comprehensive security testing.
The measure consists of the following elements:
-the creation of a new public body in charge of the central management of the IT basic services and infrastructures of public institutions,
-The establishment of new security testing capability within the Estonian Information System Authority (RIA),
-the procurement of private cloud infrastructure resources,
-the migration of existing information systems to the private cloud,
-the comprehensive testing of the security of new cloud-based information systems used by public authorities, as well as of existing information systems,
-the development of the capacity of the data embassy (i.e. IT hosting capacities established abroad to ensure the continuity of the availability of critical databases in case of disaster), building on the pilot project carried out between 2017 and 2020 in Luxembourg,
-the extension of the private cloud to the data embassy, so that systems migrated to the cloud may also be hosted in and operated from the data embassy,
-the migration of critical systems to the data embassy infrastructure.
The implementation of the measure shall be completed by 31 December 2024.
3.6.Reform: Establishing the strategic analysis of money laundering and terrorist financing in Estonia
The objective of the reform is to strengthen the capacity of the Financial Intelligence Unit to identify money laundering schemes and channels at an early stage.
The measure consists in establishing a Centre for Strategic Analysis within the Financial Intelligence Unit. This Centre for Strategic Analysis is expected to allow more operational and more efficient prevention and detection of money laundering and terrorist financing. The team of the Centre for Strategic Analysis shall notably be in charge of developing specifications for a new IT tool drawing on data available from different sources. The Centre for Strategic Analysis might also identify necessary legislative changes.
The implementation of the measure shall be completed by 31 December 2024.
3.7.Investment: Information system for real-time strategic analysis of money laundering and terrorist financing
Building on the analysis carried out as part of the implementation of the reform 3.6, the investment aims at providing the Financial Intelligence Unit with a new dedicated IT system enabling the exploitation of data available from different authorities and the identification of possible money laundering schemes and channels in real time. The measure consists in developing the new IT system.
The implementation of the measure shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
3.8.Investment: Construction of very high capacity broadband networks
The objective of the investment is to improve the access to very high capacity broadband networks (VHCN), which offer a connection of at least 100 Mbps, for households and socio-economically important institutions such as hospitals, schools, public services and businesses.
The measure consists in providing financial support to the deployment of very high capacity broadband networks in areas of market failure (in accordance with provisions of Article 52 of the Commission Regulation 651/2014). The eligibility and selection criteria used to allocate the funding shall ensure an appropriate regional balance.
The implementation of the measure shall be completed by 31 December 2025.
C.2. Milestones, targets, indicators, and timetable for monitoring and implementation for non-repayable financial support
|
Sequential Number |
Related Measure (Reform or Investment) |
Milestone / Target |
Name |
Qualitative indicators (for milestones) |
Quantitative indicators (for targets) |
Indicative timeline for completion |
Description of each milestone and target |
|||
|
Unit of measure |
Baseline |
Goal |
Quarter |
Year |
||||||
|
44 |
3.1 Creation and development of a centre of excellence for data governance and open data |
Milestone |
Setting up a data management team in the Statistical Office, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications and the State Information System Authority |
Establishment of the necessary organisational structure for coordinating data management |
Q4 |
2021 |
Creation of a Data Management Team in Statistics Estonia through the recruitment of expert staff tasked with coordinating the data governance framework and supporting other public authorities. In addition, posts shall be created at the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications and at the State Information System Agency to carry out development projects. By the end of 2021, at least five people shall be recruited across the three entities. |
|||
|
45 |
3.1 Creation and development of a centre of excellence for data governance and open data |
Target |
Completion of data quality improvement projects |
Number of projects |
0 |
430 |
Q2 |
2025 |
Number of completed projects contributing to ensuring an improved reusability of data from public institutions, with up-to-date and accurate descriptions of databases and datasets. |
|
|
46 |
3.1 Creation and development of a centre of excellence for data governance and open data |
Target |
Publication of datasets on the national open data portal |
Number of published datasets |
707 |
2600 |
Q4 |
2025 |
The number of datasets made public on the National Open Data Portal and thus available from the EU Open Data portal shall be increased from 707 on 13 August 2021 to 2600. |
|
|
47 |
3.2 Development of event services and proactive digital public services for individuals |
Target |
Launch of personal life event services and/or proactive services |
Number of services which are operational |
0 |
2 |
Q4 |
2022 |
Number of citizen life event services and/or proactive services launched online. The corresponding IT solutions enabling the provision of the services shall be operational at least in the basic parts of a given service and are subject to a further development during the implementation of the measure. The selection of concerned services shall be based on the development plan for personal life event and proactive services. |
|
|
48 |
3.2 Development of event services and proactive digital public services for individuals |
Target |
Launch of personal life event services and/or proactive services |
Number of services which are operational |
2 |
10 |
Q4 |
2025 |
Number of citizen life event services and/or proactive services launched online. The corresponding IT solutions enabling the provision of the services shall be operational at least in the basic parts of a given service and are subject to a further development during the implementation of the measure. The selection of concerned services shall be based on the development plan for personal life event and proactive services. |
|
|
49 |
3.3 Development of event services and digital gateway for entrepreneurs |
Target |
Deployment of IT developments contributing to the implementation of the business event services and gateway |
Number of projects that have successfully deployed new developments online |
0 |
1 |
Q4 |
2022 |
Number of IT development projects contributing to the implementation of the business event services and gateway that have successfully deployed new developments online. These development projects shall be either directly related to the development of the digital gateway for entrepreneurs or to the development of business-event services, which additionally include the development of various related systems for interfacing with the digital gateway. As a result of each development project, at least a minimally functional IT solution shall be completed (i.e., the IT solution shall be operational at least in the basic parts for the end users (entrepreneurs) and shall be able to provide feedback for further development needs during the reform implementation period or afterwards). |
|
|
50 |
3.3 Development of event services and digital gateway for entrepreneurs |
Target |
Deployment of IT developments contributing to the implementation of the business event services and gateway |
Number of projects that have successfully deployed new developments online |
1 |
10 |
Q4 |
2025 |
Number of IT development projects contributing to the implementation of the business event services and gateway that have successfully deployed new developments online. These development projects shall be either directly related to the development of the digital gateway for entrepreneurs or to the development of business-event services, which additionally include the development of various related systems for interfacing with the digital gateway. As a result of each development project, at least a minimally functional IT solution shall be completed (i.e., the IT solution shall be operational at least in the basic parts for the end users (entrepreneurs) and shall be able to provide feedback for further development needs during the reform implementation period or afterwards). |
|
|
51 |
3.4 #Bürokratt programme (national virtual assistant platform and ecosystem) |
Target |
Access to digital public services through the virtual assistant platform |
Number of public digital services accessible through the virtual assistant |
0 |
1 |
Q2 |
2022 |
Number of digital public services available through the platform of the virtual assistant. |
|
|
52 |
3.4 #Bürokratt programme (national virtual assistant platform and ecosystem) |
Target |
Introduction of the Bürokratt virtual assistant in digital public services environments |
Number of service environments |
0 |
18 |
Q4 |
2025 |
Number of service environments in which the virtual assistant shall be operational. A “service environment” refers to a website of public authorities. |
|
|
53 |
3.4 #Bürokratt programme (national virtual assistant platform and ecosystem) |
Target |
Access to digital public services through the virtual assistant platform |
Number of public digital services accessible through the virtual assistant |
1 |
20 |
Q4 |
2025 |
Number of digital public services available through the platform of the virtual assistant. |
|
|
54 |
3.5 Reconfiguration of basic digital services and safe transition to cloud infrastructure |
Milestone |
Development of centrally delivered/shared IT base services |
Opening of shared server hosting and computer workstation services to public authorities |
Q3 |
2022 |
Basic IT services provided/shared centrally shall open for subscription by new users (ministries and other authorities). |
|||
|
55 |
3.5 Reconfiguration of basic digital services and safe transition to cloud infrastructure |
Target |
Deployment of national private cloud infrastructure by public authorities |
Number of information systems migrated to the national private cloud |
0 |
10 |
Q4 |
2023 |
Number of information systems for which the migration to the private cloud infrastructure shall be completed. |
|
|
56 |
3.5 Reconfiguration of basic digital services and safe transition to cloud infrastructure |
Milestone |
Extension of the cloud infrastructure to the data embassy |
Completion of the extension of the national private cloud to the infrastructure of Estonia’s data embassy |
Q4 |
2023 |
It shall become possible to host and operate information systems migrated to the private cloud from the data embassy. New hardware and licenses shall be acquired and set up for this purpose. |
|||
|
57 |
3.5 Reconfiguration of basic digital services and safe transition to cloud infrastructure |
Target |
Migration of critical systems to the national cloud infrastructure of the data embassy |
Number of critical systems |
0 |
10 |
Q4 |
2024 |
Number of critical systems migrated to the National Cloud Data Embassy infrastructure and platform. Critical systems are systems that are vital to the state's sustainability. |
|
|
58 |
3.5 Reconfiguration of basic digital services and safe transition to cloud infrastructure |
Target |
Central security testing of public authorities’ information systems |
Number of tests performed |
0 |
16 |
Q4 |
2024 |
Number of comprehensive security tests carried out by the Information System Authority – the test results shall be summarised in reports. |
|
|
59 |
3.6 Establishing the strategic analysis of money laundering and terrorist financing in Estonia |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the amendment of the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Prevention Act and of other legislative, administrative and contractual changes needed for the Centre for Strategic Analysis |
Provision in the law indicating the date of entry into force of amended act and entry into force of other legislative, administrative and contractual acts |
Q4 |
2024 |
The following steps shall be completed to allow the Centre for Strategic Analysis to access and process data relevant to the detection and prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing: (1)an amendment of the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Prevention Act shall be published in the Riigi Teataja and enter into force, (2)amendments to the statutes of the relevant national datasets shall enter into force, amendments to the terms and conditions of Financial Intelligence Unit data exchange contracts shall be signed by the contracting parties. |
|||
|
60 |
3.7 Information system for real-time strategic analysis of money laundering and terrorist financing |
Milestone |
Development of the new realtime ICT analysis system for the Centre for Strategic Analysis, and delivery to the Financial Intelligence Unit |
Delivery of the new ICT system to the Financial Intelligence Unit |
Q2 |
2026 |
The development of the ICT system allowing real-time analysis to detect and prevent money laundering shall be completed. The system shall be operational and used by the Financial Intelligence Unit. |
|||
|
61 |
3.8 Construction of very high capacity broadband networks |
Target |
Rollout of very high capacity broadband network to new sites |
Number of sites |
0 |
4000 |
Q4 |
2024 |
Number of new sites (residential, companies, establishments) covered by VHCN (and which have thus the possibility to get a connection of at least 100 Mbps) thanks to the measure. |
|
|
62 |
3.8 Construction of very high capacity broadband networks |
Target |
Rollout of very high capacity broadband network to new sites |
Number of sites |
4000 |
8097 |
Q4 |
2025 |
Number of additional sites (residential, companies, establishments) covered by VHCN (and which have thus the possibility to get a connection of at least 100 Mbps) thanks to the measure. |
|
D.COMPONENT 4: Energy and energy efficiency
This component of the Estonian recovery and resilience plan addresses the challenge of decarbonising the energy sector. The objectives of the component are to reduce the dependency on oil shale, incentivise uptake of renewable energy and improve the energy efficiency of buildings.
The component supports addressing the Country Specific Recommendation to focus investments on energy infrastructure and on resource and energy efficiency, contributing to the progressive decarbonisation of the economy (Country Specific Recommendation 3 in 2019 and in 2020). Upgraded and new measures support addressing the Country Specific Recommendation on reducing reliance on fossil fuels through facilitating the deployment of renewable energy sources and increasing energy efficiency (Country Specific Recommendation 4 in 2022).
It is expected that no measure in this component does significant harm to environmental objectives within the meaning of Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2020/852, taking into account the description of the measures and the mitigating steps set out in the recovery and resilience plan in accordance with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01).
D.1. Description of the reforms and investments for non-repayable financial support
4.1.Reform: Energy efficiency promotion
The objective of the reform is to reduce the administrative barriers to energy efficient renovations by advising apartment associations, private households and local governments on legislation, technical aspects and financing of renovations. The reform also supports the use of innovative solutions such as renovation using pre-fabricated elements in order to increase renovation capacity and reduce the carbon footprint of the building stock (economising on the materials and ensuring quality). The reform aims to increase renovation rates in areas with lower property value.
The measure consists of setting up a regional advisory network and training of technical consultants in order to provide the necessary information and incentivise renovations. Access to information related to energy-efficient renovations shall be further ensured by setting up a dedicated website and digital tools facilitating understanding of the renovation result, cost and benefits. The component is linked to a measure on digitalisation of construction data under component 1 of the Estonian Recovery and Resilience Plan.
The implementation of the reform shall be completed by 31 December 2024.
4.2.Investment: Support for the renovation of apartment buildings
The objective of the measure is to boost deep renovations of apartment buildings in order to increase energy efficiency, reduce energy consumption and improve the living conditions of their residents. The objective is also to increase renovation rates in areas with lower property value.
Support shall be given to apartment associations for renovations that achieve an improvement of at least one energy efficiency class or, in the case of complete renovations, at least the energy efficiency class C. The renovations shall correspond to at least a medium-depth renovation representing an average level of primary energy savings of at least 30%. Differentiated regional support rates shall be applied: 30% in Tallinn and Tartu, 40% in the areas surrounding Tallinn and Tartu based on the real estate price and 50% in all other areas. Outside Tallinn and Tartu, the apartment associations may carry out partial reconstruction work to prevent deterioration of the technical condition of the building, in which case the support rate shall be lower. In addition, as part of its long-term national strategies, Estonia is planning to finance complementary renovation measures from the European Regional Development Fund and the REACT-EU.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
4.3.Investment: Support for the renovation of small residential buildings
The objective of the measure is to boost deep renovations of private dwellings in order to increase energy efficiency, reduce energy consumption and improve the living conditions of their residents. The objective is also to increase renovation rates in areas with lower property value.
Support shall be given to private owners for renovations that achieve an improvement of energy efficiency or, in the case of complete renovations, at least energy label class C. Differentiated regional support rates shall be applied: 30% in Tallinn and Tartu, 40% in the areas surrounding Tallinn and Tartu based on the real estate price and 50% in all other areas. For the purpose of the measure, housing (dwelling) is defined as ‘a dwelling or dwellings in a single building or in a separate building intended for a single household to live throughout the year’ (in accordance with Eurostat).
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 31 March 2026.
4.4.Reform: Boosting the green transition in the energy economy
The aim of this measure is to contribute to decarbonising the energy production and consumption in Estonia by updating targets and actions of Estonian energy policy (including those related to the phase out oil shale) and by removing administrative barriers to renewable energy installations.
The National Development Plan of the Energy Sector shall be updated and shall include targets on renewable energy production, energy efficiency and security of supply. The plan will also include actions to reduce dependency on oil shale in the Estonian energy sector and targets on the phase-out of oil shale in the energy sector altogether.
The reform shall also consist of adopting the necessary legislation and compiling guidance materials for accelerating the installation of renewable electricity production capacity and actions for alleviating the defence-related height restrictions on wind parks.
The implementation of the reform shall be completed by 31 December 2025.
4.5.Investment: Programme to strengthen the electricity grid to increase renewable energy production capacity and adapt to climate change (such as protection against storms)
The aim of this measure is to contribute to decarbonising the Estonian electricity production by increasing the capacity of the transmission grid, which will allow connecting additional renewable energy production.
Under this measure, the transmission system operator’s investments into the transmission grid shall
be co-financed with the aim of adding at least 310 MW of additional grid capacity.
The implementation of the measure shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
4.6.Investment: Programme to boost energy production in industrial areas
The measure aims to make the electricity system more effective by incentivising the production of electricity close to consumption. The measure shall incentivise renewable electricity production in or nearby industrial areas through co-financing the necessary grid connection. Under this measure, investments made by companies to connect renewable electricity production capacities into the grid shall be supported through grants. In order to ensure that the measure complies with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01), the eligibility criteria contained in terms of reference for the calls for projects shall exclude the following list of activities: (i) activities related to fossil fuels, including downstream use 21 ; (ii) activities under the EU Emission Trading System (ETS) achieving projected greenhouse gas emissions that are not lower than the relevant benchmarks 22 ; (iii) activities related to waste landfills, incinerators 23 and mechanical biological treatment plants 24 ; and (iv) activities where the long-term disposal of waste may cause harm to the environment. The terms of reference shall additionally require that only activities that comply with relevant EU and national environmental legislation may be selected.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
4.7.Investment: Pilot Energy Storage Programme
To complement the above measures, the phase-out of oil shale and increased renewable energy production, projects for renewable energy storage shall be supported.
The objective of the measure is to carry out a pilot programme on renewable energy storage in Estonia. The knowledge acquired in this pilot programme is expected to provide a basis for the future zero-subsidy investments into storage facilities. Under this measure, grants shall be provided to companies investing in renewable energy storage facilities.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
4.8.Investment: Boosting offshore wind farms development
The objective of this measure is to commission and make operational a radar and passive radar system/sensors that shall make it possible for offshore wind turbines, regardless of their height, to operate in the Gulf of Riga and Estonian islands Hiiumaa, Saaremaa and Vormsi.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 31 March 2026.
D.2. Milestones, targets, indicators, and timetable for monitoring and implementation for non-repayable financial support
|
Sequential Number |
Related Measure (Reform or Investment) |
Milestone / Target |
Name |
Qualitative indicators (for milestones) |
Quantitative indicators (for targets) |
Indicative timeline for completion |
Description of each milestone and target |
|||
|
Unit of measure |
Baseline |
Goal |
Quarter |
Year |
||||||
|
63 |
4.1 Energy efficiency promotion |
Milestone |
Conclusion of the cooperation agreement stipulating conditions for cooperation between SA Kredex/Enterprise Estonia and county development centers |
Conclusion of the cooperation agreement between SA KredEx/ Enterpise Estonia and county development centers |
Q4 |
2022 |
Conclusion of a cooperation agreement by SA KredEx/Enterpise Estonia with county development centers by which in each county of Estonia SA KredEx/Enterpise Estonia shall provide at least one trained specialist in the county development centre who shall provide advice on renovation. |
|||
|
64 |
4.1 Energy efficiency promotion |
Milestone |
Digital tools to facilitate access to information on renovation including visualising the results of the renovation and estimating the cost of renovation have become operational |
Operational user-friendly renovation website and pricing models |
Q4 |
2024 |
SA KredEx/Enterprise Estonia shall update the Housing homepage to ensure fast, up-to-date and operational information for those interested in renovation and for applicants. Online digital tools shall be made available to allow parties interested in renovation to visualise the possible outcome and calculate the potential costs with and without support schemes when adding the parameters of their building. |
|||
|
65 |
4.2 Support for the renovation of apartment buildings |
Milestone |
Publication of calls for applications for residential apartment buildings renovation grants |
Publication of calls for housing renovation grants |
Q2 |
2022 |
SA KredEx/Enterprise Estonia shall publish calls for applications aimed at improving the energy efficiency of residential apartment buildings. The support shall be differentiated between regions on the basis of the value of the real estate, with a higher rate of support in regions with low average property value. Support shall be granted to renovation projects that achieve an improvement of at least one energy efficiency class or, in the case of complete renovations, at least the energy efficiency class C. The renovations shall correspond to at least medium-depth renovations representing an average level of primary energy savings of at least 30% as set out in European Commission Recommendation (EU) 2019/786. The results shall be certified by ex-ante and ex-post Energy Performance Certificates. |
|||
|
66 |
4.2 Support for the renovation of apartment buildings |
Target |
Dwellings with improved energy performance |
Number of dwellings |
0 |
2600 |
Q4 |
2024 |
At least 2 600 dwellings shall be renovated and achieve an improvement of at least one energy efficiency class or, in the case of complete renovations, at least the energy efficiency class C. The renovations shall correspond to at least medium-depth renovations representing an average level of primary energy savings of at least 30% as set out in European Commission Recommendation (EU) 2019/786. The results shall be certified by ex-ante and ex-post Energy Performance Certificates. |
|
|
67 |
4.2 Support for the renovation of apartment buildings |
Target |
Estimated annual reduction of greenhouse gas emissions |
N/A |
tons of CO2eq/year |
0 |
2200 |
Q2 |
2026 |
Annual emissions of at least 2 200 tons of CO2 equivalent have been saved. The target shall be measured as the decrease of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as a sum of all the renovation projects finished by 2024. The energy efficiency class for each renovated building shall be measured at the latest in 2025; and their annual greenhouse gas emissions estimated on this basis. The baseline shall refer to the estimated greenhouse gas emissions of the building prior to renovation. It shall be assessed if the activities of the support measure have been carried out and all the necessary documents have been submitted by the apartment associations (such as Energy Performance Certificate, audit). The calculation of the GHG emission savings result shall be based on the model of SA Kredex/Enterprise Estonia for energy consumption and other relevant data. The results achieved shall be delivered at the end of the supporting activities. |
|
68 |
4.3 Support for the renovation of small residential buildings |
Milestone |
Published calls for renovation grant |
Publication of calls |
Q2 |
2022 |
SA KredEx/Enterprise Estonia shall publish calls for applications aimed at improving the energy efficiency of private residential buildings. The support shall be differentiated between regions on the basis of the value of the real estate, with a higher rate of support in regions with low average property value. Support shall be granted to renovation projects that achieve an improvement of energy efficiency or, in the case of complete renovations, at least the energy efficiency class C. The results shall be certified by ex-ante and ex-post SA KredEx Energy Performance calculations. |
|||
|
69 |
4.3 Support for the renovation of small residential buildings |
Target |
Dwellings with improved energy performance |
Number of dwellings |
0 |
80 |
Q4 |
2024 |
At least 80 dwellings shall be renovated, and achieve an improvement of energy efficiency or, in the case of complete renovations, at least the energy efficiency class C. The results shall be certified by ex-ante and ex-post KredEx Energy Performance calculations. |
|
|
69a |
4.3 Support for the renovation of small residential buildings |
Target |
Dwellings with improved energy performance |
Number of dwellings |
80 |
900 |
Q1 |
2026 |
At least 900 dwellings shall be renovated and achieve an improvement of energy efficiency or, in the case of complete renovations, at least the energy efficiency class C. The results shall be certified by ex-ante and ex-post KredEx Energy Performance calculations. |
|
|
70 |
4.4 Boosting the green transition in the energy economy |
Milestone |
Government decision on investments needed to alleviate the defence related height restrictions on wind parks |
Adoption of the decision of the Government |
Q2 |
2021 |
The Government shall adopt a decision on making the necessary investments to alleviate the defence related height restrictions on wind parks. |
|||
|
71 |
4.4 Boosting the green transition in the energy economy |
Milestone |
Adoption of the decision of the Government on the initiation of the preparation process of the National Development Plan of the Energy Sector, the designation of those responsible and deadlines |
Adoption of the decision of the Government |
Q4 |
2021 |
Government decision on initiating the preparation process of the National Development Plan of the Energy Sector shall be approved, defining the responsible entity (ies) and setting the relevant deadlines. The development plan shall address, inter alia, the objectives of increasing renewable energy production, energy efficiency and maintaining and improving security of supply, as well as the cessation of the use of oil shale for electricity production in 2035 and the phasing out of shale oil production by 2040. |
|||
|
72 |
4.4 Boosting the green transition in the energy economy |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the relevant primary and/or secondary legislation and publication of guidance material to alleviate the barriers for the installation of renewable energy generating installations and energy storage facilities |
Provision in the law indicating the entry into force of the relevant primary and/or entry into force of secondary legislation and publication of guidance material |
Q4 |
2024 |
Guidance materials necessary for facilitating and incentivising the installation of renewable energy generating installations and energy storage facilities shall be published and relevant primary and/or secondary legislation shall enter into force to remove the barriers to installation of renewable energy facilities such as streamlining permitting procedures and other relevant identified barriers. |
|||
|
73 |
4.4 Boosting the green transition in the energy economy |
Milestone |
Adoption of the National Development Plan of the Energy Sector by the Government |
Document adopted by the Government |
Q4 |
2025 |
The National Development Plan of the Energy Sector shall be approved by the Government. The plan shall include the actions related to the phase-out of the use of oil shale for electricity production in 2035 and of shale oil production by 2040. It shall also include targets for electricity generation capacity to be replaced with renewable energy. |
|||
|
74 |
4.5 Programme to strengthen the electricity grid to increase renewable energy production capacity and adapt to climate change (such as protection against storms) |
Milestone |
Signature of network investment cofinancing contract with transmission system operator |
Signature of a contract with the transmission system operator |
Q1 |
2022 |
A co-financing agreement for electricity network investments shall be concluded between the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications and Elering AS. The contract shall set out the expected results and deadlines. |
|||
|
75 |
4.5 Programme to strengthen the electricity grid to increase renewable energy production capacity and adapt to climate change (such as improved resilience against storms) |
Target |
Additional grid capacity created via investments into the transmission network |
Additional grid capacity (MW) |
0 |
310 |
Q2 |
2026 |
Increase in the capacity of the Estonian electricity transmission network by at least 310 MW. |
|
|
76 |
4.6 Programme to boost energy production in industrial areas |
Milestone |
Publication of a call for proposals for projects boosting energy production in industrial sites |
Call for proposals published |
Q4 |
2022 |
An open call shall be published by the Environmental Investment Centre to support the grid connection costs of companies producing electricity from renewable sources in industrial sites. The call shall be based on project selection criteria and award conditions that ensure that the selected projects comply with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01) through the use of an exclusion list and the requirement of compliance with the relevant EU and national environmental legislation. |
|||
|
77 |
4.6 Programme to boost energy production in industrial areas |
Target |
Additional connection capacity for renewable electricity production in or near industrial sites connected to the grid |
Connection capacity created (MW) |
0 |
28 |
Q2 |
2026 |
Additional connection capacity for renewable electricity production in or near industrial sites constructed for at least 28 MW. |
|
|
78 |
4.7 Pilot Energy Storage Programme |
Milestone |
Publication of a call for proposals for a pilot energy storage programme |
Call for proposals published |
Q4 |
2022 |
An open call for proposals shall be published by the Environmental Investment Centre to support energy storage projects. The call shall be based on project selection criteria and award conditions that ensure that the selected projects comply with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01) through the use of an exclusion list and the requirement of compliance with the relevant EU and national environmental legislation. The selection/eligibility criteria shall specify that the supported activities and/or enterprises contribute to climate-neutral economy, climate resilience and climate change adaptation, including circular economy objectives. |
|||
|
79 |
4.7 Pilot Energy Storage Programme |
Target |
Additional heat storage capacity resulting from investment support |
Capacity installed (m³) |
0 |
35 000 |
Q2 |
2026 |
The investment support scheme shall result in the installation of heat storage of at least 35 000 m³ in district heating systems. |
|
|
80 |
4.7 Pilot Energy Storage Programme |
Target |
Additional electricity storage capacity resulting from investment support |
Capacity installed (MW) |
0 |
4 |
Q2 |
2026 |
The investment support scheme shall result in the installation of at least 4 MW of electricity storage capacity. |
|
|
80a |
4.8 Boosting offshore wind farms development |
Milestone |
Contractors for the radar and passive radar system/sensors selected and contracts signed |
Contracts signed |
Q4 |
2024 |
Contracts signed for the detailed design, air surveillance radar, passive radar system/sensors, civil engineering construction works and radar construction works. The contractors shall be selected on the basis of a call for tenders. |
|||
|
80b |
4.8 Boosting offshore wind farms development |
Milestone |
Radar and passive radar system/sensors become operational |
Date of the start of operations |
Q1 |
2026 |
The radar and passive radar system/sensors shall be operational. |
|||
|
80c |
4.8 Boosting offshore wind farms development |
Milestone |
Removal of the height restriction on offshore wind turbines in the Gulf of Riga and Estonian islands Hiiumaa, Saaremaa, Vormsi |
Notice |
Q1 |
2026 |
A Notice issued by the Ministry of Defence and published on its website, stating that the height restrictions on offshore wind turbines have been lifted in the Gulf of Riga and Estonian islands of Hiiumaa, Saaremaa and Vormsi. |
|||
E.COMPONENT 5: Sustainable transport
The component of the Estonian recovery and resilience plan aims at addressing the challenge of decarbonising the transport sector. The objectives of the component are to reduce emissions and incentivise the uptake of sustainable modes of transport.
The reform and investments of the component support the development of the cross-border Rail Baltic project, connecting the three Baltic capitals and countries with Poland and the rest of the Union. The measures in the component aim at connecting the Rail Baltic with other national railways and other TEN-T hubs (Tallinn Airport and Old Port) and facilitating access to its local stops on foot or by bicycle.
The component supports addressing the Country Specific Recommendation to focus investments on resource efficiency and sustainable transport contributing to decarbonisation of the economy (Country Specific Recommendation 3 in 2019 and in 2020). The new measures also correspond to the Country Specific Recommendation to intensify efforts to improve the sustainability of the transport system, including through electrification of the rail network and by increasing incentives to encourage sustainable and less polluting transport (Country Specific Recommendation 4 in 2022).
It is expected that no measure in this component does significant harm to environmental objectives within the meaning of Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2020/852, taking into account the description of the measures and the mitigating steps set out in the recovery and resilience plan in accordance with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01).
E.1. Description of the reforms and investments for non-repayable financial support
5.1.Reform: Deploy safe, green, competitive, needs-based and sustainable transport and energy infrastructure
The objective of the reform is to reduce the CO2 emissions of the transport sector and incentivise the uptake of sustainable modes of transport.
The measure consists of adoption and implementation of the new Transport and Mobility Development Plan and the related Implementation Plan. The focus of the Plan is to reduce the environmental footprint of transport systems and it shall include measures to develop interconnected and shared mobility in urban areas at the expense of private cars and promote a comprehensive framework of light mobility (on foot or bicycle) in areas outside major urban centres. The Plan shall include railway investments that shall be directed towards increasing the speed and safety of journeys and adding connections for both passenger and freight transport. The key actions under this Plan to be implemented within the timeline of the Recovery and Resilience Facility include building and extending the electrified railway from Tallinn to Tartu and harmonising the public transport system in the Tallinn capital region (ticketing systems and pricing).
The implementation of the reform shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
5.2.[deleted]
5.2.a Investment: Multifunctional work vessel
The objective of the investment is to ensure the safety and condition of the waterways necessary for the operation of maritime transport, enable anti-pollution operations to be carried out and increase research capacity for environmental studies. For these purposes, a low-emission vessel with research capability, buoy installation capability and pollution control capability shall be built.
The vessel shall either be electric or run on fuels (hydrogen or hydrogen-based synthetic fuels or sustainable biomethane) that meet the following ‘Do No Significant Harm’ requirements in accordance with the DNSH Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01):
a.For hydrogen and hydrogen-based synthetic fuels, they are produced using renewable energy sources compliant with the Renewable Energy Directive (EU) 2018/2001 (RED II) and related implementing and delegated acts, and they achieve a life-cycle GHG emissions savings requirement of 73,4% for hydrogen [resulting in life-cycle GHG emissions lower than 3t CO2e/tH2] and 70% for hydrogen-based synthetic fuels relative to a fossil fuel comparator of 94g CO2e/MJ in analogy to the approach set out in Article 25(2) of and Annex V to Directive (EU) 2018/2001;
b.For biomethane, they are in line with the sustainability and greenhouse gas emissions savings criteria from Art. 29-31 and the rules on food and feed-based biofuels set out in Article 26 of the Renewable Energy Directive 2018/2001/EU (REDII), and related implementing and delegated acts.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
5.3.[deleted]
5.3.a Investment: Construction of the Rail Baltic viaducts
The objective of the measure is to increase the share of sustainable mobility in Estonia by contributing to the Rail Baltic project, which connects the three Baltic States.
The investment consists of the construction of five viaducts in Kangru junction near Tallinn: Kangru viaduct, Raudalu viaduct, Raku viaduct, Männiku light traffic viaduct and Männiku light traffic tunnel.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 31 March 2026.
5.4.Investment: Construction of the Tallinn Old Port tram line
The objective of the measure is to increase the share of sustainable mobility in the Tallinn region. To this end, the measure aims to connect Rail Baltic to sea connections with the Nordic countries through Tallinn Old Port.
Support shall be given to the Tallinn City Transport Authority, responsible for operating public transport in Tallinn, to construct a new tramline of around 2 km which shall connect Tallinn Airport, Rail Baltic hub, the city centre, the Old Port and the regional train station.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 31 December 2025.
5.5 Investment: Municipalities’ investments in bike- and walkways
The objective of the measure is to reduce car dependency and increase sustainable mobility in areas outside the three major urban centres (Tallinn, Tartu, Pärnu), where the financial capacity of municipalities is an obstacle to development of safe and climate-friendly bicycle and pedestrian corridors.
Support shall be given to municipalities for the construction of 24 km of bike- and walkways infrastructure to ensure safe and sustainable access to public services, including public transport, and workplaces. Attention will be also paid to the Rail Baltic local stops and connection with existing cycling and pedestrian network.
The measure complements a similar measure expected to be financed from the ERDF, which helps increase mobility by bike in the three major urban centres of Tallinn, Tartu and Pärnu.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 31 December 2025.
E.2. Milestones, targets, indicators, and timetable for monitoring and implementation for non-repayable financial support
|
Sequential Number |
Related Measure (Reform or Investment) |
Milestone / Target |
Name |
Qualitative indicators (for milestones) |
Quantitative indicators (for targets) |
Indicative timeline for completion |
Description of each milestone and target |
|||
|
Unit of measure |
Baseline |
Goal |
Quarter |
Year |
||||||
|
81 |
5.1 Deployment of safe, green, competitive, needs-based and sustainable transport and energy infrastructure |
Milestone |
Adoption of the Transport and Mobility Development Plan 2021-2035 by the Government |
Adoption of the Transport and Mobility Development Plan 2021-2035 |
Q1 |
2022 |
The Transport and Mobility Development Plan 2021-2035 shall be approved by the Government. It shall include the creation of the Tallinn capital region common transport system, actions to facilitate uptake of local biomethane, actions to develop sustainable and active urban mobility in bigger towns following the logic of integrated transport corridors, planning multimodal infrastructure, increasing the connections, speed and safety of rail, making the maritime transport sector more competitive and greener and connect it multimodally, developing faster and safer road transport. The plan shall include a target to reduce CO2 emissions by 700 000 tons (or 30%) compared to 2018 levels and reach a share of renewables in the energy consumed in the transport sector of 24% by 2035. |
|||
|
82 |
5.1 Deployment of safe, green, competitive, needs-based and sustainable transport and energy infrastructure |
Milestone |
Adoption of the Implementation Plan for green sustainable public transport development of the Transport and Mobility Development Plan 2021-2035 |
Adoption of the Implementation Plan |
Q4 |
2022 |
The implementation plan shall be approved by the Steering Committee of the Transport and Mobility Development Plan 2021-2035. It shall include the creation of the Tallinn capital region common transport system, actions to facilitate uptake of local biomethane, actions to develop sustainable and active urban mobility in bigger towns following the logic of integrated transport corridors, planning multimodal infrastructure, increasing the connections, speed and safety of rail, making the maritime transport sector more competitive, greener and connect it multimodally, developing faster and safer road transport. The implementation plan shall include an annual reporting obligation on the responsible minister to the Government. |
|||
|
83 |
5.1 Deployment of safe, green, competitive, needs-based and sustainable transport and energy infrastructure |
Milestone |
Implementation of Transport and Mobility Development Plan 2021-2035 |
Implementation of several key measures of the Transport and Mobility Development Plan 2021-2035 completed |
Q2 |
2026 |
The implementation of key measures of the Transport and Mobility Development Plan shall be completed, including building and extending the electrified railway lines from Tallinn to Tartu and harmonising the public transport system in the Tallinn capital region (including common ticketing and pricing systems). |
|||
|
84a |
5.2.a Multifunctional work vessel |
Milestone |
Contract signed for building of the vessel |
Contract signed |
Q1 |
2024 |
The contract for the building of the multifunctional work vessel shall be signed by the contractor and the National Fleet (Riigilaevastik). The contract shall include a specification of the fuel to be used by the vessel in line with ‘Do No Significant Harm’ requirements set out in the description of the investment. |
|||
|
85a |
5.2.a Multifunctional work vessel |
Milestone |
Vessel delivered |
Vessel delivered and accepted |
Q2 |
2026 |
The multifunctional work vessel shall be delivered in line with the description, criteria and conditions as set out in the description of the investment, and it shall be accepted by the National Fleet (Riigilaevastik). |
|||
|
86a |
5.3.a Construction of the Rail Baltic viaducts |
Milestone |
Works contracts for the construction of Rail Baltic viaducts |
Works contracts signed |
Q3 |
2023 |
Works contracts signed for the following Rail Baltic viaducts: Kangru viaduct, Raudalu viaduct, Raku viaduct, Männiku light traffic viaduct and Männiku light traffic tunnel. |
|||
|
87a |
5.3.aConstruction of the Rail Baltic viaducts |
Target |
Viaducts completed |
Number of viaducts |
0 |
5 |
Q1 |
2026 |
The construction of the following Rail Baltic viaducts has been completed and accepted by the contracting authority: Kangru viaduct, Raudalu viaduct, Raku viaduct, Männiku light traffic viaduct and Männiku light traffic tunnel. |
|
|
89 |
5.4 Construction of the Tallinn Old Port tram line |
Milestone |
Completion of the tramway construction project design |
Approval of the project design |
Q4 |
2021 |
Tallinn Urban Planning and Utilities Board shall adopt the design of the tramway construction project. |
|||
|
90 |
5.4 Construction of the Tallinn Old Port tram line |
Milestone |
Award of works contract |
Contract signed for the construction of the tramway line |
Q2 |
2022 |
Works contract concluded between Tallinn Urban Planning and Utilities Board and the contractor for the construction of the tramway line between Gonsiori street and Põhja Puiestee |
|||
|
91 |
5.4 Construction of the Tallinn Old Port tram line |
Target |
New tramway line in operation |
Meters of tramway line |
0 |
2500 |
Q4 |
2025 |
The tramway section of 2500 meters in length shall be completed and put into service in accordance with the letter authorisation issued by the City of Tallinn |
|
|
92 |
5.5 Municipalities’ investments in bike- and walkways |
Milestone |
Call for proposals for grants |
Publication of the notice for call for proposals for grants |
Q4 |
2022 |
An open call for investment by municipalities in bike- and walkways shall be published. |
|||
|
93 |
5.5 Municipalities’ investments in bike- and walkways |
Target |
Bike- and walkways infrastructure completed |
Km of bike- and walkways |
0 |
24 |
Q4 |
2025 |
At least 24 kilometres of bike and walkways shall be built as a result of the support scheme. These shall generally be new ways. In justified cases, the reconstruction of existing bike- and walkways shall be allowed, such as if the width of the existing walkway does not meet the standards, making it impossible for walkers and cyclists to move simultaneously in a safe and non-interference manner. |
|
F.COMPONENT 6: Healthcare and social protection
This component of the Estonian recovery and resilience plan aims to address the challenges related to the resilience of and access to the health care system, the adequacy of the social safety net, accessibility of social services and youth unemployment. The objectives of the measures included in the component are to: address workforce shortages in the health sector, strengthen primary and hospital care, extend the duration of the unemployment insurance benefit in periods of high unemployment, improve access to social services, address youth unemployment and reduce the gender pay gap.
The component supports addressing the Country Specific Recommendation, on improving the accessibility and resilience of the health system, including by addressing the shortages of health workers, strengthening primary care and ensuring the supply of critical medical products (Country Specific Recommendation 1 in 2020), on improving the social safety net, increasing access to social services in an integrated way (Country Specific Recommendation 2 in 2019, Country Specific Recommendation 2 in 2020 and Country Specific Recommendation 3 in 2022) and on reducing the gender pay gap, including by improving wage transparency (Country Specific Recommendation 2 in 2019).
It is expected that no measure in this component does significant harm to environmental objectives within the meaning of Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2020/852, taking into account the description of the measures and the mitigating steps set out in the recovery and resilience plan in accordance with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01).
F.1. Description of the reforms and investments for non-repayable financial support
6.1.Reform: A comprehensive change in the organisation of health care in Estonia
The objective of the reform is to improve the resilience of the Estonian health system, including for coping with crises, thus ensuring that people have access to high-quality, integrated healthcare throughout Estonia. The reform consists of the following elements:
(I)A Hospital Network Development Roadmap shall be adopted by 31 December 2024 which shall outline the consolidated hospital network in order to improve efficiency and infrastructure, and define the specialisation of hospitals to reduce the high rate of unmet need for medical care.
(II)Health workforce shortages shall be addressed by three measures:
a.A strategic framework shall be adopted by 31 December 2022 which shall outline the provision of health services in the various health sectors, in particular specialised care, the allocation of physical and human resources, and the funding mechanism to ensure the provision of good quality healthcare across the country. By 2023, the admission to nursing training shall be increased by 5% compared to 2020.
b.The reimbursement scheme for doctors and pharmacists shall be amended in order to incentivise the health workforce to work in remote areas.
c.The reimbursement scheme for nurses shall be established in order to incentivise them to work in remote areas.
d.The agreement between the Ministry of Social Affairs and the University of Tartu shall be amended to lay down requirements for the gradual increase of admission in certain professions with shortages, in particular general practitioners, psychiatrists, internal diseases. The amendment shall enter into force by 30 June 2026.
6.2.[deleted]
6.2.a Investment: Construction of TERVIKUM
The investment aims to contribute to improving the access to health care as well the provision of health and social care in an integrated way.
The investment consists of building a new health centre in the city of Viljandi. The investment shall have two parts, a general hospital and a primary health care centre.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 31 December 2025.
6.3.Reform: Strengthening primary health care
The objective of the reform is to ensure access to general medical care, improve the continuity of treatment and make provision of primary health care more flexible and human-centred. The reform consists of three sub-measures. First, in order to improve access to specialist care, the use of e-consultation in primary care was extended on 30 September 2020 allowing patients to be advised by a specialist without having to consult them face-to-face. Second, legislation entered into force on 31 March 2021 improving access to health care by increasing the level of support for general practitioners and by modifying the funding model for general medical care with a view to making working in primary health centres in remote areas more attractive. Third, the Health Services Organisation Act shall be amended as regards the management of the list of patients, ensuring continuity of primary care and extending the rights of nurses to prescribe medicines to patients.
The implementation of the reform shall be completed by 31 March 2023.
6.4.Reform: Renewal of the eHealth Governance
The objective of the reform is to update the governance framework for eHealth with a view to better responding to the needs of the health system and ensure the development of digital solutions to support a sustainable health system in Estonia. The reform consists of adopting a revised national governance model for information and communication technology of the current health system to provide a forward-looking new eHealth governance model and promote a common understanding among partners of the division of roles and responsibilities in eHealth.
The implementation of the reform shall be completed by 30 June 2023.
6.5.[deleted]
6.6.Investment: Providing labour market measures to reduce youth unemployment
The objective of the investment is to help young people with little work experience get into employment. The legislation on the renewed “My first job” (M1T) scheme shall have two components: a wage subsidy paid to the employer and the reimbursement of the training costs of a young person. A wage subsidy and training allowance (up to EUR 2 500) shall be paid to an employer who employs a young person between 16 and 29 years old and registered as unemployed with no or only short-term work experience. The M1T measure shall be integrated with other services, in particular with follow-on support to young people and employers beyond the start of the employment relationship. The aim is, in particular, to prevent the premature end of the employment relationship and to identify, in cooperation with the employer and the young person, the training needs of the young person. A reinforced Youth Guarantee Action Plan shall be presented by 30 June 2022 which shall support the implementation of the investment with additional measures supporting young unemployed. In particular, it shall include measures to improve the skills of young people, define actions to prevent and address youth unemployment, including outreach and prevention of NEET-situation and define key parties and their roles to prevent and deal with youth unemployment.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 31 December 2025.
6.7.Reform: Extending the duration of unemployment insurance benefits
The objective of the reform is to address the long-standing challenge of improving the adequacy of the social safety net. The reform consists of the establishment of a mechanism to activate the extension of the period of the unemployment insurance benefits by 60 days, notably when the registered unemployment rate exceeds the non-accelerating inflation/wage rate of unemployment (NAIRU/NAWRU) by a significant margin. The mechanism of prolongation and the margin, which shall not be higher than 2%, shall be agreed upon in dialogue with the social partners. The measure aims at helping people to bridge a longer period of unemployment in difficult labour market conditions.
The reform shall be implemented by 30 June 2023.
6.8.Reform: Long-term care
The objective of the reform is to improve the provision of long-term care. The reform consists of the following elements:
(I)Amendments to the Social Welfare Act shall lay down the definition of long-term care and require local authorities to take into account the principle that a person must be able to live as long as possible in his or her home, in his or her usual environment, with sufficient quality services available. The amendments shall enter into force by 30 June 2022.
(II)An Action Plan on providing social and health care in an integrated way shall provide for the establishment of an integrated care model throughout Estonia, lay down the roles and responsibilities of the actors involved and define the financing of the system. The Action Plan shall be adopted by 31 December 2022.
(III)A Decree of the Minister of Social Protection shall define the design and characteristics of care services by local authorities to people with lower care needs, as well as the conditions for their implementation. In particular, it shall include adequate investments and development of services by local authorities to provide for independent living for older people with lower care needs and people with disabilities to support independent living. The Decree of the Minister of Social Protection by 31 December 2024.
(IV)Legislative amendments aiming at improving the support system for children with higher care needs shall provide for the modernisation and integration of services for children with higher care needs. In particular, services in the health, education, social protection and employment areas shall be integrated in order to provide comprehensive support for families under care burden. The current support system shall be simplified and the assessments of care needs consolidated so that parents have a secure point of contact for initial advice and support. The legislative amendments shall enter into force by 31 March 2025.
6.9.Reform: Reducing gender pay gap
The objective of the reform is to reduce the gender pay gap. The reform consists of the adoption of the Welfare Development Plan for 2023-2030 and its implementation and the roll out of a digital gender pay gap tool.
The Welfare Development Plan shall be adopted by 31 March 2024 and it shall lay down the strategic objectives of reducing social inequalities and poverty, ensuring gender equality and greater social inclusion, and promoting equal treatment of persons belonging to minority groups. The Development Plan shall outline measures to reduce the gender pay gap, in particular by increasing wage transparency, reducing the prevalence and negative impact of gender stereotypes on the lives and decisions of women and men, including concerning educational and career choices and carrying the care burden, and supporting a more effective implementation of the Gender Equality Act.
A digital gender pay gap tool shall be rolled out by 31 March 2024 which shall offer employers a simple and easy tool to receive and analyse data and information concerning the gender pay gap and its possible reasons in their organisations and thereby supporting them in making informed decisions and taking effective action to implement the principle of equal pay and to reduce the gender pay gap.
The implementation of the reform shall be completed by 31 March 2024.
F.2. Milestones, targets, indicators, and timetable for monitoring and implementation for non-repayable financial support
|
Sequential Number |
Related Measure (Reform or Investment) |
Milestone / Target |
Name |
Qualitative indicators (for milestones) |
Quantitative indicators (for targets) |
Indicative timeline for completion |
Description of each milestone and target |
|||
|
Unit of measure |
Baseline |
Goal |
Quarter |
Year |
||||||
|
94 |
6.1 A comprehensive change in the organisation of health care in Estonia |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the Government Order on the Hospital network development roadmap |
Entry into force of the Government Order |
Q4 |
2024 |
Entry into force of the Government Order which shall lay down: - the list of regional, central, local and rehabilitation hospitals in order to ensure equal access to health care services; - the requirements, objectives and steps to be taken for consolidating the hospital network; - the necessary investments for the construction, renovation and reprofiling of the hospitals included in the list of hospitals. |
|||
|
95 |
6.1 A comprehensive change in the organisation of health care in Estonia |
Milestone |
Approval of the Strategic Framework for addressing health workforce shortages |
Approval of the Strategic Framework for addressing health workforce shortages by the Minister of Health and Labour |
Q4 |
2022 |
The Strategic Framework for addressing health workforce shortages shall outline: -measures on the organisation of health care services in the different health sectors, in particular specialised care, -allocation of physical and human resources to ensure the provision of health care throughout the territory, financing, governance and information exchange mechanisms that ensure performance throughout the country. |
|||
|
96 |
6.1 A comprehensive change in the organisation of health care in Estonia |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the Decrees of the Minister of Health and Labour amending the reimbursement system for doctors and pharmacists |
Entry into force of the Decrees of the Minister of Health and Labour |
Q1 |
2023 |
Entry into force of the Decrees of the Minister of Health and Labour which shall improve the reimbursement system for doctors and pharmacists to incentivise the health workforce to work in remote areas. |
|||
|
96a |
6.1 A comprehensive change in the organisation of health care in Estonia |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the Decree of the Minister of Health and Labour and the amendment to the Health Services Organisations Act establishing the reimbursement system for nurses |
Entry into force of the Decree of the Minister of Health and Labour and of the amendment to the Health Services Organisations Act |
Q2 |
2024 |
Entry into force of the Decree of the Minister of Health and Labour and the amendment to the Health Services Organisations Act which shall establish the reimbursement system for nurses to incentivise them to work in remote areas. This reimbursement system shall cover general and advanced practice nurses, in primary health care and hospitals. |
|||
|
97 |
6.1 A comprehensive change in the organisation of health care in Estonia |
Target |
Admission to nursing training |
Percentage increase in the number of persons admitted to nursing training |
0 |
5 |
Q4 |
2023 |
The admission of persons to nursing training has been increased by 5% compared to 2020. |
|
|
98 |
6.1 A comprehensive change in the organisation of health care in Estonia |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the Ministerial Regulation amending the agreement between the Ministry of Social Affairs and the University of Tartu on the shortage of doctors in certain specialisations |
Entry into force of the Ministerial Regulation and agreement between the Ministry of Social Affairs and the University of Tartu |
Q2 |
2026 |
Entry into force of the Ministerial Regulation amending the agreement between the Ministry of Social Affairs and the University of Tartu which shall lay down the requirements for the gradual increase of admission in certain professions with shortages, in particular general practitioners, psychiatrists, internal diseases. |
|||
|
99a |
6.2.a Construction of TERVIKUM |
Milestone |
Signature of the contract for the construction of TERVIKUM |
Signature of the contract |
Q2 |
2023 |
The Riigi Kinnisvara AS (the representative of the Viljandi Haigla) and the contractor shall sign a contract for the construction of TERVIKUM, including the installation of the technical building systems, in particular the technical equipment for heating, cooling, ventilation, hot water, lighting and electricity production, measurement, monitoring and control systems and interior works. |
|||
|
100a |
6.2.a Construction of TERVIKUM |
Milestone |
TERVIKUM constructed |
TERVIKUM constructed and equipped |
Q4 |
2025 |
The construction of the TERVIKUM, consisting of a general hospital and primary health care centre, shall be completed, and the building shall be supplied with the equipment necessary to make the TERVIKUM operational. |
|||
|
106 |
6.3 Strengthening primary health care |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the Decree of the Government, which amends the list of health care services of the Estonian Health Insurance Fund on access to specialised medical care |
Entry into force of legislative amendments to the Decree of the Government |
Q3 |
2020 |
Entry into force of legislative amendments which shall improve the access to specialised care by extending the use of e-consultation in primary care allowing patients to be advised by a specialist without having to consult them face-to-face. |
|||
|
107 |
6.3 Strengthening primary health care |
Milestone |
Entry into force of amendments to the Decree of the Government which amends the list of health care services of the Estonian Health Insurance Fund on costs and services of general practitioners |
Entry into force of the legislative amendments to the Decree of the Government |
Q1 |
2021 |
Legislative amendments shall enter into force providing for the financing of fixed costs and services for general practitioners in order to increase the allocation of resources to primary medical practice outside metropolitan areas, especially in remote areas, and to increase patients’ access to diagnostic and screening services. |
|||
|
108 |
6.3 Strengthening primary health care |
Milestone |
Entry into force of amendments to the Health Services Organisation Act |
Provision in the law indicating the entry into force of the law |
Q1 |
2023 |
Entry into force of the amendments to Health Services Organisation Act which shall amend the management of the list of patients, ensure continuity of primary care and extend the rights of nurses to prescribe medicines to patients. |
|||
|
109 |
6.4 Renewal of the eHealth Governance |
Milestone |
Approval of the eHealth Governance Framework and its implementation roadmap |
Approval of the proposal on the eHealth Governance Framework and implementation roadmap by the Steering Committee of the “Eesti tervise IKT juhtimise raamistik” |
Q2 |
2023 |
Approval of the proposal on the Governance Framework and implementation roadmap which shall update the governance framework for eHealth and the coordination of the development of eHealth services. |
|||
|
113 |
6.6 Providing labour market measures to reduce youth unemployment |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the Decree of the Minister of Health and Labour to strengthen the “My First Job” scheme |
Entry into force of the Decree of the Minister of Health and Labour |
Q1 |
2022 |
Entry into force of the Decree of the Minister of Health and Labour which shall define the characteristics of the scheme and the conditions for its implementation, including financing and target group. The aim of the scheme shall be to enable young people without work experience or with little work experience to gain work experience and to improve their skills to participate in the labour market. |
|||
|
114 |
6.6 Providing labour market measures to reduce youth unemployment |
Milestone |
Youth Guarantee Action Plan |
Adoption of the reinforced Youth Guarantee Action Plan by the Government |
Q2 |
2022 |
The Government shall adopt an amended Youth Guarantee Action Plan to support youth employment. This action plan shall - include measures to improve the skills of young people, - define actions to prevent and address youth unemployment, including outreach and prevention of NEET-situation -define key parties and their roles of preventing and dealing with youth unemployment. |
|||
|
115 |
6.6 Providing labour market measures to reduce youth unemployment |
Target |
Number of young people participating in the “My First Job” scheme |
Number of participants |
0 |
3178 |
Q4 |
2025 |
At least 3 178 young people aged 16-29 have participated in the “My First Job” scheme (cumulative number of entrants). |
|
|
116 |
6.7 Extending the duration of unemployment insurance benefits |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the amendments to the Unemployment Services and Benefits Act and the Unemployment Insurance Act |
Entry into force of the legislative amendments |
Q2 |
2023 |
Entry into force of the amendments to the Act which shall lay down a permanent mechanism to activate the extension of the duration of unemployment insurance benefits by 60 days, notably when the registered unemployment rate exceeds the non-accelerating inflation/wage rate of unemployment by a significant margin. The mechanism of prolongation and the margin, which shall not be higher than 2%, shall be agreed upon in dialogue with the social partners. |
|||
|
117 |
6.8 Long-term care |
Milestone |
Entry into force of amendments to the Social Welfare Act |
Entry into force of legislative amendments |
Q2 |
2022 |
Entry into force of legislative amendments to the Social Welfare Act which shall lay down the concept of long-term care and require local authorities to take into account the principle that a person must be able to live as long as possible in his or her home, in his or her usual environment, with sufficient quality services available. |
|||
|
118 |
6.8 Long-term care |
Milestone |
Action Plan on an integrated care model |
Adoption of the Action Plan |
Q4 |
2022 |
The Ministry of Social Affairs shall adopt an Action Plan that provides for the establishment of an integrated care model throughout Estonia and the roles and responsibilities of the actors involved in the future financing model of the system. |
|||
|
119 |
6.8 Long-term care |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the decree of the Minister of Social Protection |
Entry into force of the decree of the Minister of Social Protection |
Q4 |
2024 |
The Decree of the Minister of Social Protection shall define the design and characteristics of services by local authorities to people with lower care needs, as well as the conditions of their implementation. In particular, it shall include investments and development of services by local authorities to provide for independent living for older people with lower care needs and people with disabilities to support independent living. |
|||
|
120 |
6.8 Long-term care |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the legislative amendments of the support system for children with high care needs |
Entry into force of the legislative amendments |
Q1 |
2025 |
Entry into force of legislative amendments which shall provide for the modernisation and integration of services for children with higher care needs. In particular, - services in the health, education, social protection and employment areas shall be integrated in order to provide comprehensive support for families under care burden, and - the current support system shall be simplified and the assessment of care needs consolidated so that parents have a secure point of contact for initial advice and support. |
|||
|
121 |
6.9 Reducing gender pay gap |
Milestone |
Adoption of the Welfare Development Plan 2023-2030 by the government |
Adoption of the Welfare Development Plan |
Q1 |
2024 |
The Plan shall outline the measures to reduce the gender pay gap. |
|||
|
122 |
6.9 Reducing gender pay gap |
Milestone |
Digital gender pay gap tool |
Developing a prototype of a gender pay gap tool |
Q4 |
2022 |
A prototype of a gender pay gap tool for employers shall be developed with the aim of providing them with data and information concerning the gender pay gap and its possible reasons in their organisations and thereby supporting making informed decisions and taking effective action in order to implement the principle of equal pay and to reduce the gender pay gap. |
|||
|
123 |
6.9 Reducing gender pay gap |
Milestone |
Digital gender pay gap tool |
Roll-out of a digital gender pay gap tool |
Q1 |
2024 |
The digital gender pay gap tool shall be available to employers with the aim of providing them with data and information concerning the gender pay gap and its possible reasons in their organisations and thereby supporting making informed decisions and taking effective action in order to implement the principle of equal pay and to reduce the gender pay gap. |
|||
G.AUDIT AND CONTROL
G.1. Description of the reforms and investments for non-repayable financial support
The objective of the reform is to set the legal framework for the implementation and monitoring of the recovery and resilience plan. It shall define the roles played by relevant public entities in the implementation of the plan and how these bodies shall carry out their tasks.
The implementation of the reform shall be completed by 31 December 2021.
G.2. Milestones, targets, indicators, and timetable for monitoring and implementation for non-repayable financial support
|
Sequential Number |
Related Measure (Reform or Investment) |
Milestone / Target |
Name |
Qualitative indicators (for milestones) |
Quantitative indicators (for targets) |
Indicative timeline for completion |
Description of each milestone and target |
|||
|
Unit of measure |
Baseline |
Goal |
Quarter |
Year |
||||||
|
124 |
Monitoring and implementation of the plan |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the Government Regulation on the legal framework for the implementation and monitoring of the recovery and resilience plan of Estonia. |
Entry into force of government regulation |
Q4 |
2021 |
Entry into force of the regulation establishing the legal framework for the implementation and monitoring of the recovery and resilience plan of Estonia before the first payment request is made. The regulation shall at least define the authorities involved in the implementation of the recovery and resilience plan of Estonia and their tasks including the tasks of the Ministry of Finance, the sectoral ministries and the State Shared Service Center. |
|||
H.COMPONENT 8: REPowerEU
The REPowerEU chapter addresses the challenge of reducing reliance on fossil fuels. The objectives of the component are to facilitate the deployment of renewable energy sources; to facilitate decarbonising selected economic sectors; to increase the capacity of the electricity distribution network; to boost the uptake of sustainable biomethane and to accelerate the integration of renewable energy sources.
The REPowerEU chapter supports addressing the Country Specific Recommendation to reduce overall reliance on fossil fuels by accelerating the deployment of renewables, including through further streamlining of permitting procedures and strengthening the domestic electricity network (Country Specific Recommendation 4 in 2022).
It is expected that no measure in this component does significant harm to environmental objectives within the meaning of Article 17 of Regulation (EU) 2020/852, taking into account the description of the measures and the mitigating steps set out in the recovery and resilience plan in accordance with the ‘Do no significant harm’ Technical Guidance (2021/C58/01).
The implementation of the measure facilitating the deployment of renewable energy sources, the measure to increase the access of renewable energy production to the electricity distribution network and the measure increasing production and uptake of sustainable biomethane are all expected to contribute to reducing dependency on fossil fuels. Increasing the share of renewable energy sources has a cross-border or multi-country dimension, especially in the Baltic region and Finland, because it contributes to securing the energy supply in the Union as a whole. Less dependency on imported fossil fuels will also create European added value as it will free up supply for other Member States, in the current situation of natural gas supply constraints, and until other Member States succeed in reducing their dependency on fossil fuels.
H.1. Description of the reforms and investments for non-repayable financial support
8.1 Reform: Facilitating the deployment of renewable energy sources
The purpose of this reform is to facilitate the deployment of renewable energy sources, notably wind energy. The reform shall consist of:
·The entry into force of the legislative amendments to streamline planning, permitting and environmental impact assessment processes for wind energy projects.
·The government shall establish wind priority development areas on the basis of a technical report identifying priority development areas with a total estimated potential to produce 1000 MW.
·Local authorities shall receive support to improve administrative procedures, including permitting, for wind energy development.
The implementation of the reform shall be completed by 31 March 2026.
8.2. Investment: Programme to increase the access of renewable energy production to the electricity distribution network
The purpose of this investment is to increase the capacity of the electricity distribution network. The lack of capacity of the electricity distribution network currently limits the deployment of electricity from renewable energy sources. The investments shall involve works in the electricity network to increase the capacity of the network by 160 MW.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 31 March 2026.
8.3. Investment: Increasing production and uptake of sustainable biogas and biomethane
The purpose of this measure is to boost the uptake of sustainable biogas and sustainable biomethane in line with the Renewable Energy Directive (RED II) and to accelerate the integration of renewable energy sources. The investment shall consist of sub-investments.
Sub-investment one consists of creating necessary regulatory, organisational and financial conditions to increase the production and use of sustainable biogas and sustainable biomethane. The sub-investment one consists of two elements:
1.Estonia shall commission an independent survey identifying the necessary regulatory, organisational and financial interventions to be initiated and implemented to increase the production and use of sustainable biogas and sustainable biomethane. The survey shall provide an assessment of historical and current natural gas, biogas and biomethane consumption volumes and a roadmap for future demand to show the potential of the sustainable biogas and sustainable biomethane production as a replacement for natural gas over time. The final report on the survey shall be published on the website of the Ministry of the Environment.
2.The government shall approve an action plan for the production and deployment of sustainable biogas and sustainable biomethane. The action plan shall include a list of legislative changes and interventions necessary for increasing the production and deployment of sustainable biogas and sustainable biomethane.
Sub-investment two consists of building production facilities. The support from the measure shall increase the production capacity of sustainable biomethane by at least 4 000 000 cubic metres. The call for applications for grants to support the uptake of biomethane shall include the selection criterion that the traffic of trucks transporting biowaste shall be minimised.
The implementation of the investment shall be completed by 30 June 2026.
H.2. Milestones, targets, indicators, and timetable for monitoring and implementation for non-repayable financial support
|
Sequential Number |
Related Measure (Reform or Investment) |
Milestone / Target |
Name |
Qualitative indicators (for milestones) |
Quantitative indicators (for targets) |
Indicative timeline for completion |
Description of each milestone and target |
|||
|
Unit of measure |
Baseline |
Goal |
Quarter |
Year |
||||||
|
125 |
8.1 Facilitating the deployment of renewable energy sources |
Milestone |
Publication of the call for proposals to support local authorities |
Publication of the call for proposals |
Q3 |
2023 |
A call for proposals shall be published to support local authorities to hire experts or procure services aimed at improving administrative procedures, including permitting, for wind energy development. |
|||
|
126 |
8.1 Facilitating the deployment of renewable energy sources |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the amendments to the relevant laws streamlining permitting, planning and environmental impact assessment processes |
Entry into force of the amendments |
Q2 |
2024 |
Legislative amendments to streamline permitting, planning and environmental impact assessment processes for wind energy projects shall enter into force. These shall include amending the following laws to the extent necessary: the Building Code, the Water Act, the Planning Act, the Environmental Impact Assessment and Environmental Management System Act, the Environmental Charges Act and the Forest Act. |
|||
|
127 |
8.1 Facilitating the deployment of renewable energy sources |
Milestone |
Governmental decision establishing priority development areas for wind energy |
Governmental decision adopted |
Q3 |
2024 |
The government shall adopt a decision establishing wind energy priority development areas. The government shall adopt the decision on the basis of a technical report that shall have identified priority development areas with a total estimated potential to produce 1000 MW. |
|||
|
128 |
8.1 Facilitating the deployment of renewable energy sources |
Target |
Support to local authorities |
Number of local authorities supported |
0 |
20 |
Q1 |
2025 |
20 local authorities shall have received support on the basis of the call for proposals to hire experts or procure services or by use of centrally procured services aimed at improving administrative procedures, including permitting, for wind energy development. |
|
|
129 |
8.2 Programme to increase the access of renewable energy production to the electricity distribution network |
Milestone |
Signature of the co-financing agreement for electricity distribution network works |
Signed agreement |
Q1 |
2024 |
Signature of the co-financing agreement, for electricity distribution network works, between the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications and Elering AS for the purpose of increasing the capacity of the electricity distribution network by 160 MW. |
|||
|
130 |
8.2 Programme to increase the access of renewable energy production to the electricity distribution network |
Target |
Construction finished and additional 160 MW capacity available |
|
MW of additional capacity available |
0 |
160 |
Q1 |
2026 |
Electricity distribution network works shall be completed and result in an increase in the capacity of the electricity distribution network by 160 MW. |
|
131 |
8.3 Increasing production and uptake of sustainable biogas and biomethane |
Milestone |
Call for applications for grants to support the uptake of biomethane |
Call for applications published |
Q2 |
2024 |
Publication of a call for applications for grants to support the uptake of sustainable biomethane in line with the Renewable Energy Directive (RED II). The call shall contain, among the selection criteria, the requirement set out in the description of the investment. |
|||
|
132 |
8.3 Increasing production and uptake of sustainable biogas and biomethane |
Milestone |
Independent survey identifying the necessary regulatory, organizational and financial interventions |
Publication of the final report on the survey |
Q4 |
2024 |
The final report on the independent survey identifying the necessary regulatory, organisational and financial interventions to be initiated and implemented to increase the production and use of sustainable biogas and sustainable biomethane shall be published on the website of the Ministry of the Environment. The report shall include an estimate of the potential for sustainable biogas and sustainable biomethane as a replacement for natural gas over time on the basis of an analysis of historical consumption volumes and future demand. |
|||
|
133 |
8.3 Increasing production and uptake of sustainable biogas and biomethane |
Milestone |
Development of an action plan for the production and deployment of biogas and biomethane |
Approved plan |
Q2 |
2025 |
The government shall approve the action plan for the production and deployment of sustainable biogas and sustainable biomethane. The action plan shall include a list of legislative changes and interventions necessary for increasing the production and deployment of sustainable biogas and sustainable biomethane. |
|||
|
134 |
8.3 Increasing production and uptake of sustainable biogas and biomethane |
Target |
Installation of new biomethane production capacity |
Increase in installed production capacity of sustainable biomethane in cubic metres |
0 |
4 000 000 |
Q2 |
2026 |
Installed capacity for the production of sustainable biomethane shall increase by at least 4 000 000 cubic metres under the support scheme. |
|
2.Estimated total cost of the recovery and resilience plan
The estimated total cost of the modified RRP including the REPowerEU chapter of Estonia is EUR 953 330 000.
The estimated total cost of the REPowerEU chapter is EUR 90 040 000. In particular, the estimated total costs of the measures referred to in Article 21c(3), point (a) of Regulation (EU) 2023/435 is EUR 0 whilst the costs of the other measures in the REPowerEU chapter is EUR 90 040 000.
SECTION 2: FINANCIAL SUPPORT
1.Financial contribution
The instalments referred to in Article 2(2) shall be organised in the following manner:
First Instalment (non-repayable support):
|
Sequential Number |
Related Measure (Reform or Investment) |
Milestone / Target |
Name |
|
23 |
2.1. Green transition of enterprises |
Milestone |
Creation of a Green Transition Task Force to implement and monitor the green transition |
|
28 |
2.3. Green technology development programmes |
Milestone |
Establishment of a working group to plan and set up the development programme |
|
37 |
2.6. Green Fund |
Milestone |
Signature of contractual agreement between the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications and SmartCap |
|
38 |
2.6. Green Fund |
Milestone |
Adoption of the investment policy document by SmartCap |
|
44 |
3.1. Creation and development of a centre of excellence for data governance and open data |
Milestone |
Setting up a data management team in the Statistical Office, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications and the State Information System Authority |
|
70 |
4.4. Boosting the green transition in the energy economy |
Milestone |
Government decision on investments needed to alleviate the defence related height restrictions on wind parks |
|
71 |
4.4. Boosting the green transition in the energy economy |
Milestone |
Adoption of the decision of the Government on the initiation of the preparation process of the National Development Plan of the Energy Sector, the designation of those responsible and deadlines |
|
74 |
4.5. Programme to strengthen the electricity grid to increase renewable energy production capacity and adapt to climate change (such as protection against storms) |
Milestone |
Signature of network investment co-financing contract with transmission system operator |
|
81 |
5.1. Deploy safe, green, competitive, needs-based and sustainable transport and energy infrastructure |
Milestone |
Adoption of the Transport and Mobility Development Plan 2021-2035 by the Government |
|
89 |
5.4. Construction of the Tallinn Old Port tram line |
Milestone |
Completion of the tramway construction project design |
|
106 |
6.3. Strengthening primary health care |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the Decree of the Government, which amends the list of health care services of the Estonian Health Insurance Fund on access to specialised medical care |
|
107 |
6.3. Strengthening primary health care |
Milestone |
Entry into force of amendments to the Decree of the Government which amends the list of health care services of the Estonian Health Insurance Fund on costs and services of general practitioners |
|
113 |
6.6. Providing labour market measures to reduce youth unemployment |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the Decree of the Minister of Health and Labour to strengthen the “My First Job” scheme |
|
124 |
Audit and Control |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the Government Regulation on the legal framework for the implementation and monitoring of the recovery and resilience plan of Estonia. |
|
Instalment Amount |
EUR 142 977 720 |
Second Instalment (non-repayable support):
|
Sequential Number |
Related Measure (Reform or Investment) |
Milestone / Target |
Name |
|
1 |
1.1. Digital transformation in enterprises |
Milestone |
Call for proposals with award criteria and award conditions |
|
11 |
1.4. Skills reform for the digital transformation of businesses |
Milestone |
Entry into force of secondary legislation setting out the terms of support for the development of digital skills |
|
16 |
1.5.1. Supporting the competitiveness of enterprises in foreign markets - Country and regional strategies |
Milestone |
Preparation of the development of strategies |
|
19 |
1.5.2. Supporting the competitiveness of enterprises in foreign markets - Innovative business centres in key export markets |
Milestone |
Preparatory analysis to define the content and the locations of business centres |
|
21 |
1.5.3. Supporting the competitiveness of enterprises in foreign markets - Global e-export impact groups and virtual stages |
Milestone |
Setting-up of impact groups and selection of destinations for global digital missions |
|
25 |
2.2. Green skills to support the green transition of enterprises |
Milestone |
Entry into force of secondary legislation setting out the terms of support for the development of green skills |
|
32 |
2.4. Modernisation of the business models in manufacturing companies |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the ministerial decree setting out the terms and conditions of grant eligibility |
|
34 |
2.5. Deployment of resource-efficient green technologies |
Milestone |
Publication of call for proposals for grants |
|
51 |
3.4. #Bürokratt programme (national virtual assistant platform and ecosystem) |
Target |
Access to digital public services through the virtual assistant platform |
|
54 |
3.5. Reconfiguration of basic digital services and safe transition to cloud infrastructure |
Milestone |
Development of centrally delivered/shared IT base services |
|
65 |
4.2. Support for the renovation of apartment buildings |
Milestone |
Publication of calls for applications for residential apartment buildings renovation grants |
|
68 |
4.3. Support for the renovation of small residential buildings |
Milestone |
Published calls for renovation grant |
|
90 |
5.4. Construction of the Tallinn Old Port tram line |
Milestone |
Award of works contract |
|
114 |
6.6. Providing labour market measures to reduce youth unemployment |
Milestone |
Youth Guarantee Action Plan |
|
117 |
6.8. Long-term care |
Milestone |
Entry into force of amendments to the Social Welfare Act |
|
Instalment Amount |
EUR 142 977 720 |
Third Instalment (non-repayable support):
|
Sequential Number |
Related Measure (Reform or Investment) |
Milestone / Target |
Name |
|
7 |
1.3. Development of digital waybills services |
Target |
eFTI (electronic Freight Transport Information) platforms development |
|
24 |
2.1. Green transition of enterprises |
Milestone |
Adoption of the Circular Economy Action Plan by the Green Transition Task Force |
|
41 |
2.7. Creating opportunities for the uptake of renewables-based green hydrogen technologies |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the ministerial decree setting out the terms and conditions for granting support |
|
47 |
3.2. Development of event services and proactive digital public services for individuals |
Target |
Launch of personal life event services and/or pro-active services |
|
49 |
3.3. Development of event services and digital gateway for entrepreneurs |
Target |
Deployment of IT developments contributing to the implementation of the business event services and gateway |
|
63 |
4.1. Energy efficiency promotion |
Milestone |
Conclusion of the cooperation agreement stipulating conditions for cooperation between SA Kredex/Enterprise Estonia and county development centers |
|
76 |
4.6. Programme to boost energy production in industrial areas |
Milestone |
Publication of a call for proposals for projects boosting energy production in industrial sites |
|
78 |
4.7. Pilot Energy Storage Programme |
Milestone |
Publication of a call for proposals for a pilot energy storage programme |
|
82 |
5.1. Deploy safe, green, competitive, needs-based and sustainable transport and energy infrastructure |
Milestone |
Adoption of the Implementation Plan for green sustainable public transport development of the Transport and Mobility Development Plan 2021-2035 |
|
92 |
5.5. Municipalities’ investments in bike- and walkways |
Milestone |
Call for proposals for grants |
|
95 |
6.1. A comprehensive change in the organisation of health care in Estonia |
Milestone |
Approval of the Strategic Framework for addressing health workforce shortages |
|
96 |
6.1. A comprehensive change in the organisation of health care in Estonia |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the Decrees of the Minister of Health and Labour amending the reimbursement system for doctors and pharmacists |
|
99a |
6.2.a Construction of TERVIKUM |
Milestone |
Signature of the contract for the construction of TERVIKUM |
|
108 |
6.3. Strengthening primary health care |
Milestone |
Entry into force of amendments to the Health Services Organisation Act |
|
109 |
6.4. Renewal of the eHealth Governance |
Milestone |
Approval of the eHealth Governance Framework and its implementation roadmap |
|
116 |
6.7. Extending the duration of unemployment insurance benefits |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the amendments to the Unemployment Services and Benefits Act and the Unemployment Insurance Act |
|
118 |
6.8. Long-term care |
Milestone |
Action Plan on an integrated care model |
|
122 |
6.9. Reducing gender pay gap |
Milestone |
Digital gender pay gap tool |
|
Instalment Amount |
EUR 142 977 720 |
Fourth Instalment (non-repayable support):
|
Sequential Number |
Related Measure (Reform or Investment) |
Milestone / Target |
Name |
|
2 |
1.1. Digital transformation in enterprises |
Target |
Award of grants |
|
12 |
1.4. Skills reform for the digital transformation of businesses |
Target |
Enrolment in training activities |
|
17 |
1.5.1. Supporting the competitiveness of enterprises in foreign markets - Country and regional strategies |
Milestone |
Procurement of studies |
|
29 |
2.3. Green technology development programmes |
Milestone |
Set up of the Green Technologies Development Programme |
|
35 |
2.5. Deployment of resource efficient green technologies |
Target |
Number of projects awarded grants following the call for proposals |
|
43a |
2.8 Supply security investment support |
Milestone |
Publication of the call for proposals for grants |
|
55 |
3.5. Reconfiguration of basic digital services and safe transition to cloud infrastructure |
Target |
Deployment of national private cloud infrastructure by public authorities |
|
56 |
3.5. Reconfiguration of basic digital services and safe transition to cloud infrastructure |
Milestone |
Extension of the cloud infrastructure to the data embassy |
|
84a |
5.2.a Multifunctional work vessel |
Milestone |
Contract signed for building of the vessel |
|
86a |
5.3.a Construction of the Rail Baltic viaducts |
Milestone |
Works contracts for the construction of Rail Baltic viaducts |
|
96a |
6.1 A comprehensive change in the organisation of health care in Estonia |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the Decree of the Minister of Health and Labour and the amendment to the Health Services Organisations Act establishing the reimbursement system for nurses |
|
97 |
6.1. A comprehensive change in the organisation of health care in Estonia |
Target |
Admission to nursing training |
|
121 |
6.9. Reducing gender pay gap |
Milestone |
Adoption of the Welfare Development Plan 2023-2030 by the government |
|
123 |
6.9. Reducing gender pay gap |
Milestone |
Digital gender pay gap tool |
|
125 |
8.1 Facilitating the deployment of renewable energy sources |
Milestone |
Publication of the call for proposals to support local authorities |
|
126 |
8.1 Facilitating the deployment of renewable energy sources |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the amendments to the relevant laws streamlining permitting, planning and environmental impact assessment processes |
|
129 |
8.2 Programme to increase the access of renewable energy production to the electricity distribution network |
Milestone |
Signature of the co-financing agreement for electricity distribution network |
|
131 |
8.3 Increasing production and uptake of sustainable biogas and biomethane |
Milestone |
Call for applications for grants to support the uptake of biomethane |
|
Instalment Amount |
EUR 142 977 720 |
Fifth Instalment (non-repayable support):
|
Sequential Number |
Related Measure (Reform or Investment) |
Milestone / Target |
Name |
|
4 |
1.2. Development of e-construction |
Milestone |
Adoption of international standards and best practices for the use of digital technologies in construction |
|
8 |
1.3. Development of digital waybills services |
Target |
eCMR (electronic Consignment Note) interface developments |
|
14 |
1.4. Skills reform for the digital transformation of businesses |
Target |
Number of new upskilling and retraining modules |
|
15 |
1.4. Skills reform for the digital transformation of businesses |
Target |
Review of qualification standards for ICT specialists. |
|
26 |
2.2. Green skills to support the green transition of enterprises |
Target |
Number of upskilling and retraining modules |
|
39 |
2.6. Green Fund |
Target |
Volume of investments in venture capital funds or equity investments in enterprises |
|
43b |
2.8 Supply security investment support |
Target |
Number of projects awarded following the call for proposals |
|
57 |
3.5. Reconfiguration of basic digital services and safe transition to cloud infrastructure |
Target |
Migration of critical systems to the national cloud infrastructure of the data embassy |
|
58 |
3.5. Reconfiguration of basic digital services and safe transition to cloud infrastructure |
Target |
Central security testing of public authorities’ information systems |
|
59 |
3.6. Establishing the strategic analysis of money laundering and terrorist financing in Estonia |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the amendment of the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Prevention Act and of other legislative, administrative and contractual changes needed for the Centre for Strategic Analysis |
|
61 |
3.8. Construction of very high capacity broadband networks |
Target |
Rollout of very high capacity broadband network to new sites |
|
64 |
4.1. Energy efficiency promotion |
Milestone |
Digital tools to facilitate access to information on renovation including visualising the results of the renovation and estimating the cost of renovation have become operational |
|
66 |
4.2. Support for the renovation of apartment buildings |
Target |
Dwellings with improved energy performance |
|
69 |
4.3. Support for the renovation of small residential buildings |
Target |
Dwellings with improved energy performance |
|
72 |
4.4. Boosting the green transition in the energy economy |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the relevant primary and/or secondary legislation and publication of guidance material to alleviate the barriers for the installation of renewable energy generating installations and energy storage facilities |
|
80a |
4.8 Boosting offshore wind farms development |
Milestone |
Contractors for the radar and passive radar system/sensors selected and contracts signed |
|
94 |
6.1. A comprehensive change in the organisation of health care in Estonia |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the Government Order on the Hospital network development roadmap |
|
119 |
6.8. Long-term care |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the decree of the Minister of Social Protection |
|
120 |
6.8. Long-term care |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the legislative amendments of the support system for children with high care needs |
|
127 |
8.1 Facilitating the deployment of renewable energy sources |
Milestone |
Governmental decision establishing priority development areas for wind energy |
|
128 |
8.1 Facilitating the deployment of renewable energy sources |
Target |
Support to local authorities |
|
132 |
8.3 Increasing production and uptake of sustainable biogas and biomethane |
Milestone |
Independent survey identifying the necessary regulatory, organizational and financial interventions |
|
Instalment Amount |
EUR 142 977 720 |
Sixth Instalment (non-repayable support):
|
Sequential Number |
Related Measure (Reform or Investment) |
Milestone / Target |
Name |
|
3 |
1.1. Digital transformation in enterprises |
Target |
Award of grants |
|
5 |
1.2. Development of e-construction |
Milestone |
Availability of public services on the e-construction platform |
|
6 |
1.2. Development of e-construction |
Target |
Completion of development and prototyping projects |
|
9 |
1.3. Development of digital waybills services |
Target |
Total number of projects completed |
|
33 |
2.4. Modernisation of the business models in manufacturing companies |
Target |
Number of projects supported |
|
42 |
2.7 Creating opportunities for the uptake of renewables- based green hydrogen technologies |
Milestone |
Technologies and equipment for green hydrogen production |
|
45 |
3.1. Creation and development of a centre of excellence for data governance and open data |
Target |
Completion of data quality improvement projects |
|
46 |
3.1. Creation and development of a centre of excellence for data governance and open data |
Target |
Publication of datasets on the national open data portal |
|
48 |
3.2. Development of event services and proactive digital public services for individuals |
Target |
Launch of personal event services and pro-active services |
|
50 |
3.3. Development of event services and digital gateway for entrepreneurs |
Target |
Deployment of IT developments contributing to the implementation of the business event services and gateway |
|
52 |
3.4. #Bürokratt programme (national virtual assistant platform and ecosystem) |
Target |
Introduction of the Bürokratt virtual assistant in digital public services environments |
|
53 |
3.4. #Bürokratt programme (national virtual assistant platform and ecosystem) |
Target |
Access to digital public services through the virtual assistant platform |
|
62 |
3.8. Construction of very high capacity broadband networks |
Target |
Rollout of very high capacity broadband network to new sites |
|
73 |
4.4. Boosting the green transition in the energy economy |
Milestone |
Adoption of the National Development Plan of the Energy Sector by the Government |
|
91 |
5.4 Construction of the Tallinn Old Port tram line |
Target |
New tramway line in operation |
|
93 |
5.5. Municipalities’ investments in bike- and walkways |
Target |
Bike- and walkways infrastructure completed |
|
100a |
6.2.a Construction of TERVIKUM |
Milestone |
TERVIKUM constructed |
|
115 |
6.6. Providing labour market measures to reduce youth unemployment |
Target |
Number of young people participating in the “My First Job” scheme |
|
133 |
8.3 Increasing production and uptake of sustainable biogas and biomethane |
Milestone |
Development of an action plan for the production and deployment of biogas and biomethane |
|
Instalment Amount |
EUR 142 977 720 |
Seventh Instalment (non-repayable support):
|
Sequential Number |
Related Measure (Reform or Investment) |
Milestone / Target |
Name |
|
10 |
1.3. Development of digital waybills services |
Milestone |
Ex-post evaluation of the development and deployment of the digital waybills |
|
13 |
1.4. Skills reform for the digital transformation of businesses |
Target |
Completion of training activities |
|
18 |
1.5.1. Supporting the competitiveness of enterprises in foreign markets - Country and regional strategies |
Target |
Number of country and regional export strategies |
|
20 |
1.5.2. Supporting the competitiveness of enterprises in foreign markets - Innovative business centres in key export markets |
Target |
Number of business centres opened |
|
22 |
1.5.3. Supporting the competitiveness of enterprises in foreign markets - Global e-export impact groups and virtual stages |
Target |
Number of missions carried out by the global impact groups and number of major events in which Estonia was represented through ‘virtual stages’ |
|
27 |
2.2. Green skills to support the green transition of enterprises |
Target |
People taking part in upskilling and retraining programmes |
|
30 |
2.3. Green technology development programmes |
Target |
Number of clusters supported through the Green Technology Development Programme |
|
31 |
2.3. Green technology development programmes |
Target |
Number of start-ups supported through the Green Technology Development Programme and which have received private investment |
|
36 |
2.5. Deployment of resource-efficient green technologies |
Target |
Number of projects completed |
|
40 |
2.6. Green Fund |
Target |
Volume of investments in venture capital funds or equity investments in enterprises |
|
43 |
2.7. Creating opportunities for the uptake of renewables-based green hydrogen technologies |
Target |
Grants allocated to renewables- based green hydrogen technologies representing at least EUR 49.49 million |
|
43c |
2.8 Supply security investment support |
Target |
Number of projects completed |
|
60 |
3.7. Information system for real-time strategic analysis of money laundering and terrorist financing |
Milestone |
Development of the new realtime ICT analysis system for the Centre for Strategic Analysis, and delivery to the Financial Intelligence Unit |
|
67 |
4.2. Support for the renovation of apartment buildings |
Target |
Estimated annual reduction of greenhouse gas emissions |
|
69a |
4.3 Support for renovation of small residential buildings |
Target |
Dwellings with improved energy performance |
|
75 |
4.5. Programme to strengthen the electricity grid to increase renewable energy production capacity and adapt to climate change (such as protection against storms) |
Target |
Additional grid capacity created via investments into the transmission network |
|
77 |
4.6. Programme to boost energy production in industrial areas |
Target |
Additional connection capacity for renewable electricity production in or near industrial sites connected to the grid |
|
79 |
4.7. Pilot Energy Storage Programme |
Target |
Additional heat storage capacity resulting from investment support |
|
80 |
4.7. Pilot Energy Storage Programme |
Target |
Additional electricity storage capacity resulting from investment support |
|
80b |
4.8 Boosting offshore wind farms development |
Milestone |
Radar and passive radar system/sensors become operational |
|
80c |
4.8 Boosting offshore wind farms development |
Milestone |
Removal of the height restriction on offshore wind turbines in the Gulf of Riga and Estonian islands Hiiumaa, Saaremaa, Vormsi |
|
83 |
5.1. Deploy safe, green, competitive, needs-based and sustainable transport and energy infrastructure |
Milestone |
Implementation of Transport and Mobility Development Plan 2021-2035 |
|
85a |
5.2.a Multifunctional work vessel |
Milestone |
Vessel delivered |
|
87a |
5.3.a Construction of the Rail Baltic viaducts |
Target |
Viaducts completed |
|
98 |
6.1. A comprehensive change in the organisation of health care in Estonia |
Milestone |
Entry into force of the Ministerial Regulation amending the agreement between the Ministry of Social Affairs and the University of Tartu on the shortage of doctors in certain specialisations |
|
130 |
8.2 Programme to increase the access of renewable energy production to the electricity distribution network |
Target |
Construction finished and additional 160 MW capacity available |
|
134 |
8.3 Increasing production and uptake of sustainable biogas and biomethane |
Target |
Installation of new biomethane production capacity |
|
Instalment Amount |
EUR 95 318 480 |
SECTION 3: ADDITIONAL ARRANGEMENTS
1.Arrangements for monitoring and implementation of the recovery and resilience plan
The monitoring and implementation of the Estonian recovery and resilience plan shall take place in accordance with the following arrangements:
The Ministry of Finance as the lead ministry and the State Shared Service Center shall ensure overall coordination, monitoring and implementation of the recovery and resilience plan. The State Shared Service Center shall perform the functions of the managing authority. The State Budget Department in the Ministry of Finance in cooperation with the State Shared Service Center shall carry out the tasks related to monitoring and evaluation.
Sectoral ministries and agencies shall perform the responsibilities assigned to them, related to the implementation of the plan. Their services shall also support the monitoring of the progress of the projects under their competency and maintain close cooperation with the State Shared Service Center and the Ministry of Finance. To this end, the existing Structural Funds Operating System (SFOS) shall be used to record all the data related to implementation and monitoring of the plan.
The Financial Control Department of the Ministry of Finance, the audit authority, shall carry out regular audits of the management and control systems put in place. It shall also prepare a summary of the audits carried out for requests for payments. The Audit Authority shall also host the Anti-Fraud Co-ordinating Service.
All national and external sources shall be budgeted together in sector-specific programmes allowing transparent monitoring of sectoral funding and allowing the identification of risks and prevention of double funding.
2.Arrangements for providing full access by the Commission to the underlying data
The State Shared Service Center as the managing authority shall hold the responsibility for submitting requests for payment to the European Commission and for drawing up the management declaration by which it certifies that the funds have been used for their intended purpose, that the information is complete, accurate and reliable and that the control system provides the necessary assurance. In addition, monitoring and evaluation shall also be ensured by the Ministry of Finance in cooperation with the State Shared Service Center.
Data related to the implementation and monitoring of the plan shall be stored in the existing integrated information system, the Structural Funds Operating System (SFOS). The SFOS is adapted to the requirements under Regulation (EU) 2021/241 for data collection, progress reports and requests for payment, including to collect indicators and other information necessary to demonstrate and report the achievement of milestones and targets. The SFOS shall be used by all actors involved in the implementation of the plan. The information in the SFOS shall continuously be updated on the progress and results of the plan including deficiencies identified and all corrective actions taken.
In accordance with Article 24(2) of Regulation (EU) 2021/241, upon completion of the relevant agreed milestones and targets in Section 2.1 of this Annex, Estonia shall submit to the Commission a duly justified request for payment of the financial contribution. Estonia shall ensure that, upon request, the Commission has full access to the underlying relevant data that supports the due justification of the request for payment, both for the assessment of the request for payment in accordance with Article 24(3) of Regulation (EU) 2021/241 and for audit and control purposes.
