The European Investment Bank (EIB) is lending EUR 36.7 million to Österreichische Bundesforste AG (ÖBf AG) to finance the construction of a wind farm in Styria (southern Austria) that will result in a reduction of CO2 emissions. This will be the first direct EIB loan to support electricity generation from wind in Austria. It will help to meet the Austrian government’s target of building 2 000 MW of additional wind capacity between 2010 and 2020. The EIB loan will fund the construction...

Draft rules designed to boost the efficiency and cut the cost of services supplied at EU maritime ports, such as mooring and towage, were voted by Parliament on Tuesday. Ensuring transparency in the setting of fees for using port services and infrastructure, and in any public funding that ports receive, should help to prevent price abuse and market distortions and thus boost trade, MEPs say. But current port service arrangements could remain, provided they meet minimum requirements, they add. The...

The Commission welcomes today's political agreement by Member States on the automatic exchange of tax-related financial information of multinational companies, known as country-by-country reporting, subject to UK parliamentary scrutiny. The agreement was reached at a meeting of Economic and Financial Affairs ministers in Brussels, less than two months after the European Commission presented its ambitious proposal. The new rules will apply to multinational companies which operate cross-border in the EU. Once implemented, all Member States will have the information they need...

In the lead up to the President's historic visit to SxSW, today the Administration is announcing the launch of “The Opportunity Project,” a new open data effort to improve economic mobility for all Americans. As the President said in his State of the Union address, we must harness 21st century technology and innovation to expand access to opportunity and tackle our greatest challenges. The Opportunity Project will put data and tools in the hands of civic leaders, community organizations, and...

On March 2, 2016, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concluded the Article IV consultation with Belgium. The recovery is expected to continue at a modest pace in the near term, driven primarily by private consumption, supported by continued low energy prices. However, downside risks loom large, including from the slowdown in emerging markets, financial volatility, and geopolitical stress. In its first year in office, the new government has taken important steps to promote competitiveness, job creation, and...

The Commission today presented a detailed Roadmap of the concrete steps needed to return order to the management of the EU's external and internal borders. The creation of the Schengen area without internal borders has brought important benefits to European citizens and business alike, yet in recent months the system has been severely tested by the refugee crisis. The European Council of 18-19 February set the clear mandate of restoring the normal functioning of the Schengen area, and to...

Speech by Commissioner Miguel Arias Cañete: follow-up to COP21 at the public session of the Environment Council Ministers, It is a pleasure to address you today following the adoption of the Commission's Communication on the Paris Agreement and its implications for EU climate and energy policy. I would like to thank Minister Dijksma and the Presidency for preparing their headline reading of the Paris Agreement which is also important for today's discussion. We have already reflected on the historic achievement of Paris and the...

In November, President Obama and other world leaders came together in Paris to launch Mission Innovation, a landmark commitment to dramatically accelerate public and private global clean energy innovation. Through the initiative, 20 countries representing at least 80 percent of global clean energy research and development (R&D) budgets committed to double their governments’ R&D investments in this domain over five years. These additional resources will dramatically accelerate the availability of the advanced technologies that will define a future global energy...