The ECA assessed the results of renewable energy generation projects co-financed by cohesion policy funds contributing to the relevant EU 2020 target. It concludes that, while they delivered outputs as planned, multiple investment projects were not guided by the principle of cost-effectiveness...

The European Social Fund is a key financial instrument for helping the Member States in the field of employment. Over the period 2007-13 the spending will amount to over 75 billion euro or 8 % of the European Union budget. For one disadvantaged group, older workers, the Court verified whether...

When significant deficiencies are identified in the Member States' management and control systems for Structural Funds, the Commission has to ensure that past irregularities are corrected and that systems are improved for the future. In this report the Court assessed whether the Commission dealt...

The European Court of Auditors assessed the objectives and outputs of 27 randomly selected transport infrastructure projects in seaports which were co-financed between 2000 and 2006 through the European Regional Development Fund and the Cohesion Fund. The Court found that only 11 out of the 27...

The Court assessed whether cohesion policy investments in energy efficiency were cost-effective. The Court concludes that the right conditions in programming and financing had not been set and that the audited projects in public buildings had a long average planned payback period (around 50...

This review provides a comparative analysis of cohesion policy funds and the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF). The two instruments have considerable similarities, but also differ in many respects. The cohesion policy is the EU's main long-term investment policyto promote economic, social...

Cohesion policy represents one of the largest parts of the EU budget. It is also a policy area, where we consider the risk of irregular expenditure to be high. A relevant and reliable estimated level of error in cohesion spending is therefore a key element for the Commission's disclosure and...

In 2006, the European Commission engaged together with the European Investment Bank in a new initiative, known as 'Joint Assistance to Support Projects in European Regions' (JASPERS). Its main aim was to provide independent free-of-charge advice to help the Member States that joined the EU in...