Green recovery spending: how, when and where

In the framework of the next generation EU recovery facility the EU plans to finance up to €750 bn to support investment in the green and digital transitions. Deploying this money will imply trade-offs on many dimensions, including the time-horizon of the spending, sectoral choices and the geographic distribution.

On the time-horizon dimension, the EU and Member States will have to balance spending that engineers a powerful short-term stimulus with budget allocations that increase the potential for sustainable long-term growth. The latter includes spending on innovation projects that enable massive private investments in the future.

On the geographic dimension, investments focused on the most productive regions might lead the highest aggregate growth impact for the EU. But supporting the development of future comparative advantages in suitable low carbon technologies in all regions could mitigate increasing divergence.

In this closed-door session we want to discuss these trade-offs and ways to translate desirable allocations into policies.

This event is open only to Bruegel’s Members and select experts.