Key step to tranche payment
The agreement with the European Commission on the action plan for the utilization of resources from the Next Generation EU fund will be sealed next week, according to Finance Ministry officials, so that the application for the disbursement of the first tranche of 3.5 billion euros can be submitted.
That pending matter has led to some delay compared to original estimates about the disbursement of the first installment, which is now expected during the first quarter of next year.
The action plan concerns the criteria according to which progress toward reaching milestones will be determined; in other words, the prior actions required for the payment of the fund’s tranches. After a bureaucratic procedure of at least 15 days, the Greek side is expected to forward its remarks to the Commission’s proposals tomorrow, hoping that everything will be settled by next week.
In the meantime the necessary procedures are advancing, particularly in the area of loans, and Alternate Finance Minister Thodoros Skylakakis told Parliament he is expecting the disbursement of €1.5 billion euros by the end of the year.
