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MNI: Italy Risks Losing NGEU Money After 2026 -Officials

(MNI) ROME

Officials tell MNI about Italy's struggles to spend its EUR200 billion in NextGenerationEU funds.

Italy has only managed to contract out EUR11.8 billion of the remaining part of its near EUR200 billion NextGenerationEU allotment to public and private companies, a much lower proportion than Spain or Greece and raising the risk that it will lose tens of billions of euros once the programme expires in 2026, European officials told MNI.

While money provided under NextGenEU must be spent on projects outlined in National Recovery Plans by the 2026 deadline, Recovery and Resilience Facility rules allow for extensions in the case that funds have already been allotted and whose use is not subject to political influence. But while Spain and Greece have been quick to take advantage of this facility, Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has instead concentrated, so far without success, on trying to secure an extension of the overall deadline – which requires unanimous approval by EU member states.

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Italy has only managed to contract out EUR11.8 billion of the remaining part of its near EUR200 billion NextGenerationEU allotment to public and private companies, a much lower proportion than Spain or Greece and raising the risk that it will lose tens of billions of euros once the programme expires in 2026, European officials told MNI.

While money provided under NextGenEU must be spent on projects outlined in National Recovery Plans by the 2026 deadline, Recovery and Resilience Facility rules allow for extensions in the case that funds have already been allotted and whose use is not subject to political influence. But while Spain and Greece have been quick to take advantage of this facility, Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has instead concentrated, so far without success, on trying to secure an extension of the overall deadline – which requires unanimous approval by EU member states.

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