Timeline of EU action 2022

The Commission issued €11 billion in a dual tranche transaction, the proceeds of which will be used to support Ukraine under the EU's MFA programme and Europe's recovery under the flagship NextGenerationEU programme. The deal consisted of a €5 billion tap of the 7-year bond due on 4 December 2029 and a new 20-year bond of €6 billion due on 4 November 2042.

The Commission published its fourth bi-annual report on the implementation and impact of SURE. The report found that national labour market measures supported by SURE effectively protected around 1.5 million people from unemployment in 2020. The protection of employment was crucial to facilitate the rapid economic rebound in 2021, which was faster than in previous crises. SURE helped to enable this by financing schemes to allow firms to retain employees and skills, and to help the self-employed to be ready to resume their activities immediately, as well as by boosting confidence across the EU.

The Commission issued €12 billion in a dual tranche transaction under its flagship NextGenerationEU programme. The deal was the 12th syndicated transaction under NextGenerationEU and the 7th in 2022. It consisted of a new 5-year bond of €7 billion due on 4 October 2027 and a new 30-year bond of €5 billion due on 4 October 2052.

The Commission gave a positive assessment of the Netherlands' recovery and resilience plan. This is a key step paving the way for the EU to disburse €4.7 billion in grants to the Netherlands under the Recovery and Resilience Facility. This financing will support the implementation of the crucial investment and reform measures outlined in the Netherlands' recovery and resilience plan. It will play a crucial role in enabling the Netherlands to emerge stronger from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Based on the recommendation of the European Medicines Agency, the Commission authorised the first two COVID-19 booster vaccines adapted to variants, from BioNTech Pfizer and Moderna.

HERA, the European Commission's Health Preparedness and Response Authority, signed a joint procurement Framework Contract with the company HIPRA HUMAN HEALTH for the supply of their protein COVID-19 vaccine. 14 Member States and countries are participating in this joint procurement, under which they can purchase up to 250 million doses.

The European Commission has today issued €8 billion in a dual tranche transaction under the NextGenerationEU recovery instrument. The deal was the 11th syndicated transaction under NextGenerationEU and the 6th in 2022. It consisted of a new 7-year bond of €5 billion due on 4 December 2029 and a €3 billion tap of an existing 20-year bond due on 4 July 2041.

The Commission granted a marketing authorisation for the COVID‑19 vaccine developed by Valneva, the sixth COVID-19 vaccine authorised in the EU. This authorisation follows a positive scientific recommendation by the European Medicines Agency (EMA).

The Commission issued a further €5 billion in NextGenerationEU green bonds in the 10th syndicated transaction under the NextGenerationEU recovery instrument. The long 25-year bond due on 4 February 2048 was over six times oversubscribed. With this transaction, the Commission has issued a total of €47.5 billion in the first half of 2022, bringing it one step closer to the €50 billion NextGenerationEU funding target for the first six months of the year.

The Commission gave a positive assessment of Poland's recovery and resilience plan, an important step towards the EU disbursing €23.9 billion in grants and €11.5 billion in loans under the Recovery and Resilience Facility. This financing will support the implementation of the crucial investment and reform measures outlined in Poland's recovery and resilience plan. It will enable Poland to emerge stronger from the COVID-19 pandemic and progress with the green and digital transitions.

The Commission announced its intention to step up funding to accelerate roll-out and uptake of vaccines and other COVID-19 tools in Africa, with a further €400 million in support. The Commission also foresees a €427 million euros contribution to the Global Pandemic Preparedness Fund to support efforts to prevent and better respond to future pandemics.

The Commission issued a further €9 billion in a dual tranche transaction under the NextGenerationEU recovery instrument. The deal is the 9th syndicated transaction under NextGenerationEU, and the 4th of 2022. It consisted of a new 3-year bond of €6 billion due on 4 July 2025 and a €3 billion tap of an existing 30-year bond due on 6 July 2051. This is the first 3-year bond the Commission has issued under its diversified funding strategy.

The Commission proposed a set of actions to manage the current phase of the COVID-19 pandemic and prepare for the next one. It called on Member States to take actions before autumn to ensure vigilance and continued coordination of health preparedness and response.

The Commission adopted a positive assessment of Bulgaria's recovery and resilience plan. This is a key step paving the way for the EU to disburse €6.3 billion in grants under the Recovery and Resilience Facility. This financing will support the implementation of the crucial investment and reform measures outlined in Bulgaria's recovery and resilience plan. It will play a crucial role in enabling Bulgaria to emerge stronger from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Commission adopted a positive assessment of Sweden's recovery and resilience plan. This is a key step paving the way for the EU to disburse €3.3 billion in grants to Sweden under the Recovery and Resilience Facility. This financing will support the implementation of the crucial investment and reform measures outlined in Sweden's recovery and resilience plan. It will play a crucial role in enabling Sweden to emerge stronger from the coronavirus pandemic. 

The Commission published its third bi-annual report on the implementation and impact of SURE, the €100 billion instrument designed to protect jobs and incomes affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The report confirmed that SURE has been successful in cushioning the impact of the pandemic and supporting the recovery in 2021.

The Commission raised a further €10 billion in NextGenerationEU funds through its second bond syndication of 2022. The 10-year bond, due on 06 July 2032, brings the total financing raised under the programme to €91 billion. This placement will continue to support Europe's economic recovery under the Recovery and Resilience Facility and the other EU-budget programmes funded through NextGenerationEU.

The Commission adopted its first annual report on the implementation of the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), the centrepiece of NextGenerationEU. The RRF is providing up to €723.8 billion of grants and loans to Member States to support transformative investments and reforms that will enable the EU to emerge stronger from the COVID-19 pandemic. The report shows that major headway has been made and confirms that the implementation of the RRF is well underway.

The new European Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) presented its first annual work plan, which will have a budget of €1.3 billion in 2022 to prevent, prepare for and rapidly respond to cross-border health emergencies.

In its first bond syndication of 2022, the Commission raised a further €5 billion in NextGenerationEU funds on behalf of the EU in yet another successful deal. Due on 6 July 2051, the 30-year bond – executed as an increase to an existing EU-Bond - brings the total financing raised under the programme to €78.5 billion. The Commission's successful placement will help sustain the momentum behind Europe's recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Commission proposed to extend the EU Digital COVID Certificate by a year, until 30 June 2023. Extending the Regulation will ensure that travellers can continue using their EU Digital COVID Certificate when travelling in the EU where Member States maintain certain public health measures.

As part of the on-going work to build a strong European Health Union, the Council adopted the Regulation revising the mandate of the European Medicines Agency (EMA), taking an important step towards EMA's reinforcement in crisis preparedness and management for medicinal products and medical devices.

The Commission disbursed €271 million to Finland in pre-financing, equivalent to 13% of the country's financial allocation under the Recovery and Resilience Facility. The pre-financing payment will help kick-start the implementation of the crucial investment and reform measures outlined in Finland's recovery and resilience plan.