Representatives of Fund FLAG are participating in the XIV National Meeting of Experts on Programs and Projects from Municipalities, which is organized by the National Municipal Administration of the Republic of Bulgaria and its trading company "NSORB-Aktiv" in the period 2-4.12.2024 in Hisarya. The event, which brings together over 200 municipal representatives, was opened by Teodora Dacheva, Deputy Executive Director of the National Municipal Administration of the Republic of Bulgaria and the Manager of NSORB-Aktiv Lyudmila Velichkova and the Mayor of Hisarya Municipality Iva Valcheva.
In the plenary session on the first day of the event, the emphasis was placed on the current status of the projects implemented with funds from European funds and national programs in support of municipal investments, as well as on the requirements and conditions for the implementation of the projects. The Executive Director of FLAG, Nadya Dankinova, presented the current financing opportunities under the Investment platform, as well as the Urban Development Funds for Southern Bulgaria in the reinvestment stage of the funds.
During the session, Nadya Dankinova announced the publication of a second call for technical assistance and financing of investment projects for the transition to clean energy to public authorities under the innovative financial instrument FLAG-FICET. The financing of the technical assistance is under the FLAG - Financial instrument for clean energy transition (FLAG FICET) project, supported by the LIFE program, scheme LIFE-2021-CET-PDA: Disruptive PDA – Technical Assistance to advance market boundaries for sustainable energy investments.
Within the framework of the second call, along with projects for energy efficiency of public buildings, energy-efficient street lighting, construction of photovoltaic systems/parks, incl. on reclaimed municipal landfills and use of the potential of thermal mineral waters, a scheme for environmentally friendly mobility is also included. The scheme is included in view of the interest of municipalities in financing their own contribution to environmentally friendly mobility projects financed under the National Recovery and Resilience Facility, and their contribution to the transition to clean energy by introducing zero-emission public transport vehicles and installing charging stations for the needs of public transport. According to the requirements for the instrument, the provision of technical assistance is subject to achieving project readiness for applying for full or partial loan financing from FLAG under the FLAG-FICET financial instrument and subsequent implementation of the project. The deadline for applying under the second call is until 30.06.2024.
Under the first call, technical support was provided for over 20 projects of local authorities, with the first financing contract being signed on 27.11.2024 with the Municipality of Montana. The main interest is in providing complementary financing to clean energy transition projects approved with partial grant funding under the NRRF.
