The Commission has signed agreements with 37 projects.
The projects were selected as the winners of the second call for proposals under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF Digital) programme.
The budget will be allocated to various projects that plan on deploying 5G infrastructure both for local communities and for major European transport corridors. Some funding will also go to the deployment of submarine cables to improve the security and resilience of backbone networks in the EU.
Examples of projects include the deployment of sea cables to provide greater interconnection between Ireland and the EU mainland and between the EU and its outermost regions in the Atlantic Ocean.
The grants will also support a direct trans-Arctic connection between the EU and the Far East, provide high-capacity connectivity infrastructure to digitally under-served Greek islands in the Mediterranean, and reinforce connectivity to Africa.
Finally, the grants support the take-up of 5G network infrastructure in local smart communities around the EU, like universities, hospitals, and other civic buildings, to improve the quality of services of general interest.
The third set of calls for proposal under CEF Digital is currently open for submission until 20 February 2024.
