SECTION 2. BROADBAND NETWORKS

Actions shall consist in particular of one or more of the following components: the deployment of passive physical infrastructure, active physical infrastructure or the combination of the two and ancillary infrastructure elements, complete with services necessary to operate such infrastructure; associated facilities and associated services, such as building wiring, antennae, towers and other supporting constructions, ducts, conduits, masts, manholes, and cabinets; where possible, potential synergies shall be exploited between the roll-out of broadband networks and other utilities networks (energy, transport, water, sewerage, etc.), in particular those related to smart electricity distribution. All projects receiving financial assistance under this section shall contribute significantly to the achievement of the targets of the Digital Agenda for Europe. Actions funded directly by the Union shall: be based on wired or wireless technology capable of delivering very high-speed broadband services, thus meeting demand for applications which require high bandwidth; be based on innovative business models and/or attract new categories of project promoters or new categories of investors; or have a high potential for replicability, thus allowing them to achieve broader impact on the market due to their demonstration effect; assist in narrowing the digital divide, where possible; comply with applicable law, in particular with competition law, and with access obligations in accordance with Directive 2002/19/EC. Actions funded from additional ring-fenced contributions provided in accordance with Article 15(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1316/2013 shall bring significant new capabilities to the market in terms of broadband service availability, speeds and capacity. Projects which provide speeds of data transmission of less than 30 Mbps should ensure the increase of speeds to at least 30 Mbps and where possible to 100 Mbps and above over time. The implementation of actions shall be based on a comprehensive project assessment. Such a project assessment shall cover, inter alia, market conditions including information on existing and/or planned infrastructure, regulatory obligations on project promoters, as well as commercial and marketing strategies. In particular, the project assessment shall establish whether the programme: is necessary to address market failures or sub-optimal investment situations, which cannot be solved by regulatory measures; does not lead to market distortions and crowding out of private investment. These criteria shall be established primarily on the basis of the revenue potential and the level of risk associated with a project and the type of geographical area covered by an action. Projects of common interest in the field of broadband shall be funded through financial instruments. The budget allocated to these instruments shall be sufficient, but shall not exceed, the amount which is necessary to establish a fully operational intervention and to achieve a minimum efficient instrument size. Subject to the rules of Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012, Regulation (EU) No 1316/2013 and all relevant regulations concerning ESI Funds, the financial instruments referred to in point (a) may be combined with additional contributions from: other sectors of the CEF; other instruments, programmes and budget lines in the Union budget; Member States, including regional and local authorities, that decide to contribute own resources or resources available from ESI Funds. ESI Funds contributions will be geographically ring-fenced to ensure that they are spent within a Member State or a region which provides a contribution; any other investors, including private investors. Financial instruments referred to in points (a) and (b) may also be combined with grants by Member States, including regional and local authorities, that wish to contribute own resources or resources available from ESI Funds, provided that: the action in question meets all criteria for funding under this Regulation; and relevant State aid clearance has been obtained.

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Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-11-06 · Text as adopted (Official Journal); later amendments are not incorporated in this text.