This means that Poland has already got more than PLN 48 billion (including the advance payment) out of the nearly PLN 256 billion allocated to our country under the NRP.

Poland received PLN 26 billion 964 million. This is the largest single transfer that has come from the European Union to Poland during our 20 years of membership. 'This is the payment covered by the first application under the NRP, which we made exactly four months ago, i.e. on 15 December, and today, on 15 April, the funds are here,

Minister of Funds and Regional Policy Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz said at a press conference.

The Minister stressed that the NRP funds are the result of the hard work of many ministries, including the Ministry of Justice.

This is an important day for the Polish economy, an important day for Polish investment and an important day for all of us in Poland to realise that membership of the European Union benefits all of us. But this membership is not only about huge funds, we are in the EU also because it is a community of values – it is democracy, civil liberties, equal opportunities, the rule of law, and Poland is part of this community,

the Minister for Funds and Regional Policy said at a press conference.

Minister Katarzyna Pełczyńska-Nałęcz informed that the funds from the first payment request under the NRP would be allocated firstly to investments in Clean Air, access to superfast Internet, safe railways and transport, support for SMEs in agriculture and new nursery places. Further NRP investments are being launched, Polish citizens and entrepreneurs will be gradually supported.

The Head of the MDFRP said that Poland had plans to receive the next payment from the NRP by the end of the year. This will be the payment under the 2nd and 3rd NRP payment applications, which are to be sent in late August or early September this year. At the end of the year, Poland has plans to send the 4th and 5th NRP payment applications.

NRP investments in the first half of 2024 – for what?

By the end of June this year, we will have invested NRP funds in:

• Clean Air – over PLN 1.6 billion;
• access to superfast Internet in areas with no coverage – more than PLN 720 million;
• improving rail traffic safety (including modernisation of level crossings) – more than PLN 570 million;
• transport safety (e.g. modernisation of dangerous points, construction of bypasses and installation of road traffic surveillance equipment) – nearly PLN 400 million;
• support for SMEs in agriculture – over PLN 250 million;
• new places in nurseries; nurseries and children's clubs – over PLN 200 million;
• vocational education, higher education and lifelong learning – more than PLN 160 million;
• laptop vouchers for teachers – over PLN 150 million.

What have we invested the NRP money in so far?

As at 11 April this year, Poland has invested more than PLN 1.8 billion from the NRP (with funds from the REPowerEU advance).

The following investments received the largest payouts:

• Clean Air programme – over PLN 860 million; implemented by the Ministry of Climate and Environment, subsidising thermal efficiency improvement of residential buildings; replacing old and inefficient solid fuel heat sources with modern heat sources meeting the highest standards;
• improving access to superfast Internet – over PLN 330 million; implemented by the Ministry of Digital Affairs, providing superfast Internet, especially in rural and excluded areas, and eliminating areas with no coverage;
• support for SMEs in agriculture – more than PLN 270 million, implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development; these measures are meant to improve the resilience of participants in the agricultural and food supply chain, including SMEs, to crises and to strengthen short food supply chains and the food redistribution system; to increase the competitiveness of farms by introducing innovative solutions under Agriculture 4.0; to provide and modernise infrastructure (production facilities, warehouses, machinery, low- and zero-emission vehicles, IT systems supporting production processes, etc.) and distribution and storage centres, wholesale markets;
• vouchers for teachers to purchase laptops for schools – more than PLN 205 million, implemented by the Ministry of Digital Affairs; alignment of access to portable computers and software in primary and secondary schools;
• expansion of research potential – more than PLN 74 million, research institutes supervised by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development can obtain funding for the construction or modernisation of analytical and laboratory facilities and research infrastructure in the plant breeding sector;
• development and enhancement of social services – more than PLN 54 million, implemented by the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, to enable social enterprises and social employment entities to build resilience to market changes and offer them opportunities to develop their operations;
• new places in nurseries – PLN 23 million, implemented by the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy, improving the availability of care places for children up to the age of three by subsidising the costs of construction or renovation of buildings where care is to be provided; the target is to create 47,500 places;
• replacement of heat sources and improvement of energy efficiency in residential buildings – nearly PLN 22 million, implemented by the Ministry of Economic Development and Technology in order to improve the energy efficiency of multifamily buildings and promote low-carbon energy sources.

First application for payment from the NRP

Poland submitted the first application for payment from the National Recovery Plan to the European Commission in mid-December 2023. The value of the application is EUR 6.3 billion.

In accordance with the laws of the European Union, the application approval process required several months of processing. Poland passed it unchallenged at every stage.

In February, the European Commission issued a preliminary positive assessment of it. On 5 April this year, the EC completed the written procedure and finally approved the payment of the first tranche of money from the NRP to Poland.

Our country is to receive EUR 59.8 billion (approximately PLN 256 billion) from the NRP. This will include EUR 25.27 billion (PLN 108 billion) in grants and EUR 34.54 billion (PLN 148 billion) in the form of preferential loans.

In line with the European Union's objectives, a significant proportion of the NRP budget will be allocated to climate objectives (46.6 per cent), digital transformation (21.3 per cent), and social reforms (22.3 per cent).