NRRP spending a problem but we are working on it - Fitto

(ANSA) - ROME, MAR 14 - Spending the resources allocated by the European Commission to Italy under its post-Covid national recovery and resilience plan (NRRP) is a problem that the government is addressing, but the situation is expected to improve in the coming months as many projects move into the construction phase, European Affairs Minister Emanuele Fitto told parliament on Thursday.
    NRRP spending "represents a difficulty, especially in the implementation phase, but we are working on it and we will have results in the coming months," said Fitto during a briefing in the Lower House.
    Italy's revised NRRP to make the economy greener, more modern and less dependent on Russian fossil fuels is worth a total of 194.4 billion euro, of which 122.6 billion euro in loans and 71.8 billion euro in grants.
    It covers 66 reforms - seven more than the original plan - and 150 investments that must be completed by the deadline of 2026.
    Late last year the country received the fourth installment of payment worth 16.5 billion euro, taking to around 90 billion euro the total amount paid out so far by Brussels.
    Fitto told parliament that so far Italy has spent 24 billion euro in the period 2021-2022 and 21 billion euro last year.
    "That adds up to 45 billion," continued the minister, inviting lawmakers "to make a percentage comparison with other countries".
    One of the reasons for the delay in spending, said Fitto, is the monitoring system Regis that still "needs to be implemented", in addition to the fact that "many interventions still need to be uploaded" onto the platform.
    Further, he said that many interventions have involved a design and tender phase, with low expenditure.
    "Now we are entering the start-up phase for construction sites, so it is conceivable that the figure for spending will increase in the coming months," concluded Fitto.
    Last week the European Commission said Italy had presented a new request for "targeted" technical changes to its NRRP following a complete revision of the plan approved by the European Council last December.
    The government of Premier Giorgia Meloni asked the Commission to be allowed to make a series of substantial changes to the plan to reflect changes in circumstances since it was drafted and avoid the risk that some of the projects and reform goals linked to it would not by completed by the deadlines. (ANSA).