Published on
(Luxembourg, 26 July 2024) – This week, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Bratislava (Slovakia) opened an investigation into attempted EU funding fraud involving the construction of a waste treatment plant in Iža.
On 20 December 2022, a grant agreement for a non-refundable financial contribution (NFC) was concluded between the Ministry of the Environment of the Slovak Republic, represented by the Slovak Environmental Agency, and the beneficiary – a construction company - for the building of a waste treatment plant. The approved grant amount was €1 416 100, fully financed by the EU’s Cohesion Fund and representing 50% of the total cost of the construction amounting to €2 832 200.
According to the preliminary investigation, during the approval procedure, the beneficiary submitted additional documents as part of the grant application, which contained incorrect and incomplete information relating to the project documentation for planning permission. It is understood that a comparison between the project documents submitted for the planning permission procedure and those submitted for the grant application revealed discrepancies, which were contrary to the requirements stated in the call for grant applications.
The alleged conduct could have caused damage to the EU budget of €1 416 100 if the NFC had been paid, which was prevented due to suspicions of fraud.
All persons concerned are presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in the competent Slovak courts of law.
The EPPO is the independent public prosecution office of the European Union. It is responsible for investigating, prosecuting, and bringing to judgment crimes against the financial interests of the EU.