Spain’s Minister of Economy, Carlos Cuerpo, has been stuck for months in negotiations with Brussels over the fifth payment of the Next Gen EU funds, totaling €23.9 billion: €8 billion in grants and €15.9 billion in soft loans.
Because Pedro Sánchez’s government did not request the loans from Brussels until March 2023, Spain has only received €47.96 billion in grants and €340 million in loans so far. This means a mere 30% of the €163 billion in Next Gen funds allocated to Spain.
In its latest diagnostic report on the state of the Spanish economy, the Brussels Executive already warned that “it is essential for Spain to accelerate the implementation of reforms and investments,” given that the non-extendable deadline expires in August 2026—in just 13 months.
However, Sánchez’s government still has not met one of the most important milestones required by the EU in exchange for the fifth payment: the ‘diesel tax hike’ to equalize its taxation with that of gasoline, a commitment blocked by a lack of parliamentary support.
Spain’s situation contrasts sharply with that of Italy, which has just secured its seventh disbursement of funds worth €18.3 billion (€4.6 billion in grants and €13.7 billion in loans). With this, Italy will have already received €140 billion of the €194.4 billion it was assigned, representing 72% of its total allocation.
