This amount is four times higher than the budget reported in 2020 (€51 billion) and eight times more than the EC's spending in 2019 (less than €25 million). The funds were disbursed to 26,000 beneficiaries through 124,000 payments and contracts.
The majority of the budget, €139 billion, was allocated to subsidies for member states. Specifically, the European Resilience and Recovery Facility received €136 billion. Private companies received €27 billion, which includes €18 billion in R&D Horizon grants and direct service contracts. International organizations received €7.1 billion. Additionally, the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Investment Fund (EIF) jointly received €658 million, while private individuals received €42 million.
The breakdown of spending includes €34 billion for action grants, €1.1 billion for IT expenses, €765 million for consultancy services, and allocations for building contracts, operating grants, communication, supplies, conferences, and studies.
Italy emerged as the top beneficiary, receiving €28 billion, followed by Spain (€27 billion), Poland (€23 billion), France (€18 billion), Germany (€14 billion), and Greece, Belgium, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Romania.
Stefan Morcov, CEO of Hermix, noted that the European public sector constitutes a significant portion of the EU's GDP, accounting for 54%. Public procurement, which amounts to €2 trillion annually, represents 14% of the GDP. Morcov highlighted the European Commission's efforts to promote transparency, data use, and open data through initiatives such as the European Strategy for Data, the Data Governance Act, the Data Act, and the Implementing Act on High-value Datasets. However, there is still progress to be made in terms of market participation and access to funding.
Hermix.com, an analytics platform for public sector sales and procurement, analyzes spending by public authorities in terms of contractors, beneficiaries, activity types, contracts, and services. The platform leverages artificial intelligence, machine learning, data engineering, and data science to provide intelligent information, reports, and insights on EC spending and the European public procurement sector. Hermix utilizes data from the European Commission's transparency systems, open data and procurement portals, as well as Eurostat and the European Central Bank.
By promoting transparency and increased competition in public procurement, Hermix aims to enhance the efficiency of public spending and improve public governance. The platform has been recognized with the Deloitte CEE Fast 50 Impact Star and the EU Datathon 2022 award from the European Commission.
