Belgium prepares to buy EU buildings

The Belgian government has made an offer of 1 billion euros to buy the structures that the European Union (EU) plans to vacate in Brussels.

According to the news in the local press, the Belgian government wants to buy the real estate of the EU Commission, which plans to vacate half of its offices in Brussels by 2030.

The EU Commission plans to sell 23 buildings with an office area of 350 thousand square meters in the EU region of Brussels.

In the ongoing negotiations on the sale of the buildings, Belgium offered 1 billion euros to the EU Commission.

In case the buildings are purchased, projects including new commercial areas and housing projects will be developed in Brussels.

Remote work has become a common practice in EU institutions, especially with the COVID-19 outbreak.

The EU Commission has announced that it will vacate half of its offices in Brussels in 2021 as part of its plans to increase the rate of teleworking and move to more environmentally friendly structures.

In particular, the Commission plans to abandon its old buildings and relocate some of its offices to the Northern area of Brussels.

The commission will continue to use its headquarters, Berlaymont.