Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2025/709 of 28 March 2025 setting up the European Research Infrastructure for Heritage Science (E-RIHS ERIC) (notified under document C(2025) 1838)
Date: 2025-03-28
Institutions: Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, European Commission
Subjects: consortium, cultural heritage, heritage protection, operation of the Institutions, research body, research infrastructure, research programme, scientific research




L_202500709EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
L series













2025/709


9.4.2025







            COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING DECISION (EU) 2025/709
of 28 March 2025
         
setting up the European Research Infrastructure for Heritage Science (E-RIHS ERIC)


(notified under document C(2025) 1838)


(Only the Dutch, English, French, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Maltese, Polish, Romanian, Slovenian and Spanish texts are authentic)
(Text with EEA relevance)


THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,


Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 723/2009 of 25 June 2009 on the Community legal framework for a European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC) (1), and in particular Article 6(1), point (a), thereof,

Whereas:







(1)


Cyprus, France, Hungary, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Spain and the United Kingdom submitted to the Commission an application in accordance with Article 5(1) of Regulation (EC) No 723/2009 to set up E-RIHS ERIC (‘the application’).












(2)


The applicants have agreed that Italy would be the host Member State of E-RIHS ERIC.












(3)


Regulation (EC) No 723/2009 has been incorporated in the Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA) by Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No 72/2015 (2).












(4)


The Commission has, pursuant to Article 5(2) of Regulation (EC) No 723/2009, assessed the application and concluded that it meets the requirements set out in that Regulation. In the course of the assessment, the Commission obtained the views of independent experts in the field of Heritage Science and Cultural Heritage.












(5)


The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee established by Article 20 of Regulation (EC) No 723/2009,





HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:



Article 1

1.   The European Research Infrastructure for Heritage Science European Research Infrastructure Consortium (E-RIHS ERIC) is set up.


2.   The essential elements of the Statutes of E-RIHS ERIC as referred to in Article 6(3) of Regulation (EC) No 723/2009 are set out in the Annex.



Article 2
This Decision is addressed to the Republic of Cyprus, the French Republic, Hungary, the Italian Republic, the Republic of Malta, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Republic of Poland, Romania, the Republic of Slovenia, the Kingdom of Spain and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.




Done at Brussels, 28 March 2025.


For the Commission

Ekaterina ZAHARIEVA
            

Member of the Commission






(1)  Regulation (EC) No 723/2009 (OJ L 206, 8.8.2009, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2009/723/oj), as amended by Council Regulation (EU) No 1261/2013 (OJ L 326, 6.12.2013, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2013/1261/oj).

(2)  Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No 72/2015 of 20 March 2015 amending Protocol 31 to the EEA Agreement, on cooperation in specific fields outside the four freedoms [2016/755] (OJ L 129, 19.5.2016, p. 85, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec/2016/755/oj).




ANNEX
ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS OF THE STATUTES OF E-RIHS ERIC
1.   Name and seat

(Article 1 of the Statutes of E-RIHS ERIC)








1.


The European Research Infrastructure for Heritage Science is set up as a European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC) under Council Regulation (EC) No 723/2009, named and hereinafter referred to as ‘E-RIHS ERIC’.












2.


E-RIHS ERIC is a distributed research infrastructure comprised of E-RIHS National Nodes.












3.


E-RIHS ERIC has its statutory seat in Florence, Italy.




2.   Tasks and activities

(Article 2 of the Statutes of E-RIHS ERIC)








1.


The principal task of E-RIHS ERIC is to establish and operate the research infrastructure and to coordinate its strategic and financial development.












2.


In pursuit of its principal task and in accordance with the provision of these Statutes, E-RIHS ERIC undertakes or coordinates the following activities:






(a)


to enable and coordinate a community of National Nodes, including the establishment and monitoring of quality management procedures for the National Nodes and the partner facilities;










(b)


to provide a central integrated access point to partner facilities and their resources based on scientific excellence, including continuous development and open access to material and digital scientific resources;










(c)


to support the advancement of the scientific understanding of Heritage and in this way contribute to its conservation;










(d)


to promote Heritage Science, and in particular its cross-disciplinary approach to research questions related to the history, interpretation, diagnosis, appreciation, and preservation of Heritage;










(e)


to promote a culture of cross-disciplinary and transnational collaboration through supporting researchers in developing comprehensive, advanced scientific and technological expertise, including training;










(f)


to foster innovation at the scientific and exploratory process, services, and management levels in Heritage Science, stressing the technological interoperability and convergence of methods through the definition of best practices.
















3.


In addition, E-RIHS ERIC may carry out the following activities:






(a)


to facilitate the mobility of researchers and other kinds of Users;










(b)


to identify European projects of interest in Heritage Science and related funding opportunities, and to guide interested partners in their applications;










(c)


to establish international partnerships with other European and non-European organisations in Heritage Science and related fields;










(d)


to carry out any other activity necessary to fulfil its aims and objectives.
















4.


E-RIHS ERIC shall pursue all its activities ethically and transparently and shall avoid potential organisational or personal conflicts of interest.












5.


E-RIHS ERIC shall pursue its tasks on a non-economic basis. Without prejudice to State aid applicable rules, E-RIHS ERIC may carry out limited economic activities, provided they are closely related to its principal tasks, and they do not jeopardise the achievement thereof. Any income generated by these economic activities shall be used by E-RIHS ERIC to enhance and strengthen its activities.




3.   Duration

(Article 3 of the Statutes of E-RIHS ERIC)
E-RIHS ERIC shall exist for an indefinite period.
4.   Winding up

(Article 4 of the Statutes of E-RIHS ERIC)








1.


The winding up of E-RIHS ERIC shall be decided upon and initiated by the General Assembly in accordance with Article 18(6) of these Statutes.












2.


Without undue delay and in any event within 10 days after adoption of the decision to wind up E-RIHS ERIC, E-RIHS ERIC shall notify the European Commission about the decision.












3.


Without undue delay after the closure of the winding up procedure, and in any event within 10 days after such closure, E-RIHS ERIC shall notify the Commission thereof.












4.


E-RIHS ERIC shall cease to exist on the day on which the European Commission publishes the appropriate notice in the Official Journal of the European Union.




5.   Liability and insurance

(Article 5 of the Statutes of E-RIHS ERIC)








1.


E-RIHS ERIC shall be liable for its debts.












2.


Members are not jointly liable for the debts of E-RIHS ERIC. The financial liability of the members for the debts of E-RIHS ERIC shall be limited to their respective annual contribution, as specified in Annex II.












3.


E-RIHS ERIC shall take appropriate insurance to cover the risks specific to its operation.




6.   Access Policy

(Article 6 of the Statutes of E-RIHS ERIC)








1.


E-RIHS ERIC shall provide effective access to the expertise and the competences of a community of Heritage Scientists from partner facilities as well as to an integrated system of platforms that include archival collections of samples and physical data, online digital tools and digital research resources, large-scale and medium-scale fixed facilities and mobile instrumentation for non-invasive measurements and investigation of cultural heritage assets including, but not restricted to, objects and sites.












2.


Access shall be granted to Users conducting research on Heritage Science, based on scientific excellence. In special cases, access may also be provided to Users conducting Proprietary Research on Heritage Science as they are detailed in E-RIHS ERIC access policy regulation.












3.


E-RIHS ERIC access policy shall be the object of a specific regulation document, taking into account the principles of the European Charter for Access to Research Infrastructures and subject to the approval of the General Assembly.




7.   Scientific Evaluation Policy

(Article 7 of the Statutes of E-RIHS ERIC)








1.


The Scientific and Ethics Advisory Board shall evaluate annually the scientific, technical, and general activities of E-RIHS ERIC and under the E-RIHS ERIC label. This evaluation shall take the form of a report and shall be transmitted to the General Assembly.












2.


The Committee of National Nodes shall assist the Scientific and Ethics Advisory Board in the conduct of the scientific evaluation by providing all the necessary information about the scientific activities of the National Nodes, considering the access needs of E-RIHS ERIC, the service quality standards and the evaluation procedures established by E-RIHS ERIC.












3.


E-RIHS ERIC service quality standards and evaluation procedures shall be the subject of a specific regulation document, to be approved by the General Assembly.




8.   Dissemination Policy

(Article 8 of the Statutes of E-RIHS ERIC)








1.


E-RIHS ERIC shall require its Users to ensure open access to the research results and publications and encourage them to make their data available on E-RIHS repository and other repositories provided that they comply with the Findable Accessible Interoperable Reusable principles and within a reasonable period.












2.


E-RIHS ERIC shall use most reaching channels for its target audiences, including website, newsletter, social media and other digital professional networks, communications in conferences, exhibitions, articles, reports and documentaries in the print, broadcast, and online media.












3.


E-RIHS ERIC shall require its Users to acknowledge the use of E-RIHS ERIC.




9.   Intellectual Property Rights Policy

(Article 9 of the Statutes of E-RIHS ERIC)








1.


‘Intellectual property’ shall mean property as defined in Article 2 of the Convention establishing the World Intellectual Property Organisation, done at Stockholm on 14 July 1967.












2.


Data produced or developed under the E-RIHS ERIC label, as well as intellectual property rights attached to it, shall belong to the entity or to the person who has generated it.












3.


The use of data resulting from research conducted under the E-RIHS ERIC label shall be granted to E-RIHS ERIC and the scientific community by the owner of the data, in accordance with the conditions defined by the General Assembly in the E-RIHS Data Management Policy.




10.   Employment Policy

(Article 10 of the Statutes of E-RIHS ERIC)








1.


E-RIHS ERIC shall be an equal opportunity employer. Conditions for access to employment shall be transparent and non-discriminatory. Appointments shall be made based on a competitive selection process.












2.


E-RIHS ERIC shall ensure that its personnel are not biased because of their financial, contractual, organisational, or other interests that relate to their work, and do not obtain any unfair competitive advantage over other parties by virtue of the performance of their work.












3.


Employment contracts shall be governed by the law of the country in which personnel are employed.












4.


E-RIHS ERIC shall advertise its open positions and vacancies internationally.












5.


The Director-General shall establish regulations and rules to govern all aspects of employment at the Central Hub that guarantee personnel welfare, compliance with local law, and the needs of the organisation are met. Those rules and regulations shall be adopted by the General Assembly.




11.   Procurement policy

(Article 11 of the Statutes of E-RIHS ERIC)








1.


E-RIHS ERIC procurement policy shall respect the principles of transparency, non-discrimination, and competition.












2.


Detailed rules on procurement procedures and criteria shall be set out in the rules of procedure and adopted by the General Assembly.







ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2025/709/oj
ISSN 1977-0677 (electronic edition)