CELEX: 51995PC0032
Language: en
Date: 1995-03-16
Title: Amended proposal for a COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) laying down general rules for the procedure for the granting of Community financial aid in the field of trans-European networks

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMVIUNITIES
                                                         Brussels, 16.03.1995
                                                         COM(95) 32 final
                                                         94/0065 (SYN)
                                    Amended proposal    for a
                                   COUNCIL REGULATION (EC)
                         laying down general rules for the procedure
                         for the granting of Community financial aid
                            in the field of trans-European networks
      ( p r e s e n t e d by the Commission pursuant t o A r t i c l e   189 A ( 2 )
                                       of the EC-Treaty)
&
 ---pagebreak---                                  EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
                                                 I.
1.       In order to implement Title XII of the Treaty as regards the establishment of trans-
         European networks, the Commission on 2.3.1994 transmitted to the Council and the
         European Parliament a Proposal for a Regulation laying down the general rules for
         the granting of Community financial aid in the field of trans-European networks1
         [COM(94)62].
2.       The European Parliament gave its opinion2 in the plenary session of 30.11.94, where
         it adopted 31 amendments.
3.       Of the 31 amendments made by the Parliament, the Commission accepted 17 entirely
         and 9 partially. Some are of an editorial nature; others are more substantive. The
         Commission accepted any European Parliament amendments that did not alter the
         intent or structure of the original Proposal and which improved upon it. In addition,
         the Commission has initiated some minor changes, either to refine the text of the
         European Parliament amendments or to edit its original text.
         The changes are summarised below, followed by a summary of those amendments
         which the Commission did not accept.
                                                II.
Title of the Regulation (EP Amendment N' 1)
     ".. .Regulation laying down the general rules" becomes "... laying down general rules for
     the procedure... ". The change reflects a stronger emphasis on the procedural aspects
     of the Regulation.
New Recital 3 (EP Amendment N*2V
     The recital emphasises joining island, landlocked and peripheral regions to the central
     areas of the Community and thus reflects one of the priorities laid out in Article 129b
     of the Treaty.
Recital 4 (EP Amendment N'3)
     The addition points out that Article 129c concerns the establishment of the Guidelines.
Recital 6 (EP Amendment N'4)
     Removed from the recital is the provision that eligible projects must be "financed by the
     Member States", in order to correspond to the amended Article 2.2 of the Regulation.
     L
       OJ N* C89, 26 March 1994, p. 8.
     2
       OJ....
 ---pagebreak--- Recital 8 (EP Amendment N'6)
    Added to the recital is a reference to the decisions of the Council and the European
    Parliament in connection with the Guidelines. It reinforces the original text and adds the
    European Parliament to the Council as the partner in the co-decision procedure.
    The amendment removes reference to the priority projects, which avoids repetition
    because these projects are already introduced in Recital 7.
New Recital 9 (EP Amendment N'7)
    This recital supports the participation of private capital in financing networks, which
    emphasises an important political goal.
Recital 10 (EP Amendment N'8)
    The phrase "take the form of" has been replaced by "relate to" and "aid from the EIB
    and the EIF" has become "financial support", in order to make precise that these
    institutions do not provide aid per se. The phrase "in exceptional cases" is changed to
    "in certain cases" concerning direct co-financing, which adds flexibility.
Recital 11 (EP Amendment N'9)
    In connection with the granting of loan guarantee premiums in cases where the guarantee
    comes from a body other than the EIF, the phrase "where appropriate" is suppressed,
    adding flexibility.
Recital 13 (EP Amendment N ' l l )
    The amendment defines the content of cost/benefit analysis, enumerating the taking into
    account of sustainability, regional planning, appraisals of job creation, study of the
    capacity of existing infrastructure and the socio-economic advantages particularly for the
    regions concerned.
Recital 14 (EP Amendment N'12)
    The addition of the Common Transport Policy, energy and telecommunications
    completes the enumeration of "Community policies".
New Recital 15 (EP Amendment N'13)
    This recital concerns the necessity for the Regulation to clarify the respective powers and
    responsibilities of the Member States and the Commission with regard to financial
    control, corresponding directly to amended Article 15 of the Regulation.
Recital 16 (EP Amendment N'14)
    To the coordination effort, "particularly TEN resources, the Structural and Cohesion
    Funds, the EIF and the EIB" are added, which enumerates the Community financial
    instruments concerning the financing of networks.
                                                                                        2
 ---pagebreak--- Recital 18 (EP Amendment N'15)
     "Transparency" is added to "information and publicity", which reflects openness
    regarding the activities financed.
Article 1. Definition and Scope
    Reference to IDA is suppressed, as this budget line is covered under separate legislation
     [see COM(93)69].
Article 2. Eligibility (EP Amendment N*16)
    Paragraph 1 removes reference to the requirement that projects be "financed by the
    Member States." This question is resolved in paragraph 2.
    Paragraph 2 extends the possibility to assist projects which are also financed by bodies
    other than the Member States. This addition explains that projects financed by regional
    or local authorities or bodies working within a framework which makes them similar to
    public entities, including enterprises that carry out public services, are eligible. This
    addition clarifies the original proposal and extends the potential to assist projects which
    are financed by public or private bodies other than the Member State.
    Paragraph 3 adds the European Parliament in regard to co-decision on the Guidelines and
    expands reference to Article 129b of the Treaty, which corrects and elaborates the
    original text (see Recital 8).
    Paragraph 4 adds feasibility studies to the stages of a project, which highlights the
     importance of the feasibility study phase in project realization.
Article 3. Forms of Aid (EP Amendment N° 17)
     Subparagraph (a) lists technical studies with feasibility studies, which completes the
    definition of feasibility studies in Article 129C I, third indent, of the Treaty.
    Subparagraph (d) adds "in specific cases" to replace "where by way of exception" in
    connection to direct co-financing, which adds flexibility.
    To subparagraph (d) is also added "or any other form of financial support which is
     appropriate to meet the objectives;" which creates the possibility for future forms of
     financing, for example, reimbursable grants.
Article 5. Financial Participation (EP Amendment N*18)
     Paragraph 1 is rephrased and reference is given to the amended Article 2.2.
     Paragraph 3 replaces "similar financial organizations" with "other public or private
     financial organizations", which adds precision.
                                                                                          3
 ---pagebreak---     Paragraph 4 sees a change in wording, suppressing "by way of exception" and replacing
     "within the meaning of" with "following the provisions of" 3(d) in connection to direct
    co-financing. This change reflects the rephrasing of Article 3(d).
Article 6. Common project selection criteria (EP Amendment N*19)
    Paragraph 1 adds to the criteria the impact of "interoperability of trans-European
    networks", which is one of the central aims of trans-European networks set forth in
    Treaty Article 129b.
    Moved to paragraph 1 are the criteria of economic and social cohesion and the smooth
    running of the internal market, now placed before the technical and economic criteria.
    Thus the structure of paragraph 1 now follows more closely that of Article 129b.
    Also added to paragraph 1 are the criteria of "contributions of a trans-frontier character"
    and "filling missing links", which reflects the Treaty's emphasis on interconnection of
    networks (cf., Article 129b II).
    Paragraph 2
    The order of (b)-(c) have been rearranged for editorial reasons; (d) has changed
     "Community regional planning" to "regional planning in the Community.
    Paragraph 3 adds that in the context of the definition of potential economic viability,
    account is to be taken of a project's socio-economic profitability.
Articled. Selection criteria concerning transport (EP Amendment N'21V
    The criterion of high safety standards is added; priority is given to the less
    environmentally damaging projects. These new elements are politically important and
    must be taken on.
Article 8. Selection criteria concerning telecommunications
    Criterion (a) adds interoperability of services and applications, complementing the
    original text.
Article 9. Selection criteria concerning energy
    Subparagraph (d) elaborates upon the original text by adding ..."and of facilities for
    reception and storage of LNG (liquified natural gas)".
Article 10. Compatibility (EP Amendment N'23)
    This article sees two minor editorial changes: "comply with" is replaced by "respect";
     "in particular those relating to the Common Transport Policy, energy and
    telecommunications" is added, completing the enumeration of Community policies (see
    Recital 14).
                                                                                         4-
 ---pagebreak--- Article 11. Submission of applications for financial aid
    The rephrasing follows the reformulation of Article 2.2. The change clarifies that prior
    agreement of the Member State is necessary if an application is submitted by a body
    other than the Member State, which corresponds to Article 129d of the Treaty which
    stipulates that projects of Community interest relating to the territory of a Member State
    shall require its approval. In the case of another body submitting the application, it must
    be the body or authority referred to in Article 2.2.
Article 12. Information required for the assessment and identification of applications (EP
Amendment N ' 25)
    Economic and social viability are enumerated as components of financial viability
    analysis.
Article 13. Taking the decision (EP Amendment N°26)
    Two provisions are added:
    The Commission shall endeavour to deliver a decision within six months of receipt of
    the application, which shall give the applicant security in planning. Secondly, the
    essential features of the decisions will be published in the Official Journal, which
    contributes to transparency.
Article 14. Financial provisions (EP Amendment N'27)
    In order to elaborate the payment procedure, a new paragraph 4, adopted from the
    Cohesion Fund Regulation, is added confirming that the commitment appropriations
    entered into the budget shall be granted on the basis of Commission decisions.
     Paragraph 5 clarifies that payment shall be in three stages.
     A new paragraph 6 takes account of the fact that payments may be executed over several
     years, to correspond to the long realization phase of infrastructure projects.
Article 15. Financial control (EP Amendment N'28)
     A new paragraph 3 is added, clarifying the procedures for on-the-spot checks. This
     provision, taken verbatim from the Structural Funds Regulation, explains standard
     procedures.
Article 16. Coordination (EP Amendment N*29)
     The addition spells out the Community financial instruments which may apply to the
     projects in question (see Recital 16).
                                                                                          S
 ---pagebreak--- Article 17. Evaluation
    Reference to defining indicators has been rephrased and moved to paragraph 1, to form
    part of the systematic evaluation.
                                             III.
The main amendments which the Commission did not accept concern:
~   Changes to recital 3 and Articles 3 and 6 which would accord priority to the Structural
    Fund-eligible regions, as such a provision does not correspond to the Treaty, which sets
    economic and social cohesion as one priority equal in weight to others, such as the
    functioning of the internal market;
~   Deletion of the recital which introduces the priority projects in connection to this
    Regulation, because the European Councils of Brussels, Corfu and Essen have
    emphasised the importance of developing networks, the role of networks in the
    Community's economic growth and the Community's contribution to this development;
~   The enumeration of "preparatory and technical studies" with feasibility studies in recital
     10 and Articles 2 and 12, because it would limit the wider meaning of the term
     "feasibility studies";
~   Provision for the European Investment Bank to play an advisory role in the financial
    structuring and evaluation of projects, in recital 12, because the Bank is involved only
    in those projects for which it has granted loans;
~   Adding to Article 3(d) that co-financing may involve the organizing, by the Community,
    of loans on the capital markets, as this provision has no legal basis in the Treaty;
— Adding "environmental profitability" to the definition of potential economic viability,
    because the concept of environmental profitability is not a common standard or a
    component of economic viability;
~   Introducing to Article 8 a new criterion (c) "integration of telecommunications and
    transport networks" because this criterion would more appropriately fall under the
    heading of transport and is already included in the Guidelines concerning the trans-
    European transport network;
~    Adding to Compatibility, "taking into account the EIA and habitat directives, sustainable
    transport, fair competition between the various modes of transport, and the transparent,
    verifiable award of public contracts," because this enumeration is unnecessary and
     repeats only part of what is implicit in "Community policies";
                                                                                        4
 ---pagebreak--- Allowing applications for financial aid to be submitted by third parties because such a
provision would not comport with Article 129d of the Treaty (see Article 11 in part II
above);
Limiting the first payment to 50% or less of the first annual tranche of the
appropriations committed and restricting subsequent payments to the condition that at
least two thirds of the expenditure relating to the previous payment has been made,
because neither of these provisions are applicable to all forms of intervention (guarantee
premiums, interest subsidies);
Creating a consultative Committee for each sector, procedure la, because this type of
committee and procedure would be difficult to reconcile with Article 129d of the Treaty
which states that "[P]rejects of common interest which relate to the territory of a
Member State shall require the approval of the Member State concerned.
                                                                                    *
 ---pagebreak---                                      Amended proposa I for a
                                     COUNCIL REGULATION (EC)
                          laying down general rules for the procedure
                          for the granting of Community financial aid
                             in the field of trans-European networks
Original Proposal                                 Modified Proposal
Title of the Regulation:                          Title of the Regulation:
Proposal for a Council Regulation (EC)            Proposal for a Council Regulation (EC)
laying down general rules for the granting        laying down general rules for the
of Community financial aid in the field of        procedure for the granting of Community
trans-European networks                           financial aid in the field of trans-European
                                                  networks
                                                  Recital 3
                                                  Whereas Article 129b(2) of the Treaty
                                                  establishing the European Community
                                                  establishes as a priority for Community
                                                  action the setting up of links between
                                                  the island, landlocked and peripheral
                                                  regions of the Community and the
                                                  central regions;
                                                  Recital 4
                                                  Whereas Article 129c provides that the
Whereas Article 129c provides that the            Community shall establish a series of
Community may support the financial               guidelines covering the objectives,
efforts of the Member States to establish         priorities and broad lines of measures
trans-European networks;                          envisaged in the sphere of trans-
                                                  European networks and whereas the
                                                  Community may support the financial
                                                  efforts of the Member States to establish
                                                  trans-European networks;
Recital 6                                         Recital 6
Whereas under Article 129c Community              Whereas under Article 129c Community
aid should be granted to projects of              aid should be granted to projects of
common interest financed by the Member            common interest which are identified in
States which are identified in the                the framework of the guidelines;
framework of the guidelines;
 ---pagebreak---  Original Proposal                             Modified Proposal
                                              Recital 8
Whereas, pending the adoption of all the      Whereas, until such time as the
guidelines referred to in Article 129c of     guidelines referred to in Article 129c of
the Treaty, it is necessary to be able to     the Treaty have been decided upon by
support priority projects of this kind, since the Council and the European
they help to achieve the objectives of        Parliament, infrastructure projects
Article 129b of the Treaty;                   which contribute to the achievement of
                                              the objectives of Article 129b of the
                                              Treaty concerning the establishment and
                                              development of trans-European
                                              networks may be supported;
                                              Recital 9
                                              Whereas involvement of private capital
                                              in funding trans-European networks
                                              should be increased and the partnership
                                              between the public and private sectors
                                              extended;
Whereas Community aid may take the            Recital 10
shape in particular of feasibility studies,   Whereas Community aid may take the
loan guarantees or interest rate subsidies;   shape in particular of feasibility studies,
whereas these subsidies and guarantees        loan guarantees or interest rate subsidies;
take the form in particular of aid from the   whereas these subsidies and guarantees
EIB, the other Community loan                 relate in particular to financial support
instruments and the EIF; whereas in           from the EIB, the other Community loan
certain cases investment projects may be      instruments and the EIF; whereas in
co-financed;                                  certain cases investment projects may be
                                              co-financed;
                                              Recital 11
Whereas loan guarantees will be granted       Whereas loan guarantees will be granted
by the European Investment Fund on a          by the European Investment Fund on a
commercial basis or, where appropriate.       commercial basis or by other financial
by other financial organizations; whereas     organizations; whereas Community
Community financial aid may cover all or      financial aid may cover all or part of the
part of the premiums paid by the              premiums paid by the beneficiaries of
beneficiaries of these guarantees;            these guarantees;
 ---pagebreak---  Original Proposal                           Modified Proposal
                                            Recital 13
Whereas Community action must take          Whereas Community action must take
account of the potential economic viability account of the sustainability and potential
of the projects, as evaluated with the help economic viability of the projects, as
of cost/benefit analysis and other          evaluated with the help of regional
appropriate criteria;                       planning, cost/benefit analyses,
                                            appraisals of the amount of investment
Whereas, with an eye to profitability, a    in relation to the number of jobs
detailed evaluation should be undertaken    created, assessment of any remaining
before Community resources are              capacity of existing infrastructures and
committed so as to guarantee that the       other appropriate criteria; whereas, with
resources mobilized generate the desired    an eye to profitability, a detailed
socio-economic benefits;                    evaluation should be undertaken before
                                            Community resources are cornmitted so as
                                            to guarantee that the resources mobilised
                                            generate the desired integral socio-
                                            economic benefits, particularly for the
                                            regions concerned;
                                            Recital 14
Whereas Community financial support         Whereas Community financial support
under Article 129c(l) of the Treaty must    under Article 129c(l) of the Treaty must
be compatible with Community policies, in   be compatible with Community policies, in
particular as regards environmental         particular as regards energy, a
protection, competition and the award of    sustainable Common Transport Policy,
public contracts; whereas environmental     telecommunications, environmental
protection includes an environmental        protection, competition and the award of
impact assessment;                          public contracts; whereas environmental
                                            protection includes an environmental
                                            impact assessment of projects;
                                            Recital 15
                                            Whereas it is necessary to clarify the
                                            respective powers and responsibilities of
                                            Member States and the Commission
                                            with regard to financial control;
                                                                                      IP
 ---pagebreak---  Original Proposal                                      Modified Proposal
                                                       Recital 16
Whereas the Commission must ensure                     Whereas the Commission must ensure
proper coordination of all Community                   proper coordination of all Community
activities affecting trans-European                    activities, especially TEN resources, the
networks;                                              Structural and Cohesion Funds, the EIF
                                                       and the EIB, affecting trans-European
                                                       networks;
                                                       Recital 18
Whereas there should be suitable                       Whereas there should be suitable
information and publicity regarding the                information, publicity and transparency
activities financed;                                   regarding the activities financed;
                                                       HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION.
Article 1: Definition and Scope                        Article 1: Definition and Scope
This regulation defines the conditions and             This regulation defines the conditions and
procedures for granting Community aid to               procedures for granting Community aid to
projects of common interest in the field of            projects of common interest in the field of
trans-European networks for transport,                 trans-European networks for transport,
energy and telecommunications                          energy and telecommunications
infrastructures under Article 129c,                    infrastructures under Article 129c,
paragraph 1, of the Treaty1.                           paragraph 1, of the Treaty.
                                                       (footnote deleted)
       Proposal for a Council Decision on a series of guidelines for trans-European data communications
 networks between administrations (IDA) COM(93)69 f. OJEC C 105, 16.04.93, p. 10.
 ---pagebreak---  Original Proposal                          Modified Proposal
Article 2; Eligibility                     Articled: Eligibility
1. The Community aid granted in            1. The Community aid granted in
    accordance with this Regulation shall      accordance with this Regulation shall
    concern projects of common interest        concern projects of common interest
    financed by the Member States and          identified within the framework of the
    identified within the framework of the     guidelines referred to in Article 129c
    guidelines referred to in Article 129c     of the Treaty.
    of the Treaty.
2.  Projects financed by organizations        Projects financed by the Member
    working within an administrative or       States or by regional or local
    legal framework which makes them          authorities or by bodies working
    similar to public organizations shall     within an administrative or legal
    also be eligible.                         framework which makes them similar
                                              to public entities, in particular
                                              enterprises which hold franchises to
                                              run public services or which are
                                              entrusted with the operation of
                                              services of public interest, shall be
                                              eligible.
3.  Where the guidelines referred to in    3. Where the guidelines referred to in
    Article 129c, as proposed by the          Article 129c, as proposed by the
    Commission, have not yet been             Commission, have not yet been
    adopted by the Council other              adopted by the Council and the
    infrastructure projects which             European Parliament other
    contribute to the achievement of the      infrastructure projects which
    objectives set out in Article 129b of     contribute to the achievement of the
    the Treaty may be eligible.               objectives set out in Article 129b of
                                              the Treaty concerning the
                                              establishment and development of
                                              trans-European networks may be
                                              eligible.
4. Within the meaning of this Regulation      Within the meaning of this Regulation
    the concept of "project" shall include    the concept of "project" shall include
    all the technically and financially       all the technically and financially
    separate stages of projects which form    separate stages of projects which form
    a whole designed to fulfil an economic    a whole designed to fulfil an economic
    and technical function.                   and technical function, including
                                              feasibility studies.
                                                                                  IX
 ---pagebreak---  Original Proposal                           Modified Proposal
Article 3: Forms of Aid                     Article 3: Forms of Aid
Community aid may take one or several of    Community aid may take one or several of
the following forms:                        the following forms:
(a)  co-financing of feasibility studies,   (a) co-financing of feasibility studies,
      including preparatory studies,             including preparatory studies, evalua-
     evaluation studies and other technical      tion studies, technical studies and
     support measures;                           other technical support measures;
(b) contribution to the premiums of loan    (b) contribution to the premiums of loan
     guarantees;                                 guarantees;
(c) interest rate subsidies;                (c) interest rate subsidies;
(d) where by way of exception these         (d) where in specific cases these forms
     forms of financial aid provided for         of financial aid provided for above
     above are inappropriate, co-financing       are inappropriate, co-financing of
     of investment projects.                     investment projects or any other
                                                 form of financial support which is
                                                 appropriate to meet the objectives.
                                                                                     13
 ---pagebreak--- Original Proposal                               Modified Proposal
Article 5: Financial participation             Article 5: Financial participation
1.   In general, Community aid to              1.   In general, in the case of feasibility
     feasibility studies shall be subject to a      studies, the participation of the
     substantial contribution from the              authorities or bodies referred to in
     public authorities.                            Article 2, paragraph 2, shall be
                                                    substantial.
     The maximum amount of the interest-            The maximum amount of the interest-
     rate subsidy may not exceed 10% of             rate subsidy must not exceed 10% of
     the total cost of the investment in net        the total cost of the investment in net
     grant equivalent.                              grant equivalent.
     Community financial support may           3.   Community financial support may
     cover all or part of the loan guarantee        cover all or part of the loan guarantee
     premiums granted by the European               premiums granted by the European
     Investment Fund or, where                      Investment Fund or, where
     appropriate, by other organizations.           appropriate, by other public or
                                                    private financial organizations.
     Where the aid takes the form of a         4.   Where the aid takes the form of a
     direct subsidy within the meaning of           direct subsidy following the
     Article 3.1(d), the Commission shall           provisions of Article 3(d), the
     make the level of that subsidy such            Commission shall make the level of
     that it is sufficient to mobilise the          that subsidy such that it is sufficient
     requisite financial resources.                 to mobilise the requisite financial
                                                   .resources.
                                                                                          'i-
 ---pagebreak---  Original Proposal                             Modified Proposal
Article 6: Common project selection           Article 6: Common project selection
criteria                                      criteria
1.   The projects shall be of sufficient      1.     The projects presented shall have a
     dimension to have a significant                 significant impact on the
     impact on the establishment and                 establishment, development and
     development of networks.                        interoperability of trans-European
                                                     networks.
     Community aid shall be granted on a             Community aid shall be granted on a
     priority basis to projects according to         priority basis to projects according
     their degree of contribution                    to their degree of contribution
(a)   to the establishment of trans-                to the smooth running of the
      European networks;                            internal market;
(b) to the harmonization of technical               to the Community's economic and
      standards;                                    social cohesion, with particular
                                                     regard to the need to connect
(c)    to the interconnection and                   island, landlocked and peripheral
       interoperability of national networks;       regions with the central areas of
                                                    the Community;
(d)    to the improvement of access to the    The selection of the projects shall take
       networks;                              account of the degree of contribution
(e)    to the integration of the various      (a)     to the establishment of trans-
       networks;                                      European networks, in particular
                                                      where the projects are of a
(f)    to the reliability and safety of the           transfrontier nature and complete
       networks.                                      'missing links';
                                                                                         /S"
 ---pagebreak---  Original Proposal                            Modified Proposal
2.     Projects shall also be selected as a  (b)   to the harmonization of technical
       function of:                                standards;
(a)    their contribution                    (c)   to the interconnection and
       to the smooth running of the                interoperability of national
       internal market;                            networks;
       to the Community's economic and       (d)   to the improvement of access to the
       social cohesion, with particular            networks;
       regard to the need to connect
       island, landlocked and peripheral     (e)   to the integration of the various
       regions with the central areas of the       networks;
       Community;
                                             (f)   to the reliability and safety of the
                                                   networks.
(b)    their importance to the development   2.    Projects shall be selected as a
       of trade at European level;                 function of:
(c)    their contribution to increasing the  (a)   their importance to the development
       competitiveness of the European             of trade at European level;
       economy;
(d)    their compliance with environmental   (b)   their contribution to increasing the
       considerations;                             competitiveness of the European
                                                   economy;
(e)    their consistency with Community
       regional planning.                    (c)   their compliance with environmental
                                                   considerations;
                                             (d)   their consistency with regional
                                                   planning in the Community.
3.     Account shall be taken of:            3.    Account shall be taken of:
(a)    their potential economic viability:   (a)   their potential economic viability:
       extent of financial and socio-              extent of socio-economic and
       economic profitability, including           financial profitability, including
       direct or indirect effects on               direct or indirect effects on
       employment;                                 employment;
(b)    their readiness;                      (b)   their readiness;
(c)    the soundness of the financial        (c)   the solidity of the financial pack-
       package;                                    age;
                                                                                       &'
 ---pagebreak---  Original Proposal                             Modified Proposal
Article 7: Selection criteria concerning      Article 7: Selection criteria concerning
transport                                     transport
Without prejudice to the common criteria      Without prejudice to the common criteria
referred to in Article 6, Community           referred to in Article 6, Community
financial aid in the transport sector shall   financial aid in the transport sector shall
be granted on a priority basis according to   be granted on a priority basis according to
the contribution of the projects:             the contribution of the projects:
(b)     to sustainable development, in        (b) to sustainable development, in
        particular of traffic at European          particular of traffic at European level,
        level, notably                             notably
     — transfrontier and long distance             --.- transfrontier and long distance
         traffic, given its present and                 traffic, given its present and
         potential importance, within the               potential importance, within the
         Community and in neighbouring                   Community and with neighbouring
         third countries                                third countries
                                              (c) to guaranteeing high safety
                                                   standards for all means of trans-
                                                   port.
                                              (d) Priority shall be given to the less
                                                   environmentally damaging
                                                   infrastructure projects.
Article 8: Selection criteria concerning      Article 8: Selection criteria concerning
telecommunications                            telecommunications
Without prejudice to the common criteria      Without prejudice to the common criteria
referred to in Article 6, Community           referred to in Article 6, Community
financial aid in the telecommunications       financial aid in the telecommunications
sector shall be granted on a priority basis   sector shall be granted on a priority basis
to projects according to their contribution:  to projects according to their contribution:
a)   to the establishment of trans European   a)       to the establishment of trans
     networks, notably                                 European networks, notably
               transfrontier interconnection                 transfrontier interconnection
               between physical networks                     between physical networks
                interoperability of services;                 interoperability of services
                                                              and applications.
                                                                                         a
 ---pagebreak---  Original Proposal                            Modified Proposal
Article 9: Selection criteria concerning     Article 9; Selection criteria concerning
energy                                       energy
(d)    to increased transport capacity of    (d)    to increased capacity of natural gas
       natural gas supply, inlet and storage        supply and pipelines, and of
       pipelines.                                   facilities for reception and storage
                                                    of LNG (liquified natural gas).
Article 10: Compatibility                    Article 10: Compatibility
The projects financed under this             The projects financed under this
Regulation shall comply with the             Regulation shall respect the provisions of
provisions of the Treaties, with the acts    the Treaty, with the acts adopted on the
adopted on the basis thereof and             basis thereof and Community policies, in
Community policies, environmental            particular those relating to the Common
protection, competition and the award of     Transport Policy, energy,
public contracts.                            telecommunications, environmental
                                             protection, competition and the award of
                                             public contracts.
Article 11: Submission of applications       Article 11: Submission of applications
for financial aid                            for financial aid
Applications for financial aid shall be      Applications for financial aid shall be
submitted to the Commission through the      submitted to the Commission by the
intermediary of the Member State             Member State concerned or, with the
concerned or by the body directly            prior agreement of the Member State,
concerned with the agreement of the          by the authorities or bodies referred to
Member State.                                in Article 2, paragraph 2.
                                                                                         Tl
 ---pagebreak---  Original Proposal                             Modified Proposal
Article 12: Information required for the      Article 12: Information required for the
assessment and identification of              assessment and identification of
applications                                  applications
1.     In addition to the information         1.      In addition to the information
       specified in Article 6, and, where             specified in Article 6, and, where
       appropriate, Articles 7, 8 and 9               appropriate, Articles 7, 8 and 9
       above, each application for financial          above, each application for financial
       aid shall include the following                aid shall include the following
        information to identify the project           information to identify the project
       and to enable the Commission to                and to enable the Commission to
       assess the application:                        assess the application:
(a)     the body responsible for carrying     (a)     the entity responsible for carrying
        out the project;                              out the project;
(b)     the type of assistance envisaged and  (b)     a description of the project
        a description of the project                  concerned and the type of
        concerned;                                    assistance envisaged;
(d)     If the application relates to a       (d)     If the application relates to a
       project:                                       project:
              the results of the cost/benefit               the results of the cost/benefit
              analyses, including the results               analyses, including the results
              of thefinancialviability                      of thefinancial,economic
              analysis;                                     and social viability analysis;
Article 13: Taking the decision               Article 13: Taking the decision
The Commission shall decide to grant          The Commission shall take a decision on
financial aid under this Regulation           the application forfinancialaid under
according to its assessment of the            this Regulation according to its assessment
applications, in accordance with the          of the applications, following the selection
selection criteria and the procedure          criteria and the procedure specified in
specified in Article 19(2). It shall notify   Article 19(2) below, to the extent
its decision directly to the beneficiaries    possible, within six months of receipt of
and the Member State concerned.               the application submitted. It shall
                                              directly notify the beneficiaries and the
                                              Member States concerned of its decision.
                                              The essential features of the
                                              Commission's decisions shall be
                                              published in the Official Journal of the
                                              European Communities.
                                                                                            l
                                                                                              3
 ---pagebreak--- Original Proposal                            Modified Proposal
Article 14: Financial provisions            Article 14: Financial provisions
   Aid may not be granted in respect of     2. Aid may not be granted in respect of
   expenditure before the date on which        expenditure incurred before the date
   the Commission received the                 on which the Commission received the
   application for financial aid.              application for financial aid.
                                            4, The commitment appropriations
                                               entered in the budget shall be
                                               granted on the basis of the decisions
                                               approving the measures concerned.
   As a general rule, payments shall be        Payments shall be made in the form of
   made in the form of advances and a          advances, intermediate payments and
   final payment. The first advance shall      a final payment. The first advance
   be paid once the application for aid has    shall be paid once the application for
   been approved. Subsequent payments          aid has been approved. Subsequent
   shall be made on the basis of requests      payments shall be made on the basis of
   for payment, taking account of the          requests for payment, taking into
   progress made in implementing the           account, in a rigorous and
   project.                                    transparent manner, the progress
                                               made in implementing the project.
                                            6. The payments must take account of
                                               the fact that the infrastructure
                                               projects will be implemented over a
                                               period of years and that provision
                                               must therefore be made for
                                               multiannual financing.
5. The Commission shall make the final         The Commission shall make the final
   payment after approval of the report on     payment after approval of the report on
   the project or study submitted by the       the project or study submitted by the
   beneficiary and itemizing all the           beneficiary and itemizing all the
   expenditure actually incurred.              expenditure actually incurred.
   With regard to interest-rate subsidies      With regard to interest-rate subsidies
   and guarantee premium subsidies, the        and guarantee premium subsidies, the
   Commission shall determine the              Commission shall determine the
   procedures and timetable for payments.      procedures and timetable for payments.
                                                                                      15
 ---pagebreak--- Original Proposal                          Modified Proposal
Article 15: Financial Control              Article 15: Financial Control
   Without prejudice to any control        2. Without prejudice to any control
   measures carried out by the Member         measures carried out by the Member
   States in accordance with national         States in accordance with national
   laws, regulations and administrative       laws, regulations and administrative
   provisions and without prejudice to the    provisions and without prejudice to the
   provisions of Article 188a of the          provisions of Article 188a of the
   Treaty and control measures carried        Treaty and control measures carried
   out in accordance with Article 209c of     out in accordance with Article 209c of
   the Treaty, Commission officials or        the Treaty, Commission officials or
   staff may carry out spot checks on         staff may carry out on-the-spot checks
   projects financed.                         on projects financed.
                                                                                   X\
 ---pagebreak--- Original Proposal Modified Proposal
                  3. Before carrying out an on-the-spot
                     check, the Commission shall give
                     notice to the Member State
                     concerned with a view to obtaining
                     all the assistance necessary. On-the-
                     spot checks carried out by the
                     Commission without notice shall be
                     subject to agreements reached in
                     accordance with the Financial Regu-
                     lation. Officials of the Member
                     State concerned may take part in
                     checks.
                     The Commission may require the
                     Member State concerned to carry
                     out an on-the-spot check to verify the
                     correctness of payment applications.
                     Commission staff may take part in
                     such checks, and must do so if the
                     Member State concerned so requests.
                     The responsible body and authorities
                     shall keep available for the
                     Commission all the supporting
                     documents regarding expenditure on
                     any project for a period of three
                     years following the last payment in
                     respect of the project.
                                                        XL-
 ---pagebreak--- Original Proposal                          Modified Proposal
Article 16: Coordination                   Article 16: Coordination
1. The Commission shall be responsible     1. The Commission shall be responsible
   for coordination between the projects      for coordination between the projects
   undertaken under this Regulation and       undertaken under this Regulation and
   projects undertaken with the help of       projects undertaken with the help of
   contributions from the Community           contributions from the Community
   budget, the European Investment Bank       budget (such as TEN resources, the
   and other Community financial              Structural and Cohesion Funds,
   instruments, and for ensuring they are     etc.), the European Investment
   compatible.                                Fund, the European Investment Bank
                                              and other Community financial
                                              instruments, and for ensuring they are
                                              coherent.
Article 17: Evaluation                     Article 17: Evaluation
1. In order to ensure that Community aid   1. In order to ensure that Community aid
   is used efficiently, the Commission and    is used efficiently, the Commission and
   the Member States concerned shall          the Member States concerned shall
   systematically evaluate progress with      systematically evaluate progress with
   projects, if necessary with the coop-      projects, if necessary with the coop-
   eration of the European Investment         eration of the European Investment
   Bank. To this end, Member States           Bank. To this end, Member States
   shall inform the Commission each year      shall inform the Commission each year
   on the progress of projects approved.      on the progress of projects approved.
2. Before the end of 1997, the                This will entail defining indicators,
   Commission shall verify the results        to the extent possible, as a means of
   achieved with Community assistance in      measuring the extent to which the
   the different fields of application in     original objectives have been
   terms of the original objectives.          achieved.
   This will entail defining appropriate   2. Before the end of 1997, the
   indicators as a means of measuring the     Commission shall verify the results
   extent to which the original objectives    achieved with Community assistance in
   have been achieved.                        the different fields of application in
                                              terms of the original objectives.
                                                                                     22.
 ---pagebreak--- Original Proposal                          Modified Proposal
Article 19, Committees                     Article 19, Committees
1. In implementing this Regulation, the    1. In implementing this Regulation, the
   Commission shall be assisted,              Commission shall be assisted,
   depending on the sector concerned...       depending on the sector concerned...
   The decision required by this              The decisions required by this
   Regulation shall be taken in accordance    Regulation shall be taken in accordance
   with the procedure set out in paragraph    with the procedure set out in paragraph
   2 of this Article.                         2 of this Article.
                                                                                    * \
 ---pagebreak---                                                                    ISSN 0254-1475
                                                             COM(95) 32 final
                                              DOCUMENTS
EN                                                                             01
                                     Catalogue number : CB-CO-95-047-EN-C
                                                              ISBN 92-77-85539-8
Office for Official Publications of the Europedn Communities
L-2985 Luxembourg