Council Decision 2010/674

Contents

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 217 in conjunction with Article 218(5) thereof,Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission,Whereas:

(1)The following financial mechanisms and cooperation programmes expired on 30 April 2009:

—the EEA Financial Mechanism 2004-2009 provided for in Protocol 38a to the Agreement on the European Economic Area (‘EEA Agreement’)^note, as subsequently supplemented with an addendum in 2007 upon Bulgaria and Romania becoming contracting parties to the EEA Agreement^note,

—the Norwegian Financial Mechanism 2004-2009 provided for in the Agreement between the Kingdom of Norway and the European Community on a Norwegian financial mechanism for the period 2004-2009^note,

—the Cooperation Programme mentioned in the Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the European Community and the Kingdom of Norway concerning a Cooperation Programme for Economic Growth and Sustainable Development in Bulgaria^note, and

(2)The need to alleviate economic and social disparities within the European Economic Area persists. Therefore a new mechanism for the financial contributions of the EEA EFTA States and a new Norwegian financial mechanism should be established.

(3)To this end, the Commission has negotiated, on behalf of the Union, an agreement with Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway on a new EEA financial mechanism for the period 2009-2014 as well as an annex to that agreement. The annex will take the form of a protocol, to be named Protocol 38b to the EEA Agreement. To the same end, the Commission has also negotiated, on behalf of the Union, an agreement with Norway on a new Norwegian financial mechanism for the period 2009-2014.

(4)Subject to their conclusion at a later date, these agreements should be signed.

(5)The special provisions applicable to imports into the Union of certain fish and fisheries products originating in Iceland and Norway, provided for in the following protocols, expired on 30 April 2009 and should be reviewed in accordance with Article 2 of each of those protocols:

—Additional Protocol to the Agreement between the European Economic Community and the Republic of Iceland consequent on the accession of the Czech Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic of Malta, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak Republic to the European Union^note,

—Additional Protocol to the Agreement between the European Economic Community and the Kingdom of Norway consequent on the accession of the Czech Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Cyprus, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic of Malta, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak Republic to the European Union^note,

—Additional Protocol to the Agreement between the European Economic Community and Iceland consequent on the Accession of the Republic of Bulgaria and Romania to the European Union^note,

—Additional Protocol to the Agreement between the European Economic Community and the Kingdom of Norway consequent on the accession of the Republic of Bulgaria and Romania to the European Union^note.

(6)To this end, the Commission has negotiated, on behalf of the Union, new additional protocols to the free trade agreements respectively with Iceland and Norway, to lay down special provisions applicable to imports into the Union of certain fish and fisheries products originating in Iceland and Norway for the period 2009-2014.

(7)Subject to their conclusion at a later date, these additional protocols should be signed.

(8)The replacement of the existing financial mechanisms by new mechanisms, which relate to different time periods, different amounts of funds, and different implementing provisions, as well as the renewal and extension of the concessions relating to certain fish and fisheries products, taken as a whole, constitute an important development of the association with the EEA EFTA States, which justifies the recourse to Article 217 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

(9)Pending the completion of the procedures required for their conclusion, the Agreements referred to in recital 4 and the Protocols referred to in recital 7 should be applied on a provisional basis,

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1 #

The signing of the following agreements and protocols is hereby approved on behalf of the Union, subject to their conclusion:

—Agreement between the European Union, Iceland, the Principality of Liechtenstein and the Kingdom of Norway on an EEA Financial Mechanism 2009-2014 and the Annex thereto,

—Agreement between the European Union and the Kingdom of Norway on a Norwegian Financial Mechanism for the period 2009-2014,

—Additional Protocol to the Agreement between the European Economic Community and the Republic of Iceland and the Annex thereto,

—Additional Protocol to the Agreement between the European Economic Community and the Kingdom of Norway and the Annex thereto.

The texts of the Agreements and Additional Protocols and the Annexes thereto are attached to this Decision.

Article 2 #

The President of the Council is hereby authorised to designate the person(s) empowered to sign these Agreements and Protocols on behalf of the Union, subject to their conclusion.

Article 3 #

Pending the completion of the procedures for their conclusion, the Agreements and Protocols referred to in Article 1, shall be applied on a provisional basis as from the following dates:

—the Agreement between the European Union, Iceland, the Principality of Liechtenstein and the Kingdom of Norway on an EEA Financial Mechanism 2009-2014 and the Annex thereto, as from the first day of the first month following the deposit of the last notification to this effect,

—the Agreement between the European Union and the Kingdom of Norway on a Norwegian Financial Mechanism for the period 2009-2014, as from the first day of the first month following the deposit of the last notification to this effect,

—the Additional Protocol to the Agreement between the European Economic Community and the Republic of Iceland and the Annex thereto, as from the first day of the third month following the deposit of the last notification to this effect,

—the Additional Protocol to the Agreement between the European Economic Community and the Kingdom of Norway and the Annex thereto, as from the first day of the third month following the deposit of the last notification to this effect.

Article 4 #

This Decision shall enter into force on the day of its adoption.

Protocol 38 b on the eea financial mechanism (2009-2014)

Article 1Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway (‘the EFTA States’) shall contribute to the reduction of economic and social disparities in the European Economic Area and to the strengthening of their relations with the Beneficiary States, through financial contributions in the priority sectors listed in Article 3.

Article 2The total amount of the financial contribution provided for in Article 1 shall be EUR 988,5 million, to be made available for commitment in annual tranches of EUR 197,7 million over the period running from 1 May 2009 to 30 April 2014, inclusive.

Article 31.The financial contributions shall be available in the following priority sectors:

(a)Environmental protection and management;

(b)Climate change and renewable energy;

(c)Civil society;

(d)Human and social development;

(e)Protecting cultural heritage.

2.Academic research may be eligible for funding in so far as it is targeted at one or more of the priority sectors.3.The indicative allocation target for each Beneficiary State is at least 30 percent for priority sectors (a) and (b) combined, and 10 per cent for priority sector (c). The priority sectors shall, in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 8 paragraph 2, be chosen, concentrated and adapted in a flexible manner, according to the different needs in each Beneficiary State, taking into account its size and the amount of the contribution.

Article 41.The EFTA contribution shall not exceed 85 percent of programme cost. It may in special cases be up to 100 per cent of programme cost.2.The applicable rules on state aid shall be complied with.3.The European Commission shall screen all programmes and any substantial change in a programme for their compatibility with the European Union's objectives.4.The responsibility of the EFTA States for the projects is limited to providing funds according to the agreed plan. No liability to third parties will be assumed.

Article 5The funds shall be made available to the following Beneficiary States: Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Spain, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia and Slovakia.EUR 45,85 million shall be allocated to Spain for transitional support for the period 1 May 2009–31 December 2013. While taking into account transitional adjustments, the remaining funds shall be made available in accordance with the following distribution:| Funds(million EUR)Bulgaria | 78,60Czech Republic | 61,40Estonia | 23,00Greece | 63,40Cyprus | 3,85Latvia | 34,55Lithuania | 38,40Hungary | 70,10Malta | 2,90Poland | 266,90Portugal | 57,95Romania | 190,75Slovenia | 12,50Slovakia | 38,35

Article 6With a view to reallocating any non-committed available funds to high priority projects of any Beneficiary State, a review shall be carried out in November 2011 and again in November 2013.

Article 71.The financial contribution provided for in this Protocol shall be closely coordinated with the bilateral contribution from Norway provided for by the Norwegian Financial Mechanism.2.In particular, the EFTA States shall ensure that the application procedures and implementation modalities are essentially the same for both financial mechanisms referred to in the previous paragraph.3.Any relevant changes in the European Union's cohesion policies shall be taken into account, as appropriate.

Article 8The following shall apply to the implementation of the EEA Financial Mechanism:

1.The highest degree of transparency, accountability and cost efficiency shall be applied in all implementation phases, as well as principles of good governance, sustainable development and gender equality. The objectives of the EEA Financial Mechanism shall be pursued in the framework of close cooperation between the Beneficiary States and the EFTA States.

2.In order to ensure efficient and targeted implementation, and taking into account national priorities, the EFTA States shall conclude with each Beneficiary State a Memorandum of Understanding that shall set out the multi-annual programming framework and the structures for management and control.

3.After having concluded the Memorandum of Understanding, the Beneficiary State shall submit programme proposals. The EFTA States will appraise and approve the proposals and conclude grant agreements with the Beneficiary States for each programme. The level of detail in the programme shall take into account the size of the contribution. Within programmes, projects may in exceptional cases be specified, including conditions for their selection, approval and control, in accordance with the provisions for implementation referred to in paragraph 8.The implementation of the agreed programmes shall be the responsibility of the Beneficiary States. The Beneficiary States shall provide for an appropriate management and control system in order to ensure a sound implementation and management system.

4.Partnerships shall, where appropriate, be applied in the preparation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the financial contribution in order to ensure broad participation. Partners may include, inter alia, local, regional and national levels, as well as the private sector, civil society and social partners in the Beneficiary States and the EFTA States.

5.The control system provided for the management of the EEA Financial Mechanism shall ensure the respect of the principle of sound financial management. The EFTA States may carry out controls according to their internal requirements. The Beneficiary States shall provide all necessary assistance, information and documentation to this effect. The EFTA States may suspend financing and require recovery of funds in the case of irregularities.

6.Any project under the multi-annual programming framework in the Beneficiary States may be implemented in cooperation between entities based in the Beneficiary States and in the EFTA States, in accordance with the applicable rules on public procurement.

7.The management costs of the EFTA States shall be covered by the overall amount referred to in Article 2 and will be specified in the provisions for the implementation referred to in paragraph 8.

8.The EFTA States shall establish a Committee for the overall management of the EEA Financial Mechanism. Further provisions for the implementation of the EEA Financial Mechanism will be issued by the EFTA States after consultation with the Beneficiary States. The EFTA States shall endeavour to issue these provisions before the signing of the Memoranda of Understanding.

Article 9At the end of the five-year period and without prejudice to the rights and obligations under the Agreement, the Contracting Parties will, in the light of Article 115 of the Agreement, review the need to address economic and social disparities within the European Economic Area.

Special provisions referred to in article 1 of the protocol

The Union shall open the following annual duty free tariff quotas for products originating in Iceland, in addition to existing tariff quotas:

CN code	Description of products	Annual (1.5-30.4) tariff quota volume in net weight, unless otherwise specified
03035100	Herrings of the species Clupea harengus and Clupea pallasii, frozen, excluding livers and roes^note,	950 tonnes
03061930	Frozen Norway lobsters (Nephrops norvegicus)	520 tonnes
03041935	Fillets of redfish (Sebastes spp.), fresh or chilled	750 tonnes

Special provisions referred to in article 1 of the protocol

In addition to the existing duty free tariff quotas, the European Union shall open the following annual duty free tariff quotas for products originating in Norway:

CN code	Description of products	Annual (1.5-30.4) tariff quota volume in net weight unless otherwise specified
03032900	Other frozen salmonidae	2000 tonnes
03035100	Herrings of the species Clupea harengus and Clupea pallasii, frozen, excluding livers and roes^note	45800 tonnes
03037430	Mackerel of the species Scomber scombrus and Scomber japonicus, frozen, whole, excluding livers and roes^note	39800 tonnes
03037998	Other fish, frozen, excluding livers and roes	2200 tonnes
03042975ex03049923	Frozen filets of herring of the species Clupea harengus and Clupea pallasiiFrozen flaps of herring of the species Clupea harengus and Clupea pallasii (butterflies)^note	67600 tonnes
ex16052010ex16052091ex16052099	Shrimps and prawns, peeled and frozen, prepared or preserved	7000 tonnes
ex16041291ex16041299	Herring, spiced and/or vinegar cured, in brine^note	3000 tonnes net drained weight

Council Decision 2010/674

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Protocol 38 b on the eea financial mechanism (2009-2014)

Special provisions referred to in article 1 of the protocol

Special provisions referred to in article 1 of the protocol

Connections

Key facts

History · 1 version

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Article 4 #

Protocol 38 b on the eea financial mechanism (2009-2014)

Special provisions referred to in article 1 of the protocol

Special provisions referred to in article 1 of the protocol