JASPERS
Brendan SmythDG REGIO co-ordination
A A new context after 2006new context after 2006
– EU Enlargement has greatly added to the requirement to prepare projects for EU grant financing
– 1 January 2007: 13 Cohesion Fund beneficiary countries + Romania, Bulgaria
- One third of EU budget for Cohesion and Structural Funds in new Member States
– Greatly enlarged resources for new Member States from 2007 onwards
– Problems with quality of projects remain
What is JASPERSWhat is JASPERS ? ?– ‘Joint Assistance to Support Projects in European Regions’
– A technical assistance partnership to prepare major projects between DG REGIO, EIB and EBRD
– For administrative reasons, JASPERS will be a unit within the EIB but separated from its lending activities
– Objective: increasing the capacity of the beneficiary countries to make the best use of EU funding
– ‘J’ is for ‘joint’: three new ‘J’ new instruments (together with JEREMIE and Urban Development JESSICA) Joint effort between the Commission and IFIs.
- value added: drawing on past experience and expertise of
the EIB and the EBRD in a more structured and coordinated
way than in the past.
• concentration on priority countries: the 10 ‘new’ member states plus Romania and Bulgaria• JASPERS concentrates on major projects :
Transport €50 M >Environment and other sectors €25 M >
• JASPERS priorities are :
- large projects supported by the Cohesion Fund and the ERDF (to be interpreted flexibly in the smaller
countries)
- other Cohesion Fund projects
- other ERDF projects
horizontal issues covering more than one country/sector
JASPERS ActivitiesJASPERS Activities
How will JASPERS operateHow will JASPERS operate?? • Assistance can be provided as required from the
early stages of a project through to the decision to grant assistance (by the Commission or the Member State depending on the size of project)
• Preparatory work required to deliver a mature project e.g.– advice on conceptual development and project
structuring– advice on project preparation e.g. cost-benefit analysis,
financial analysis, environmental issues, procurement planning.
– review of documentation: feasibility studies, technical design, tender documents.
– advice on compliance with EU law (environmental, competition and others) and conformity with EU policies
JASPERS: free and voluntaryJASPERS: free and voluntary
JASPERS assistance will be provided free of charge to the beneficiary
There is no obligation on the Member States to use JASPERS
There is no obligation on a Member State which benefits from JASPERS to borrow from the EIB or the EBRD
There is no obligation on the EIB or the EBRD to lend to projects prepared using JASPERS
There is no exclusion of EIB or EBRD lending to projects benefiting from JASPERS
LEGAL RESPONSIBILITIESLEGAL RESPONSIBILITIES
JASPERS does not change existing legal responsibilities
JASPERS is an input to the preparation of applications for EU funding
Member States are the 'owners' of the project, not JASPERS; they submit the standard applications as required by the Regulations
preparation of a project by JASPERS does not guarantee approval of the project by the Commission
the ultimate legal responsibility to grant assistance will remain with the Commission
JASPERS54 professional STAFF
30 professionals + 10 support
16professionals
5 to 8 professionals
LUXEMBOURG
WARSAW VIENNA BUCHAREST
ORGANISATION & RECRUITMENTORGANISATION & RECRUITMENT
• Regional hubs for JASPERS:– North (Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania): Warsaw– Central (Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia):
Vienna– South (Romania, Bulgaria): Bucharest– Malta and Cyprus covered from existing EIB offices in
Rome and Athens
• Internally: EIB and EBRD core teams in place
• External recruitment: candidates already interviewed for Luxembourg, Warsaw, Bucharest
• New offices and staff will be fully operational in late 2006/early 2007
Framework consultancy contractsFramework consultancy contracts
• Two large framework contracts to support JASPERS in Luxembourg and in the regional offices
• Transport and environment/other sectors
• Teams of expert for assignments ‘on call’
• Preparation of large infrastructure projects and analysis of horizontal issues (e.g. state aid, grant blending etc.)
• Tenders published in May; framework contracts will be operational shortly 10
ACTION PLANSACTION PLANS
Priorities and objectives of JASPERS will be set out each year in an Action Plan agreed between JASPERS and the beneficiary country
close coordination of JASPERS operations with DG REGIO country desks
horizontal issues may also be included in the Action Plan
Action Plans for the twelve priority countries (the 10 plus Romania and Bulgaria) now agreed
2006 2006 ACTION PLANSACTION PLANS
• JASPERS has already provided assistance to some projects e.g. Sofia solid waste
• 112 project actions identified and support requested in wide range of relevant horizontal issues
• Demand in some unexpected sectors (e.g. large energy, broadband telecom, tourism) 12
Environment sectorEnvironment sector 56 actions56 actions
Water and waste water 20 actions
Solid Waste 16 actions
Energy efficiency and renewables
12 actions
Other sectors (Tourism, telecoms – broadband, health, education) 8 actions
Transport sectorTransport sector 46 actions46 actions
Roads and motorways 15 actions
Railways 16 actions
Urban transport 7 actions
Other sub-sectors (river, airports)
8 actions13
Main Main HorizontalHorizontal IssuesIssues
• PPP+EU grant blending approaches
• Support with state aid in new sectors
• Structuring projects in new sectors (e.g. power, energy efficiency, renewables, urban transport, flood protection, rolling stock)
• Grouping small projects (e.g. energy efficiency, water)
• PPP best practice / model approaches
• Guidance on new Regulations (e.g. eligibility, revenue generating projects, grant rate calculation)
14
Management of JASPERSManagement of JASPERS
• Managing Authority acts as central co-ordinator for each country
• The Managing Authority in the Member State can request assistance directly from JASPERS in Luxembourg or from the regional offices of JASPERS
• JASPERS will be actively managed by a Steering Committee with members from DG REGIO, EIB and EBRD.
JASPERS Contact PointJASPERS Contact Point
Patrick WalshHead of JASPERSJASPERS FACILITYDa Vinci II BuildingFindel-LUXEMBOURG
+352 4379 7798