Explanatory Memorandum to COM(2018)467 - Dedicated financial programme for decommissioning of nuclear facilities and management of radioactive waste - Main contents
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This page contains a limited version of this dossier in the EU Monitor.
| dossier | COM(2018)467 - Dedicated financial programme for decommissioning of nuclear facilities and management of radioactive waste. |
|---|---|
| source | COM(2018)467  |
| date | 13-06-2018 |
1. CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL
This proposal provides for a date of application as of 1 January 2021 and is presented for a Union of 27 Member States, in line with the notification by the United Kingdom of its intention to withdraw from the European Union and Euratom based on Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union received by the European Council on 29 March 2017.
• Reasons and objectives
The funding programme for financial assistance for 'Decommissioning of Nuclear Facilities and Management of Radioactive Waste', (the programme) presented under this draft Regulation addresses the decommissioning of nuclear facilities and the management of the arising waste under a common instrument to optimise synergies and knowledge sharing in order to secure meeting of relevant obligations. This dedicated funding programme can bring additional EU added value through becoming a benchmark within the EU for safely managing technological issues in nuclear decommissioning and disseminating knowledge to Member States. Such financial assistance is provided on the basis of an ex ante evaluation identifying the specific needs and demonstrating the EU added value.
Currently, the Programme focuses on specifically identified needs:
The Kozloduy nuclear power plant units 1-4 (Kozloduy, Bulgaria) and the Bohunice V1 nuclear power plant (Jaslovské Bohunice, Slovakia) consist of six pressurized water reactors originally developed in the Soviet Union (VVER 440). The decommissioning of these plants contributes towards increased nuclear safety in the region and in the EU as a whole.
The Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) owns nuclear research installations in four sites: JRC-Geel in Belgium, JRC-Karlsruhe in Germany, JRC-Ispra in Italy and JRC-Petten in the Netherlands. Some of these installations are still in use today while others have been stopped, in some instances more than 20 years ago. As nuclear operator and/or owner 1 under Belgian, Dutch, German and Italian laws, the JRC is responsible for the decommissioning of these installations and for the safe management from generation to disposal of the resulting spent fuel and radioactive waste.
Given this making, the programme is naturally subdivided into:
(i) the two actions providing financial support to Bulgaria and Slovakia to safely decommission six nuclear reactors at the Kozloduy nuclear power plant units1-4 and the Bohunice V1 nuclear power plant (respectively the Kozloduy programme and the Bohunice programme);
(ii) the actions of JRC, implementing safely the decommissioning process and the management of resulting radioactive waste of the Commission's own nuclear installations at the JRC sites (the JRC decommissioning and waste management programme, D&WM).
The Kozloduy programme and the Bohunice programme have the main objective to assist Bulgaria and Slovakia in managing the radiological safety challenges of the decommissioning of the Kozloduy nuclear power plant Units 1-4 and of the Bohunice V1 nuclear power plant respectively.
JRC D&WM programme pursues the safe decommissioning of the Commission's JRC sites, and explores and develops options for anticipated transfer of decommissioning and waste management liabilities to the JRC host Member States.
The programme has a high potential to create and share knowledge and support this way EU Member States with their own decommissioning.
The Kozloduy and the Bohunice programmes have been conducted through several financial periods and are expected to be finalised by 2030 and by 2025 respectively. The programmes are expected to meet already important milestones with the funding provided in the current multiannual financial framework (i.e. 2014-2020), nonetheless amounts are still required in order to address the remaining key radiological safety issues related to the decommissioning of these installations.
The Kozloduy and Bohunice programmes originated in the context of the negotiations for accession to the EU of Bulgaria and Slovakia, which took the commitment to close and subsequently decommission their old Soviet-designed nuclear reactors by a commonly agreed date. The closure commitment of the two Member States as well as the commitment of the EU to provide financial support was foreseen in the corresponding Accession Treaties 2 , 3 (Slovakia acceded in 2004; Bulgaria in 2007). The two Member States and the EU have fulfilled their respective Accession Treaty commitment.
On the basis of Article 203 of the Euratom Treaty 4 and to ensure continuity of safety related measures, the EU provided financial assistance 5 , 6 to the decommissioning of the Bohunice V1 nuclear power plant beyond the timeframe that was stipulated in Slovakia's Accession Treaty 7 . Similarly, following the period covered by Bulgaria's Accession Treaty 8 the EU continued providing financial assistance6, 9 for the safe decommissioning of the Kozloduy nuclear power plant Units 1-4.
The JRC was established under Article 8 of the Euratom Treaty 10 . In application of this Article, site agreements were signed during the period 1960-62 between the European Atomic Energy Community and Germany, Belgium, Italy and The Netherlands respectively. In the two latter cases, national nuclear research facilities were transferred to the Community. Since that, other infrastructure dedicated to nuclear research and development and comprising new installations was put in place at the four sites. Some of the installations are still in use today as they are crucial for pursuing the implementation of the current and future Euratom research and training programmes. Others have been stopped, in some instances more than 20 years ago, and have mostly become obsolete.
On the basis of the Euratom Treaty, JRC has to manage its historical nuclear liabilities and to decommission its shut-down nuclear installations. To this end and based on the 1999 Communication from the Commission 11 , the D&WM programme was initiated and a specific ad hoc budget line was created in agreement with the European Parliament and the Council 12 . Since then the Commission reported regularly to the Council and European Parliament on the progress of the D&WM programme, thereby providing an updated budget forecast (2004, 2008, and 2013 13 ).
Initially, the D&WM programme focused on the so-called 'historic liabilities', mainly constituted by Ispra's nuclear facilities that had ceased to operate in the previous decades. This also includes the historical waste present at the JRC sites. Currently the programme covers also the nuclear installations which will become obsolete in the future at all four JRC sites, including the management of nuclear materials.
• Consistency with existing policy provisions
The Kozloduy and Bohunice programmes' aim has evolved through the years in order to better address the needs and ensure the safe decommissioning of the facilities: originally and until 2013, the EU assistance was designed to support Bulgaria and Slovakia both in their efforts to shut down and decommission the concerned reactors, but also to address the consequences of early closure of these nuclear power plant installations; later, in 2014, the programmes scope was restricted to decommissioning activities, i.e. to safety related measures; while for the next stage it is suggested that the programmes further focus on decommissioning activities that involve radiological safety challenges.
The disposal of spent fuel and radioactive waste in a deep geological repository is not in the scope of these programmes and remains the responsibility of Bulgaria and Slovakia as per Council Directive 2011/70/Euratom on the responsible and safe management of spent fuel and radioactive waste.
As the JRC nuclear facilities in Karlsruhe, Geel and Petten are still crucial for JRC research and training activities, the D&WM programme has so far mainly affected the Ispra site, where most of the nuclear facilities ceased to operate before 1999. In the future (between 2020 and 2060), significant decommissioning activities will need to be implemented also at the JRC sites in Karlsruhe, Geel and Petten. The D&WM programme shall contribute to the JRC host Member States national programmes on their implementation of the Council Directive 2011/70/Euratom on the responsible and safe management of spent fuel and radioactive waste.
• Consistency with other Union policies
In line with the Rome Declaration 14 , the EU budget should enable a Europe that is safe and secure; this is a dimension where the nuclear decommissioning programmes have contributed so far and may further contribute. After shut-down of a nuclear facility, the main positive impact to be achieved is the progressive decrease of the level of radiological hazard for the workers, the public and the environment in the concerned Member States but also in the EU as a whole.
The programme fits into the EU nuclear safety regulatory framework; particularly relevant for the programme are: (i) Council Directive 2011/70/Euratom establishing a Community framework for the responsible and safe management of spent fuel and radioactive waste; (ii) Council Directive 2009/71/Euratom and its amendment Council Directive 2014/87/Euratom establishing a Community framework for the nuclear safety of nuclear installations; (iii) Council Directive 2013/59/Euratom laying down basic safety standards for protection against the dangers arising from exposure to ionising radiation.
As long as the JRC remains the licence holder, it has the prime responsibility (Article 7 of Council Directive 2011/70/Euratom) for the safe management of its own spent fuel and radioactive waste (in the four host Member States) and in this regard the JRC D&WM programme remains indispensable for the fulfilment of the Commission's obligations as licence holder of these facilities. By releasing as soon as possible any obsolete nuclear research facilities free of radiological constraint, it contributes to a Europe that is safe and secure and sets a good benchmark across the Union for the safe and responsible management of radioactive waste and spent fuel. The timely completion of this process though is highly dependent on the host Member State; therefore the Commission services have extensively worked with JRC to identify options for better governance to enhance the effectiveness of the programme implementation.
2. LEGAL BASIS, SUBSIDIARITY AND PROPORTIONALITY
• Legal basis
The legal basis for the programme is the Euratom Treaty, in particular Article 203 thereof.
• Subsidiarity (for non-exclusive competence)
The origin of the Kozloduy and Bohunice programmes stems from Bulgaria's and Slovakia's Accession Treaties respectively and was a commitment from the EU to both countries. The EU added value of these programmes from their beginning has been always defined in terms of nuclear safety. Absence of EU co-financing would likely have a negative impact on the decommissioning process as such, which in turn could result in direct impact on safety for the workers and the general public. The programmes' contribution to radioactive safety challenges naturally declines as the decommissioning progresses 15 .
The decommissioning of the JRC facilities and management of arising waste is an exclusive competence of the Commission (JRC) as license holder.
The overall programme can bring additional EU added value through increased focus on knowledge sharing which is important for addressing similar challenges faced by other Member States in progressing with their decommissioning plans. Currently more than 90 nuclear reactors have been permanently shut down in Europe, but only three have been fully decommissioned. The level of experience in the dismantling of nuclear reactors in Europe (as well as internationally) is thus limited. Likewise the further gain of experience is needed for the decommissioning of other nuclear installations. Therefore, the highly relevant experience and know-how generated by the programme can be of benefit to other decommissioning projects and will result in increased levels of safety within the EU.
• Proportionality
The programme will focus in the next multiannual financial framework on radiological safety challenges of the decommissioning where the greatest EU added value can be achieved (i.e. progressive decrease of the level of radiological hazard for the workers, the public and the environment in the concerned Member States but also in the EU as a whole, and finalisation of the Bohunice and Kozloduy programmes).
• Choice of the instrument
As a result of the mid-term evaluation of the nuclear decommissioning assistance programmes in Bulgaria, Slovakia (and Lithuania) the current setup, i.e. the use of a dedicated spending programme, has proven to ensure effective and efficient implementation of the programme. Main factors of success are the clear definition of roles and responsibilities as well as the strengthened monitoring framework. Given that all three programmes concern decommissioning, an industrial activity of big scale, it was decided that pooling the three programmes together would result in better knowledge sharing while programmes could benefit from experience between each other.
Over the years the seamless independent expert review of the JRC D&WM programme has shown that its management can be more effective if budgetary and staff flexibility are put in place. The programme also generates an important knowledge on decommissioning research faclilites and contributes to training programmes in the field. Therefore, the internal reflection carried out by the Commission services concluded on the suitability of having the JRC decommissioning programme as part of such an instrument. This will give on one hand JRC the necessary resources to carry out its programme, benefiting from the flexibility offered by the instrument (i.e. management of the budget over a 7 years period compared to the current annual programming cycle where budget is attributed on an annual basis under request).
Moreover, this would also enhance synergies and knowledge sharing of JRC programme with other more advanced decommissioning programmes. The EU Member States will benefit from the knowledge generated by the two programmes while the programmes can benefit from each other.
The Commission proposes therefore to continue under one instrument: (i) the implementation of the Kozloduy and Bohunice programmes via indirect management through the pillar assessed implementing body (i.e. the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in Bulgaria and the Slovak Innovation and Energy Agency (SIEA) in Slovakia); and (ii) the implementation of the JRC D&WM programme via direct management.
This solution should facilitate also the opening of negotiations with the JRC host Member States for an anticipated transfer of the Commission's nuclear liabilities. Such transfers occurred in the past in some of the concerned Member States. Any such financial settlement can take different forms, for example, it could be paid over several multiannual financial framework periods, given the length of the decommissioning process.
It is important to bear in mind that currently the situation needs to be differentiated: in Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands waste acceptance criteria are defined and therefore, the situation is relatively more stable than in Italy where the waste routes are not clear in the national programme. The higher uncertainties related to the JRC Ispra decommissioning plan is mainly due to the current absence of waste acceptance criteria and the absence of the final disposal facility.
3. RESULTS OF EX-POST EVALUATIONS, STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATIONS AND IMPACT ASSESSMENTS
• Retrospective evaluations/fitness checks of existing legislation
Contents
The programmes' mid-term evaluation concluded that the current programmes are coherent with EU policies aiming at ensuring the highest level of nuclear safety. The EU support ensures that the immediate dismantling strategy is steadily pursued in Bulgaria and Slovakia, and prevents that undue burden is transferred to future generations, while it partially derogates for historical reasons to the ultimate responsibility of the Member States to ensure adequate financial resources for nuclear decommissioning and radioactive waste management.
Bulgaria and Slovakia have progressed effectively and efficiently in the decommissioning of their reactors in line with the baseline agreed in 2014 (i.e. decommissioning plans). There have been challenges and setbacks due to the programme's complexity, but the management system has proven increasing ability to cope with such challenges. The Kozloduy programme and the Bohunice programme have led already to a significant decrease in radiological hazard to the general public given that the most important sources of radiological hazards are tackled in the multiannual financial framework 2014-2020 (e.g. decontamination and dismantling of the reactor primary cooling circuits and cores, and completion of waste management routes).
The post-2020 multiannual financial framework budget estimates for the continuation and finalisation of the Kozloduy programme and the Bohunice programme correspond to less than one fourth compared to the multiannual financial framework 2014-2020 and will ensure the achievement of the agreed end state of the decommissioning process.
The mid-term evaluation showed that the increasing level of national contribution is supporting stronger accountability and inducing economy-seeking behaviour on the part of beneficiaries. The analysis also concluded that increasing levels of national contribution are a necessary but not a sufficient condition to set the right incentives for timely and efficient decommissioning. However, the lack of defining in the past the co-financing rates in the legal basis created uncertainties that will be removed in the draft legal basis for the next multiannual financial framework (2021-2027).
The governance setup has ensured effective and efficient implementation of the programmes and compensated for the uncertainties mentioned above on the co-financing aspects. Main factors of success were clear definitions of roles and responsibilities as well as a strengthened monitoring framework. The analysis has also identified areas for further improvement such as:
(i) deeper involvement of the Member State (programme coordinator and financial coordinator) for increased ownership together with stronger accountability of the decommissioning operator (final beneficiary);
(ii) streamlining of procedures to enhance the timeliness and effectiveness of the management cycle;
(iii) increased inter-comparability with other decommissioning programmes' performance.
The EU financial assistance has been implemented by indirect management 16 since its inception. The Commission proposes to continue entrusting the implementation of the programme's budget to a pillar assessed implementing body (indirect management), i.e. to EBRD in Bulgaria and SIEA in Slovakia.
The JRC is regularly reviewing the progress and performance of the D&WM programme, using independent external advice (D&WM programme Expert Group, external consultants).
The programme has made important progress and achievement since its launch on preparing the ground for effective decommissioning and reducing the amounts of nuclear and radioactive materials present in the sites.
The programme is being also audited by the Commission's Internal Audit Service. Following the recommendations from the last audit carried out by IAS 17 .for improving the cost estimates, and in light of the expected increase of decommissioning activities at the different sites, JRC supported by external consultants has reassessed the waste inventory and revised the decommissioning planning. A harmonised approach, based on recent international recommendations for estimation of decommissioning costs, has been applied to determine expected costs for each JRC site. The new budget forecast (as of December 2017) includes contingencies, depending on the level of uncertainty associated with the respective activities and the external conditions at the different locations. The new strategy and budget forecast was reviewed by the D&WM Programme Expert Group and received a positive opinion in 2017 at the end of the process. Still, significant uncertainties affect the timelines and the cost estimate for the different sites, inherent to the long-lead times for nuclear decommissioning and delays caused by the host Member State.
• Stakeholder consultations
A public consultation on EU funds in the area of security was launched by the Commission on 10 January 2018 and run until 9 March 2018.
For the mid-term evaluation of Kozloduy and Bohunice programmes, an open public consultation was launched by the Commission in June 2017 for an extended duration of 14 weeks. The consultation received limited interest (20 responses). In addition to this consultation, a targeted e-survey consultation was launched in July 2017; it gathered an additional 17 responses (1 from Bulgaria, 4 from Lithuania and 12 from Slovakia) from 90 stakeholders contacted in total. The replies received were overall positive about the programme but did not provide any additional new input on the programme. These two consultations were complemented with targeted consultations through around 100 interviews with decommissioning operators and relevant stakeholders.
• External expertise
The following documents have been used as input for the preparation of the programme for the next multiannual financial framework:
–"Support to the mid-term evaluation of the Nuclear Decommissioning Assistance Programmes", EY, An evaluation for the European Commission DG Energy, 2018
–"Nuclear Decommissioning Assistance Programme (NDAP) – Assessment of the robustness of the financing plans considering the economic-financial-budgetary situation in each concerned Member State and of the relevance and feasibility of the detailed decommissioning plans", Deloitte, NucAdvisor, VVA Europe, A study prepared for the European Commission DG Energy, 2016
–ECA Special Report 22/2016 'EU nuclear decommissioning assistance programmes in Lithuania, Bulgaria and Slovakia: some progress made since 2011, but critical challenges ahead'
In managing the D&WM programme, the JRC is regularly advised by a group of independent European decommissioning experts (biannual meetings and additional ad-hoc meetings). Their advice relates to the decommissioning and radioactive waste treatment strategy, the available technology, technical aspects of the organisation and any other aspects relating to the programme.
• Impact assessment
In line with the Financial Regulation and the requirements of the Commission's better regulation policy, the current programme has been subject to an ex-ante assessment (in the form of a Staff Working Document).
• Simplification
The Kozloduy programme and the Bohunice programme are currently implemented via indirect management using pillar-assessed implementing bodies in the concerned Member States (i.e. the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in Bulgaria and Slovakia; the Slovak Innovation and Energy Agency in Slovakia). The programme's mid-term evaluation confirmed that the current setup has proven to ensure effective and efficient implementation of the programme and will be therefore continued in the next multiannual financial framework, with some simplifications drawing on lessons learned from the mid-term evaluation.
For example, the programme will take advantage of the multi-annual programming foreseen under the revised Financial Regulation. This will make the best use of the multi-annual detailed decommissioning plan as a baseline for programming and monitoring and enhance the efficiency and timeliness of the programming cycle. Another example, relates to the introduction of a clearer framework for co-financing that will reduce uncertainty concerning the source of financing, remove the need for negotiating and agreeing on an annual basis the national contribution, and increase the ownership of the programme by the Member State.
In addition, in Bulgaria and Slovakia, the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) and the Cohesion Fund could support measures to accompany the related social and economic transition, including also energy efficiency and renewable energy measures as well as certain other activities not linked to radiological safety processes. As such, these Funds can help to create additional activities in the concerned regions and utilise the locally available expertise as a major driver of job creation, sustainable growth and innovation. Similarly synergies should be explored with FP9 and / or the Euratom Research and Training Programme in areas such as technology development and testing, as well as training and education.
Moreover, the single rule book will be used while additional synergies and complementarities between programmes will be exploited wherever possible.
JRC will continue to implement the programme under the direct management scheme, taking full advantage of JRC's expertise in the nuclear field, until the handing-over of the facilities and responsibilities to the host Member States is completed. The JRC D&WM programme will be fully implemented under the new instrument. JRC will further improve and streamline its existing programming, monitoring and control system, and enhance its project management by introducing the earned value management and defining the baseline (final decommissioning plan) based on which progress will be monitored. This includes also the adoption of a multiannual work programme and financing decision, an interim evaluation (after four years), and a final evaluation after 2027. This should also enhance transparency of the programme in line with the Commission's general objective.
• Fundamental rights
The programme has no impact on fundamental rights.
4. BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS
Pooling the budgets under a single funding programme would allow for increased financial flexibility between the actions, i.e. a tool to transfer budget where and when needed in line with progress.
Since 1999, the JRC has covered the costs of decommissioning activities through a dedicated budget line that can be used for outsourced services and works. The costs of the in house human resources necessary for the implementation of the programme (for management and supervision) are not eligible under that budget line, therefore these are funded through the Euratom Research and Training framework programme.
Actions co-financed under the proposed financial programme are based on the respective decommissioning plan established as per the Council Regulation 2013/1368/Euratom. These plans have already defined the scope of the programmes, the decommissioning end-state and end-dates. They cover the decommissioning activities, their associated schedule, costs and required human resources.
Budget allocations for 2021-2027 are defined on the basis of the yearly disbursements provided for in the decommissioning plans, taking into account the proposed thresholds for EU co-financing. For the Bohunice programme the residual funding should be scheduled in the initial stages of the multiannual financial framework in order to complete the programme by 2025. For the Kozloduy programme the baseline defines a nearly linear progress curve hence almost constant yearly commitments and payment plans are envisaged as presented in the Legislative Financial Statement.
The human and administrative resources required for the programme management by the Commission remain unchanged from the predecessor programme.
The variable and unpredictable level of expenditures in a given year (currently related to the lengthy authorisation procedures by national authorities and complex procurement and contract management) makes it difficult to manage the programme in line with the current budgetary and financial setup that is based on the annuality principle as it is not always possible to predict which payments will have to be made in a particular year. For example, in recent years, payments have been lower than expected.
In light of the uncertainties around the D&WM programme that may result in increasing volume and uncertainty of budgetary needs more budgetary flexibility is needed.
5. OTHER ELEMENTS
• Implementation plans and monitoring, evaluation and reporting arrangements
The programming, monitoring and control system will be further improved and streamlined with respect to the existing one. Lessons learnt from the evaluations will be used in order to ensure simplification and continuous improvement.
In 2014, particularly for the Kozloduy and Bohunice programmes the Commission modified the governance of the programme for the multiannual financial framework 2014-2020 in order to set out clearer roles and responsibilities, and introduce increased planning, monitoring and reporting requirements for the beneficiaries. In line with this revised governance approach, each of the concerned Member States appointed a Programme Coordinator (deputy minister or state secretary) to be responsible for the programming, coordination and monitoring of the decommissioning programme at national level. A committee with monitoring and reporting functions is in place, co-chaired by a Commission representative and the Programme Coordinator.
For the Kozloduy and Bohunice programmes, the Commission plans to continue entrusting the implementation of the programmes' budget to a pillar assessed implementing body (indirect management), i.e. to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in Bulgaria and the Slovak Innovation and Energy Agency (SIEA) in Slovakia. In addition, the Commission services will continue the practice of closely following up project implementation through desk and on-the-spot reviews on a biannual basis, and to supplement the regular programming, monitoring and control cycle with thematic verifications based on a risk review basis."
These evaluations will be carried out in line with paragraphs 22 and 23 of the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 18 , where the three institutions confirmed that evaluations of existing legislation and policy should provide the basis for impact assessments of options for further action. The evaluations will assess the programme's effects on the ground based on the programme indicators/targets and a detailed analysis of the degree to which the programme can be deemed relevant, effective, efficient, provides enough EU added value and is coherent with other EU policies. They will include lessons learnt to identify any lacks/problems or any potential to further improve the actions or their results and to help maximise their exploitation/impact.
The JRC D&WM programme is executed under the direct management mode and is governed by JRC senior management through a high level steering committee (chaired by JRC Director-General) 19 . This high-level steering committee meets three times per year to take strategic decisions, set up objectives and monitor the progress of the programme. The strategic decisions include e.g. the scheduling of shut-down of JRC nuclear facilities, taking due account of the infrastructure needs of the JRC Research and Training Work Programme.
The high-level steering committee is supported by the operational-level steering committee, composed of site representatives of the D&WM programme, and the responsible officers for legal, financial and procurement support of the D&WM programme. This committee meets three times per year and aims to coordinate and monitor the D&WM programme activities at the different sites. It discusses technical, legal, financial and procurement issues of the D&WM programme and monitors both technical progress as well as budget implementation.
In line with the European Parliament resolution in 1999 20 , the JRC is since the beginning of the D&WM programme regularly advised by a group of independent European decommissioning experts (biannual meetings, and additional ad-hoc meetings), the D&WM programme Expert Group. Their advice relates to the decommissioning and waste treatment strategy, the available technology, technical aspects of the organisation and any other aspects relating to the programme. Until 2016, experts were appointed by the Commission on the basis of proposals made by the Members of the JRC Board of Governors or by the JRC itself. In choosing these experts, the Commission took care to avoid any conflict of interest and to ensure independence of analysis and foster gender and geographical diversity. Following the new Commissions Decision on the creation of Commission Expert Groups 21 , the JRC has launched a new Call for Experts and established the Expert Group fully compliant to the new Commission rules.
Since the beginning of the D&WM programme, the Commission is regularly reporting to the Council and the European Parliament on its progress and status, thereby providing an updated budget forecast (2004, 2008, and 2013)13.
Moreover, JRC reports on an annual basis on the mid-term targets and the progress achieved (JRC Management Plan, JRC Activity Report). 22
In the next financing period, for both the Kozloduy and Bohunice programmes and the JRC D&WM programme, the multiannual nature of the decommissioning process will be reflected in the adoption of a multiannual work programme and financing decision, in line with the envisaged new financial regulation. This programming process will be evidently synchronised with the evaluation steps (an interim one after four years, and a final one after 2027 when the completion of tasks in field is expected).
The current practice of annual reporting to the European Parliament and the Council will be maintained.
• Detailed explanation of the specific provisions of the proposal
Article 3 of the proposed basic act defines the objectives of the programme for the multiannual financial framework 2021-2027. The article reflects the twofold nature of the programme's general objective, which translates EU added value on the one hand into enhanced nuclear safety and, on the other hand, into increased knowledge for the EU Member State on the nuclear decommissioning process.
Articles 3, 6, and 7 altogether define a framework to ensure that the EU funding is focussed on actions truly delivering the programmes' objective. They clarify the level of shared effort between the EU and the concerned Member States in decommissioning the Kozloduy nuclear power plant Units 1-4 and Bohunice V1 nuclear power plant respectively. This provision and the cost estimates of the detailed decommissioning plan as per Council Regulation 2013/1368/Euratom frame the EU contribution for the decommissioning the Kozloduy nuclear power plant Units 1-4 and Bohunice V1 nuclear power plant respectively.
Article 8 introduces a major simplification with respect to the current programmes, i.e. the use of a multiannual work programme, which reflects the nature of decommissioning programmes. Although a multiannual approach is adopted on the programming level, the practice of annual reporting to the European Parliament and the Council is maintained as described in Article 9.
Article 10 defines the process for the multiannual work programme revision over a period which is commensurate to the programme nature and provides the Commission with adequate tools to introduce corrective measures if necessary.