ESA Media Briefing 11th EU-ESA Space Council (23 May 2024)

Informative

Council of the European Union - Brussels, 22 May 2024 - Competitiveness Council - Brussels, 23-24 May 2024 - Space (Thursday 23 May - morning): The first session of the Competitiveness Council will start around 08:30, when ministers responsible for space will hold a policy debate on space law. They will then prepare the 11th meeting of the EU-ESA Space Council. They are also expected to approve Council conclusions on competitiveness through space. There will be two AOB items: The Hungarian delegation will present the work programme of the incoming presidency, and the Director General of the European Space Agency (ESA) will give a presentation on 'Accelerating the use of space in Europe'. At 10:45 the ESA Ministerial Council will take place, to adopt a resolution on strengthening Europe's competitiveness through space. Following that, at 11:15, the EU-ESA Space Council will start, with ministers holding a policy debate on the very same topic of strengthening Europe's competitiveness through space. The Council will conclude with a joint EU-ESA press conference with Belgian State Secretary Thomas Dermine; German Federal Government Coordinator of Aerospace Policy Anna Christmann (Germany holds ESA's rotating presidency); Commission’s Director General for Defence Industry and Space, Timo Pesonen, and ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher. Chair: Thomas Dermine, Belgian State Secretary for Recovery and Strategic Investment, with responsibility for Scientific Policy Press conference: Thursday 23 May at +/- 13:30 (JUSTUS LIPSIUS press room) Research (Thursday 23 May - afternoon) The Council meeting will resume on Thursday at 14:30. In the afternoon session, ministers responsible for research will start by reaching a political agreement on the amendment of the regulation establishing the European High Performance Computer Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) aimed at boosting Europe's leadership in artificial intelligence (AI). This will be followed by the approval of a Council recommendation on enhancing research security. The session will continue with the approval of Council conclusions on knowledge valorisation and on the ex-post evaluation of Horizon 2020. Ministers will then hold a debate on research and innovation on advanced materials for industrial leadership. The research part of the Competitiveness Council meeting will conclude by around 18:00 with an AOB item: a presentation of the main priorities of the incoming presidency by the Hungarian delegation. This will be followed by a press conference led by Vice-President of the Government of Wallonia Willy Borsus and the Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth Iliana Ivanova. Chair: Willy Borsus, Vice-President of the Government of Wallonia, Minister for Economic Affairs, Foreign Trade, Research and Innovation, the Digital Economy, Spatial Planning, Agriculture, IFAPME (Walloon institute for ongoing and freelance training and SMEs) and competence centres. Press conference: Thursday 23 May at +/- 18:10 (JUSTUS LIPSIUS press room) Internal market and industry (Friday 24 May) The meeting of ministers responsible for internal market and industry will start at 10:00. After the adoption of the A-points (which include the final adoption of the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence directive), ministers will be invited to adopt Council conclusions on the future of industrial policy. This will be followed by four AOB points: An information by the Commission on its Communication on biotechnology, an information of the Irish delegation on the D9+ ministerial meeting declaration, a point by the French delegation on the use of carbon in the chemical industry, and finally a point by the Spanish delegation on strengthening the European industry to boost competitiveness. Over lunch, ministers will be invited to share their opinions on the competitiveness of energy-intensive industries. The session will resume after lunch with the adoption of two council conclusions: one on the future of the internal market, and the second on the European Court of Auditors special report on public procurement. The afternoon session will finish with seven AOB points: an overview of current legislative files the Belgian presidency has been working on; an information point on territorial supply constraints in the single market; , an information point on the declaration of posting of workers, an information point on the Pyropass declaration, information by the Commission on the customs measures taken by the US; a presentation of the Belgian presidency on the EU competition day, and finally an information point of the Hungarian delegation on the priorities of the incoming presidency. The second day of the Council meeting will conclude with a press conference by Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for the Economy and Employment Pierre-Yves Dermagne and Executive Vice-President of the Commission for a Europe Fit for the Digital Age Margrethe Vestager. Chair: Jo Brouns, Flemish Minister of Economy, Innovation, Work, Social Economy and Agriculture, and Pierre-Yves Dermagne, Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for the Economy and Employment Press conference: Friday 24 May at +/- 17:30 (JUSTUS LIPSIUS press room) Competitiveness Council (Space, research and innovation), 23 May 2024 - meeting page Competitiveness Council (Internal market and industry), 24 May 2024 - meeting page Press conferences and public events by video streaming Space Law: Ministers will hold a policy debate on a future EU space law, which the Commission is expected to propose soon. This session will not be public. On 13 September 2023, in the framework of the State of the Union, Commission President von der Leyen presented the Commission's priorities for 2024, which included an EU space law. The legislative proposal, planned for the first quarter of 2024, should set out common EU rules addressing the safety, resilience and sustainability of space activities and operations. The planned proposal was also intended to remove fragmentation and barriers across the single market caused by the heterogeneity or lack of national space legislation. In November 2023, the Commission launched a consultation process with both member states and industry ahead of the adoption of the proposal for an EU space law. The consultation was based on three pillars: safety, resilience and sustainability. The legislation has not yet been proposed. A note, prepared by the Belgian presidency to guide the discussion, identifies several challenges that have to be addressed by the future EU space law, including the congestion of certain orbits (in particular low Earth orbit), the risk of cyber-attacks on space infrastructure, the environmental impact of space activities and the foreign dependency for technologies and raw materials. The note proposes structuring the debate around two questions: How can the EU space law reinforce the competitiveness of EU space industry? How can it reinforce the resilience of space systems? Belgian presidency note to guide the discussions on the space law Website of the targeted consultation on the space law Council conclusions on the contribution of space to Europe's competitiveness. Ministers are expected to adopt Council conclusions on 'strengthening Europe’s competitiveness through space'. This session will not be public. The conclusions come at a time when the issue of European competitiveness is high on the agenda. The presentation of Enrico Letta's internal market report 'Much more than a market', during the Special European Council meeting on 17-18 April 2024, and Mario Draghi's forthcoming report on competitiveness have further raised the interest in the matter. The Council conclusions will analyse the contribution of the space sector to European competitiveness and will propose some ideas to boost the space sector, and the role of space in European global action. The main challenges that the European space sector is currently facing include navigating through international competition, developing cutting-edge innovation, and increasing the global attractiveness of Europe's space market. Preparation of the Joint EU-ESA Space Council meeting Ministers will prepare for the Space Council meeting, which will take place around 11:15, after the end of the space part of the Competitiveness Council meeting. This session will not be public. The Belgian presidency has organised a joint ESA-EU Space Council meeting to mark the 20th anniversary of the ESA-EU Framework Agreement. The Space Council is a joint meeting of the Council of the European Union and of the European Space Agency (ESA) Council at ministerial level. It is based on Article 8 of the Framework Agreement between the European Community and the ESA. This agreement offers a common basis for a coherent development of an overall European space policy. It will be the 11th time that a Space Council meeting takes place. The Belgian presidency, the German rotating presidency of the ESA Council at ministerial level, together with the Commission and the ESA Executive, have prepared the document 'Strengthening Europe's competitiveness through space', which will be adopted as two separate files: Council conclusions (for the Council of the EU) and an ESA resolution (for ESA). Currently, ESA has 22 member states that sit on ESA's governing Council: Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Canada also sits on the Council and takes part in some projects under a cooperation agreement. Slovakia, Slovenia, Latvia and Lithuania are associate members, while Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus and Malta have signed cooperation agreements with ESA. Any other business a) Incoming presidency programme The Council will be informed by the Hungarian delegation of the work programme of the incoming presidency in the field of space. b) Accelerating the use of space in Europe The Director General of the ESA, Josef Aschbacher, will give a presentation on 'Accelerating the use of space in Europe'. European Space Agency inter-ministerial summit (Belgian presidency website) EU space policy (background information) European Space Agency website EU achievements in space (infographic) Research EuroHPC – political agreement Ministers responsible for research are expected to reach a political agreement on the amendment of the regulation establishing the European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU). This session will be public. The EuroHPC Joint Undertaking coordinates the efforts of its members to make Europe a world leader in supercomputing. The main objectives of the EuroHPC JU are the development, deployment, extension and maintenance of the EU supercomputing, quantum computing and data infrastructure ecosystem. It also supports the development of supercomputing system components, technologies and knowledge and widens the use of that supercomputing infrastructure. Finally, the EuroHPC JU supports the development of key high-performance computing skills for European science and industry. On 24 January 2024, the Commission issued a proposal for a regulation to amend the current legal framework (Council Regulation (EU) 2021/1173) to introduce an additional objective for the joint undertaking: supporting the development of an AI ecosystem in the EU by developing and operating AI factories. AI factories are defined as entities providing an AI supercomputing service infrastructure which is composed, amongst other things, of an AI-dedicated supercomputer, an associated data centre, and AI-oriented supercomputing services. Commission proposal for a Council regulation as regards an EuroHPC initiative for start-ups to boost European leadership in trustworthy artificial intelligence Council regulation (EU) 2021/1173 of 13 July 2021 on establishing the European High Performance Computing Joint Undertaking Artificial intelligence (background information) Research security – Council recommendation Ministers will also adopt a recommendation on enhancing research security. This session will be public. The overall aim is to support member states and their research performing and research funding organisations to address research security risks deriving from openness and international cooperation, inherent to research activities. During the discussions at working party level, member states have introduced substantial modifications to the Commission's original proposal of 24 January. The draft Council Recommendation identifies concrete actions to be taken by member states and the Commission to enhance research security, with the starting point of a clear and urgent need for raising awareness and building resilience among researchers and academics across Europe. The Council recommends to both member states and Commission to take into account a list of 9 principles for responsible internationalisation when designing and implementing policy actions to enhance research security. In this regard the draft also contains a set of 14 recommendations to member states and 11 recommendations to the Commission. Proposal for a Council recommendation on enhancing research security Knowledge valorisation – Council conclusions. Ministers are also invited to approve Council conclusions on knowledge valorisation. This session will be public. Knowledge valorisation is the process of creating social and economic value from knowledge obtained from research and innovation. This is achieved by linking different areas and sectors and by transforming data, know-how and research results into sustainable products, services, solutions and knowledge-based policies that benefit society. How to make the most of knowledge valorisation has been discussed several times by the ministers in charge of research. In December 2022, the Council adopted a recommendation on the guiding principles for knowledge valorisation, and in December 2023, ministers held a discussion on 'Research valorisation as a tool for economic and industrial recovery and resilience. The principal aim of the draft submitted to the ministers is to address the different ways of supporting knowledge valorisation as a particularly important element for a resilient and competitive industry and open strategic autonomy of the Union, to take stock of recent initiatives and the orientations for strengthening them, if necessary, as well as to address the ways for filling the gaps in the European innovation landscape. 2022 Council recommendation on the guiding principles for knowledge valorisation. 2023 presidency note on 'Research valorisation as a tool for economic and industrial recovery and resilience' Ex-post evaluation of Horizon 2020 – Council conclusions. Ministers will be invited to approve Council conclusions on the ex- post evaluation of the Horizon 2020, the former research and innovation framework programme. This session will be public. The conclusions proposed by the presidency are a response to the ex-post evaluation of Horizon 2020 issued by the Commission on 29 January 2024. Horizon 2020 was the EU's research and innovation framework programme from 2014 to 2020 and had an overall budget of EUR 75.6 billion. The programme funded almost 35 000 projects involving 40 000 organisations. The evaluation concludes that Horizon 2020 was a successful programme in many different areas (notably high scientific, societal, and economic impact). However, the evaluation also mentions a number of areas for further improvement, such as the broadening of participation, further reducing the administrative burden, and better dissemination of research results. The draft conclusions will help to prepare the following (10th) framework programme for research and innovation, for the years 2028 to 2034 (negotiations will start in 2025). Ex-post assessment Horizon 2020 Horizon Europe (background information) Research and innovation on advanced materials for industrial leadership – Policy debate. Ministers will hold a policy debate about research and innovation on advanced materials for industrial leadership. This session will be public. This policy debate will be based on a note prepared by the Belgian presidency and aims to focus on joint coordination to reduce fragmentation, prioritisation of sectoral application areas, and the sharing of existing best practices. 'Advanced materials' are new materials or substances with enhanced properties (i.e. strength, durability, or conductivity) that allow the creation of new products and devices that are essential in a wide range of sectors, including space, defence, agrifood and healthcare. These materials are considered critical for the EU's economic security and competitiveness and are considered essential for the green and digital transitions. The demand for advanced materials is expected to increase significantly in the coming years. On 27 February 2024, the Commission published a communication on advanced materials for industrial leadership, in which it suggests a list of preliminary overarching R&I priorities for advanced materials for sectors like energy (materials for conversion and generation of renewable and low-carbon energy, energy storage and energy efficiency); mobility (energy storage, robust, lightweight materials for transport, protection and durability, circularity and environmental performance, ability to perform in harsh environments); construction (materials for energy efficiency, robust structures, wellbeing in buildings); and electronics (materials for electronic components, sensors, new computers, chips, communication technologies, etc.) Presidency note on 'Research and innovation for advanced materials for industrial leadership' Commission communication on advanced materials for industrial leadership Any other business a) Incoming presidency programme. The Council will be informed by the Hungarian delegation about the work programme of the incoming presidency in the field of research Internal market and industry 'A' items The Council meeting will start with the adoption of legislative and non-legislative 'A' items. Ministers are expected to adopt two legislative files: the corporate sustainability due diligence directive, and the regulation on the Schengen borders code. The adoption of legislative 'A' items will be public. Corporate sustainability due diligence: Council and Parliament strike deal to protect environment and human rights - Consilium (europa.eu) Schengen: Council and European Parliament agree to update EU's borders code - Consilium (europa.eu) The future of industrial policy – Council conclusions Ministers are expected to adopt Council conclusions on the future of EU industrial policy. This session will not be public. The European Council, in its conclusions of 17 and 18 April 2024, underlined the European Union's commitment to ensuring its long-term competitiveness, prosperity and leadership on the global stage and to strengthening its strategic sovereignty. An important part of this objective should be achieved with the development of an effective industrial policy. The Council conclusions, entitled 'A competitive European industry driving our green, digital and resilient future', include a call for the Commission to make industrial policy a key element of its agenda for the next legislative mandate. The conclusions analyse the situation faced by the EU's industrial sector, explore ways to improve innovation and access to finance and the business environment for manufacturers, and propose the main principles for a future EU industrial policy. These Council conclusions are closely linked to the conclusions to be adopted on the future of the internal market. European Council conclusions 17-18 April 2024. EU industrial policy (background information) Lunch discussion. Over lunch, ministers will be invited to share their opinions on the competitiveness of energy-intensive industries. The Belgian presidency has invited two external speakers, who will offer insights from both industry and workers' perspectives: Marco Mensink, Director General of the European chemical industry council (CEFIC) and Judith Kirton-Darling, General Secretary of industriAll Europe, a federation of European trade unions across manufacturing, mining, and energy sectors in 39 European countries. As their name suggests, the energy-intensive industries are those sectors that have a particularly high energy consumption to produce their goods. These cover the chemicals, steel, pulp and paper, plastics, mining, extraction and quarrying, refineries, cement, wood, rubber, non-ferrous metals, ferro-alloys, industrial gases, glass and ceramics industries. Energy-intensive industries face numerous structural, economic and geopolitical challenges, including rising production costs (energy and raw materials), fierce international competition and expensive decarbonisation investments in the context of the Green Deal. They are also confronted with increased global overcapacity and high energy prices, which despite recent reductions (compared with the peak in 2022) still exceed previous long-term trends for gas and electricity. The future of the single market – Council conclusions. Ministers are expected to adopt Council conclusions on the future of the internal market, based on the high-level report presented at the European Council meeting by Enrico Letta. This session will not be public. 2023 marked the 30th anniversary of the Treaty of Maastricht and the creation of the European single market. Since then, there has been a wide-ranging debate on the opportunities and challenges posed by the single market. The European Council in March 2023 called for ambitious action to complete the single market, and in June, EU leaders requested an independent high-level report on the single market's future, which was commissioned by the Spanish and Belgian presidencies. Former Italian Prime Minister and President of the Jacques Delors Institute, Enrico Letta, presented the report 'More than a Market' at the Special European Council meeting on 17 and 18 April 2024. The Council conclusions on the future of the internal market, entitled 'A single market for the benefit of all' link the Report to a more general discussion on the future of the internal market. The conclusions reflect on the current situation in the internal market and call for a holistic strategy on issues like the regulatory framework, the enhancing of the single market's potential benefits in terms of circular economy, services, and trade for example. The Council conclusions on the internal market are closely linked to the conclusions on the future of industrial policy that will be adopted in the morning. 'Much more than a market', report by Enrico Letta European Council conclusions 17-18 April 2024. Single market policy (background information) Special Report of the European Court of Auditors on Competition on European public procurement – Council conclusions. Ministers are expected to approve Council conclusions on the European Court of Auditors' (ECA) special report entitled ‘Public Procurement in the EU: Less Competition for Contracts Awarded for Works, Goods, and Services in the 10 Years up to 2021’. This session will not be public. The public purchase of works, goods and services from suppliers through public procurement amounts to some €2 trillion per year, around 14 % of the EU's gross domestic product. Public procurement is thus one of the main drivers of economic growth and employment. On 25 October 2023 the European Court of Auditors published their special report which criticised the decrease in competition in public procurement over the last decade. This period includes a time before and after the revision of the main procurement Directives. The Court was particularly critical about the large proportion of direct awards in some member states and about single bidder procedures. The Court also underlined the low proportion of contracts awarded to SMEs, and an insufficient use of strategic public procurement although at national level, there were variations. Other shortcomings identified in this report refer to the low level of direct cross-border procurement and the lack of monitoring of the public procurement market by the Commission and the Member States. The Council conclusions address the findings and the recommendations of the Court, but in addition, they include strong text on the need to launch an EU-wide strategic action plan for public procurement, based on an analysis of the root causes for this lack of real competition in public procurement, and that the next Commission should make the Action Plan one of its priorities. European Court of Auditors' special report on the lack of competition in European public procurement Any other business There will be two blocks of any other business items: Before lunch there will be four AOB items. a) Biotechnology The Commission will present its communication on biotechnology, which was published on 7 March 2024. This item will be public. Communication: Building the future with nature: boosting biotechnology and biomanufacturing in the EU, b) The ministerial declaration issued at the D9+ ministerial meeting. The Irish delegation will inform ministers about the D9+ ministerial meeting that took place on 19 April. Ireland currently holds the chair of the 'D9+' grouping, an informal alliance of digital frontrunners. This item will be public. Ministerial declaration of the D9+ ministerial meeting. c) Use of carbon in the chemical industry The delegations from France, , the Netherlands, Ireland and Czech Republic will inform ministers about measures to use carbon in the chemical industry. This item will be public. Information note from the French, Dutch, Irish and Czech delegations, supported by the Spanish delegation, on a sustainable carbon policy for chemical industry d) 'Reinforcing European industry to boost competitiveness' The Spanish delegation will inform ministers about the reinforcement of European industry to boost competitiveness. This item will be public. Information note from the Spanish, Portuguese and Greek delegations on the need to reflect on options to finance industrial policy at EU level: “Reinforcing European Industry to boost Competitiveness” After lunch there will be six AOB items. e) Legislative files state of play. The Belgian presidency will give an overview of the state of play of the legislative files they have been working on. Commission proposal for regulation on the safety of toys Commission proposal for a regulation on combating late payment in commercial transactions Commission proposal for a package on 25% of burden reduction f) Territorial supply constraints in the single market. The Belgian, Croatian, Danish, Luxembourg and Czech delegations will inform ministers of the need to eliminate territorial supply constraints in the single market. g) Declaration of posting of workers The delegations of Germany, Czechia, and Lithuania will inform ministers about other activities relating to the declaration of posting of workers. Information note from the German, Czech and Lithuanian delegations on further activities regarding the common form for the declaration of the posting of workers (eDeclaration) h) Customs measures taken in the United States At the request of the French delegation, the Commission will brief ministers on the customs measures taken by the United States. i) European Competition Day The Presidency will inform the Council about the outcomes of the European Competition Day held in Brussels on 26 April. European Competition Day on the website of the Belgian presidency j) Incoming presidency programme The Council will be informed by the Hungarian delegation about the work programme of the incoming presidency in the field of internal market and industry.