21992A0811(01)

COOPERATION AGREEMENT between the European Economic Community and the Republic of Finland on research and technological development in the field of renewable raw materials: forestry and wood products (including cork) ('Forest', 1990 to 1992)

THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY,

hereinafter referred to as 'the Community'

and

THE REPUBLIC OF FINLAND,

hereinafter referred to as 'Finland',

both hereinafter referred to as the 'Contracting Parties',

WHEREAS the Community and Finland concluded a Framework Agreement for scientific and technical cooperation which entered into force on 17 July 1987;

WHEREAS, by Decision 89/626/EEC of 20 November 1989, the Council of the European Communities, hereinafter called 'the Council', adopted a research and technological development (RTD) programme in the fields of raw materials and recycling (1990 to 1992), which includes inter alia a subprogramme relating to forestry and wood products (including cork) as a renewable raw material (Forest), hereinafter referred to as 'the Community subprogramme';

WHEREAS the association of Finland with the Community subprogamme can help to improve the efficacy of the research carried out by the Contracting Parties in the fields of forestry and wood products and can avoid the useless duplication of efforts;

WHEREAS the ongoing talks, relating to a European Economic Area, between the Community and the EFTA countries are likely to lead to a result in the area of research and development (R & D) the Contracting Parties should endeavour to find solutions for the continued cooperation in the field of R & D in the forestry sector which take this development into consideration;

WHEREAS the Community and Finland expect to obtain mutual benefit from Finland's association with the Community subprogramme,

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

Finland is hereby associated as from 20 November 1989 with the implementation of the Community subprogramme as set out in Annex A. The implementation of the subprogramme and the Community's rate of financial participation are set out in Annex B.

Article 2

The financial contribution of Finland, deriving from its association with the implementation of the Community subprogramme, shall be established in proportion to the amount available each year in the general budget of the European Communities for appropriations covering commitments to meet financial obligations of the Commission of the European Communities, hereinafter referred to as 'the Commission', resulting from work to be carried out in the framework of shared-cost research contracts necessary for the implementation of the Community subprogramme and from management and administrative operating expenditure for the said subprogramme.

The proportionality factor governing Finland's contribution shall be obtained by establishing the ration between Finland's gross domestic product (GDP), at market prices, and the sum of gross domestic products, at market prices, of the Member States of the Community and of Finland. This ratio shall be calculated on the basis of the latest available statistical data of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

The funds estimated as necessary to carry out the Community subprogramme, the amount of Finland's contribution and the timetable of the commitment estimates are set out in Annec C.

The rules governing Finland's financial contribution are set out in Annex D.

Article 3

1. For the purposes of the Agreement, a Cooperation Committee to assist the Commission in the implementation of the research and technological development subprogramme in the field of forestry (1990 to 1992), adopted by Council Decision 89/626/EEC, hereinafter referred to as 'the Committee', is hereby established.

2. The Committee shall consist of representatives of the Community and Finland.

3. The Committee shall be consulted for all the matters concerning the implementation of the Agreement. For this purpose, it shall make recommendations.

4. The representative of the Community shall take the appropriate steps to ensure coordination between the implementation of this Agreement and the decisions taken by the Community in respect of the implementation of the Community subprogramme.

5. For the purpose of the proper implementation of the Agreement, the Contracting Parties shall exchange information and, at the request of either Party, shall hold consultations within the Committee.

6. The Committee shall adopt its own rules or procedure and it shall meet, at the request of either Contracting Party, in accordance with the conditions to be laid down in its rules of procedure.

Article 4

For Finnish research and development bodies and persons, the terms and conditions for the submission and evaluation of proposals and the terms and conditions for the granting and conclusion of contracts under the Community subprogramme shall be limited to those arising from contracts under the same subprogramme. In particular, the general provisions applicable to research contracts within the Community shall apply subject to this article, mutatis mutandis, to research contracts with Finnish research and development bodies and persons as far as questions relating to taxation and customs duties and the utilization of research results are concerned.

Article 5

The Commision shall send to Finland a copy of the reports established in accordance with Article 4 of Council Decision 89/626/EEC.

Article 6

Each Contracting Party undertakes, in accordance with their respective rules and regulations, to facilitate the movement and residence of research workers participating in Finland and in the Community in the activities covered by this Agreement.

Article 7

The Commission and the Technology Development Centre of Finland shall ensure the implementation of this Agreement.

Article 8

Annexes A, B, C and D to this Agreement shall form an integral part thereof.

Article 9

1. This Agreement shall be concluded for the duration of the Community subprogramme.

Should the Community revise the Community subprogramme, the Agreement may be denounced under mutually agreed conditions. Finland shall be notified of the exact content of the revised subprogramme within one week of its adoption by the Community. The Contracting Parties shall notify each other within three months after the Community decision has been adopted if a termination of the Agreement is envisaged.

2. Where the Community adopts a new R & D programme in the fields of forestry and wood products, this Agreement may be renegotiated or renewed under mutually agreed conditions.

3. Subject to paragraph 1, either Contracting Party may at any time terminate the Agreement with six months notice. The projects and work in progress at the time of termination and/or expiry of this Agreement shall be continued until they are completed under the conditions laid down in this Agreement.

Article 10

This Agreement shall be approved by the Contracting Parties in accordance with their existing procedures.

It shall enter into force on the date on which the Contracting Parties notify each other of the completion of the procedures necessary for this purpose.

Article 11

This Agreement shall apply, on the one hand, to the territories in which the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community is applied and under the conditions laid down in that Treaty and, on the other hand, to the territory of the Republic of Finland.

Article 12

This Agreement shall be drawn up in duplicate in the Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Greek, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish and Finnish languages, each of these texts being equally authentic.

On behalf of the Council of the European Communties

For the Republic of Finland

ANNEX A

COMMUNITY SUBPROGRAMME IN THE FIELD OF RENEWABLE RAW MATERIALS: FORESTRY AND WOOD PRODUCTS (INCLUDING CORK) ('FOREST', 1990 to 1992) The Community subprogramme shall cover the following research areas:

Indicative allocation of funds (in millions of ecus)

1. Forest resources4

1.1. Tree improvement

1.2. Planning and management

1.3. Forest protection

2. Wood and cork technologies 4

2.1. Quality assessment

2.2. Processing technology

3. Pulp and paper manufacturing4

3.1. Improvement in pulping and bleaching

3.2. Improvement of paper manufacture and coating

Total 12

ANNEX B

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE SUBPROGRAMMES AND THE COMMUNITY'S RATE OF FINANCIAL PARTICIPATION The subprogrammes shall be implemented by means of:

(i) shared-cost research contracts;

(ii) concerted actions;

(iii) coordination activities;

(iv) education and training activities and

(v) studies and assessments.

The subprogrammes are open to universities, research organizations and industrial companies, including small and medium-sized enterprises, individuals, or any combination therof established in the Community and in Finland. As a rule, projects must be transnational and at least one partner in a project must be established in the Community.

For shared-cost contracts, the Community participation shall not normally exceed 50 % of the total expenditure, but this percentage may be varied according to the nature and the stage of development of the research. In respect of universities and research institutes carrying out projects in these subprogrammes, the Community may bear up to 100 % of the additional expenditure involved.

ANNEX C

FINANCIAL PROVISIONS 1. According to Council Decision 89/626/EEC adopting the Forest subprogramme, the amount estimated as necessary to carry out this Community subprogramme shall be ECU 12 000 000.

2. Finland's financial contribution for its association to the Community subprogramme is estimated to be ECU 280 423 and shall be added, along with other possible contributions from third countries, to the abovementioned amount, as provided for in

Article 2

of this Agreement.

3. The indicative timetable for the commitment appropriations of the Forest subprogramme and Finland's contribution are as follows:

(in ecus)

Management and

administration operations 456 000 510 000 490 000 1 456 000

Contracts 2 644 000 6 090 000 1 810 000 10 544 000

Total 3 100 000 6 600 000 2 300 000 12 000 000

Finland's contribution

Management and

administration operations 10 65611 918 11 451 34 025

Contracts 61 786 142 315 42 297 246 398

Total 72 442 154 233 53 748 280 423

ANNEX D

FINANCING RULES 1. The Annex lays down the detailed rules governing Finland financial contribution referred to in Article 2 of the Agreement.

2. At the beginning of each year, or whenever the Community subprogrammes are revised so as to involve an increase in the amount estimated at necessary for its implementation, the Commission shall send to Finland a call for funds corresponding to its contribution to the costs under the Agreement.

This contribution shall be expressed both in ecus and in Finnish currency, the composition of the ecu being defined in Council Regulation (EEC) No 3180/78(1) . The value in Finnish currency of the contribution in ecus shall be determined on the date of the call for funds.

Sweden shall pay its contribution to the annual cost under the Agreement at the beginning of each year and at the latest three months after the call for funds is sent. Any delay in the payment of the contribution shall give rise to the payment of interest by Finland at a rate equal to the highest discount rate obtained in the Member States of the Community on the due date. The rate shall be increased by 0,25 of a percentage point for each month of delay.

The increased rate shall be applied to the entire period of delay. However, this interest shall be payable only if the contribution is paid more than three months after a call for funds has been made by the Commission.

Travel costs of Finnish representatives and experts arising from their participation in the work of the Committee referred to in Article 3 of the Agreement shall be reimbursed by the Commission in accordance with the procedures currently in force for the representatives and experts of the Member States of the Community and, in particular, in accordance with Decision No 84/338/Euratom, ECSC(2) .

3. The funds paid by Finland shall be credited to the Community subprogrammes as budget receipts allocated to its appropriate heading in the statement of revenue of the general budget of the European Communities.

4. The financial regulation in force applicable to the general budget of the European Communities shall apply to the management of the appropriations.

5. At the end of each year, a statement of appropriations for the Community subprogrammes shall be prepared and transmitted to Finland for information.

(1) OJ No L 379, 30. 12. 1978, p. 1. Regulation as amended by Regulation (EEC No 1971/89 (OJ No L 189, 4. 7. 1989, p. 1).

(2) OJ No L 177, 4. 7. 1984, p. 25.