(1)

In accordance with Protocol No 4 on the Ignalina nuclear power plant in Lithuania (1) (‘Protocol No 4’) attached to the Act concerning the conditions of 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 and the adjustments to the Treaties on which the European Union is founded (2) (‘Act of Accession’), Lithuania committed itself to the closure of Unit 1 and Unit 2 of the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant by 31 December 2004 and 31 December 2009 respectively, and to the subsequent decommissioning of those units.

(2)

In line with its obligations under the Act of Accession and with Union assistance, Lithuania shut down the two units within the respective deadlines and made significant progress towards their decommissioning. Further work is necessary in order to continue the decrease in the level of radiological hazard. Based on the available estimates, additional financial resources are required for that purpose after 2020.

(3)

The activities covered by this Regulation should comply with applicable Union and national law. The decommissioning of the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant should be carried out in accordance with Union law on nuclear safety, namely Council Directive 2009/71/Euratom (3), and waste management, namely Council Directive 2011/70/Euratom (4). Pursuant to Articles 4(1) and 7(1) of Directive 2011/70/Euratom, the ultimate responsibility for the safe management of the spent fuel and radioactive waste generated remains with the Member States.

(4)

The premature shutdown and subsequent decommissioning of the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant, with two 1 500 MW RBMK-type reactor units inherited from the Soviet Union, was of an unprecedented nature and represented for Lithuania an exceptional financial burden not commensurate with the size and economic strength of the country. Protocol No 4 states that the Union financial assistance in support of Lithuania’s efforts to decommission and to address the consequences of the closure and decommissioning of the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant is to be seamlessly continued and extended beyond 2006 for the period of the next Financial Perspectives.

(5)

This Regulation lays down a financial envelope for the entire duration of the nuclear decommissioning assistance programme of the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant in Lithuania (the ‘Programme’), which is to constitute the prime reference amount within the meaning of point 17 of the Interinstitutional Agreement of 2 December 2013 between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters and on sound financial management (5) for the European Parliament and the Council during the annual budgetary procedure.

(6)

The Programme should be established for a period of seven years to align its duration with that of the multiannual financial framework laid down in Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2093 (6).

(7)

Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046 of the European Parliament and of the Council (7) (‘Financial Regulation’) applies to the Programme. The Financial Regulation lays down rules on the implementation of the Union budget, including the rules on grants, prizes, procurement, indirect management, financial instruments, budgetary guarantees, financial assistance and the reimbursement of external experts.

(8)

In accordance with the Financial Regulation, Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (8), Council Regulations (EC, Euratom) No 2988/95 (9), (Euratom, EC) No 2185/96 (10) and (EU) 2017/1939 (11), the financial interests of the Union are to be protected by means of proportionate measures, including measures relating to the prevention, detection, correction and investigation of irregularities, including fraud, to the recovery of funds lost, wrongly paid or incorrectly used, and, where appropriate, to the imposition of administrative penalties. In particular, in accordance with Regulations (Euratom, EC) No 2185/96 and (EU, Euratom) No 883/2013, the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) has the power to carry out administrative investigations, including on-the-spot checks and inspections, with a view to establishing whether there has been fraud, corruption or any other illegal activity affecting the financial interests of the Union.

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) is empowered, in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/1939, to investigate and prosecute criminal offences affecting the financial interests of the Union as provided for in Directive (EU) 2017/1371 of the European Parliament and of the Council (12). In accordance with the Financial Regulation, any person or entity receiving Union funds is to fully cooperate in the protection of the financial interests of the Union, grant the necessary rights and access to the Commission, OLAF, the Court of Auditors and, in respect of those Member States participating in enhanced cooperation pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2017/1939, the EPPO, and ensure that any third parties involved in the implementation of Union funds grant equivalent rights.

(9)

This Regulation does not prejudge the outcome of any future State aid procedures that may be undertaken in accordance with Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).

(10)

The financing pursuant to this Regulation should concentrate on activities implementing the safety objectives of the decommissioning.

(11)

The Programme should also involve the creation of knowledge and the sharing of experience. Knowledge and experience gained and lessons learnt under the Programme with regard to the nuclear decommissioning process should be disseminated in the Union, in coordination and synergy with the other relevant Union programmes for decommissioning activities in Bulgaria, Slovakia and the Commission’s nuclear installations at the Joint Research Centre (JRC) sites, as such measures bring the greatest EU added value and contribute to the safety of the workers and the general public as well as protection of the environment. The scope, procedure and economic aspects of cooperation should be detailed in the multiannual work programme and could also be subject to agreements between the Member States and/or with the Commission.

(12)

The JRC should facilitate the dissemination of knowledge among different Union stakeholders in a coordinated way, for example by carrying out market analysis, reviews and assessments of knowledge needs in the Union, identifying potential directions for cooperation, interested stakeholders and spheres in which knowledge created in the implementation of the Programme would bring the greatest added value, and developing formats for knowledge sharing. The dissemination of knowledge created should be financed by the JRC. Any Member State should be able to initiate the development of ties and exchanges for knowledge dissemination.

(13)

The decommissioning of the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant should be carried out with recourse to the best available technical expertise, and with due regard to the nature and technological specifications of the installations to be decommissioned, in order to ensure safety and the highest possible efficiency, thus taking into account international best practices.

(14)

Effective monitoring and control of the evolution of the decommissioning process should be ensured by Lithuania and the Commission in order to assure the highest EU added value of the funding allocated under this Regulation, although the ultimate responsibility for the decommissioning rests with Lithuania. This includes effective measurement of progress and performance, and the enacting of corrective measures where necessary. To that end, a committee with monitoring and information functions should be established and co-chaired by a representative of the Commission and of Lithuania.

(15)

Pursuant to paragraphs 22 and 23 of the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making (13), the Programme should be evaluated on the basis of information collected in accordance with specific monitoring requirements while avoiding an administrative burden, in particular on Member States, and overregulation. Those requirements, where appropriate, should include measurable indicators as a basis for evaluating the effects of the Programme on the ground.

(16)

It should be possible to review the amount of the appropriations allocated to the Programme as well as the programming period based on the results of the interim evaluation report.

(17)

Activities co-financed under this Regulation should be identified within the boundaries defined by the decommissioning plan submitted by Lithuania in accordance with Council Regulation (EU) No 1369/2013 (14). That plan defines the scope of the Programme, as well as the decommissioning end state and end-date. It also covers the decommissioning activities, their associated schedule, costs and required human resources. When relevant, Lithuania should submit updated versions of the decommissioning plan to the Commission for its consideration while preparing the work programmes.

(18)

Activities under the Programme should be conducted with a joint financial effort of the Union and Lithuania. A maximum Union co-financing threshold should be established in line with the co-financing practice established under the predecessor programmes. Taking into account the practice of comparable Union programmes and the strengthened Lithuanian economy, from the inception of the Programme until the end of the implementation of the activities financed under this Regulation, the Union co-financing rate should be 86 % of eligible costs. The remaining financing should be provided by Lithuania and sources other than the Union budget, such as international financial institutions and other donors.

(19)

Regulation (EU) No 1369/2013 should therefore be repealed.

(20)

Due account has been taken of the Special Report No 22/2016 of the Court of Auditors entitled ‘EU nuclear decommissioning assistance programmes in Lithuania, Bulgaria and Slovakia: some progress made since 2011, but critical challenges ahead’, its recommendations and the reply from the Commission.

(21)

Note has been taken of the European Parliament legislative resolution of 17 January 2019 on the proposal for a Council regulation establishing the nuclear decommissioning assistance programme of the Ignalina nuclear power plant in Lithuania (Ignalina programme); and repealing Council Regulation (EU) No 1369/2013.

(22)

The Programme falls within the scope of the Lithuanian national programme for the implementation of spent fuel and radioactive waste management policy established pursuant to Directive 2011/70/Euratom.

(23)

In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this Regulation, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council (15).

(24)

Horizontal financial rules adopted by the European Parliament and the Council on the basis of Article 322 TFEU apply to this Regulation. Those rules are laid down in the Financial Regulation and determine in particular the procedure for establishing and implementing the budget through grants, procurement, prizes and indirect implementation, and provide for checks on the responsibility of financial actors. Rules adopted on the basis of Article 322 of the TFEU also concern the general regime of conditionality for the protection of the Union’s budget.

(25)

The methods of implementation and forms of Union funding laid down in this Regulation should be chosen on the basis of their ability to achieve the specific objectives of the activities and to deliver results, taking into account, in particular, the costs of controls, the administrative burden, and the expected risk of non-compliance. This should include consideration of the use of lump sums, flat rates and unit costs, as well as financing not linked to costs as referred to in point (a) of Article 125(1) of the Financial Regulation,