27 Amendments of Nils TORVALDS related to 2018/0229(COD)
Amendment 20 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 1
Recital 1
(1) With 1.8% of EU GDP, down from 2.2% in 2009, infrastructure investment activities in the Union in 2016 were about 20% below investment rates before the global financial crisis. Thus, while a recovery in investment-to-GDP ratios in the Union can be observed, it remains below what might be expected in a strong recovery period and is insufficient to compensate years of underinvestment. More importantly, the current investment levels and forecasts do not cover the Union’s structural investment needs in the face of technological change and global competitiveness, including for innovation, research, skills, infrastructure, small and medium- sized enterprises ('SMEs'), start- ups, and the need to address key societal challenges such as sustainability or population ageing. Consequently, continued support is necessary to address market failures and sub-optimal investment situations to reduce the investment gap in targeted sectors to achieve the Union's policy objectives.
Amendment 23 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 3
Recital 3
(3) In the last years, the Union has adopted ambitious strategies to complete the Single Market and to stimulate sustainable growth and jobs, such as the Capital Markets Union, the Digital Single Market Strategy, the Clean Energy for all Europeans package, the Union Action Plan for the Circular Economy, Horizon 2020, the Low- Emission Mobility Strategy, the Defence and the Space Strategy for Europe. The InvestEU Fund should exploit and reinforce synergies between those mutually reinforcing strategies through providing support to investment and access to financing.
Amendment 26 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 5
Recital 5
(5) The InvestEU Fund should contribute to improving the competitiveness of the Union, including in the field of innovation and digitisation, scientific excellence, the sustainability of the Union's economic growth, the social resilience and inclusiveness and the integration of the Union capital markets, including solutions addressing their fragmentation and diversifying sources of financing for the Union enterprises. To that end, it should support projects that are technically and economically viable by providing a framework for the use of debt, risk sharing and equity instruments underpinned by a guarantee from the Union's budget and by contributions from implementing partners. It should be demand-driven while support under the InvestEU Fund should at the same time focus on contributing to meeting policy objectives of the Union.
Amendment 31 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 7
Recital 7
(7) The Union endorsed the objectives set out in the United Nations Agenda 2030 and its Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement in 2015 as well as the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030. To achieve the agreed objectives, including those embedded in the environmental policies of the Union, action pursuing sustainable development is to be stepped up significantly and environmentally harmful subsidies to be phased-out. Therefore, the principles of sustainable development should feature prominently in the design of the InvestEU Fund.
Amendment 54 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 29
Recital 29
(29) In selecting implementing partners for the deployment of the InvestEU Fund, the Commission should consider the counterpart's capacity to fulfil the objectives of the InvestEU Fund and contribute its own resources, in order to ensure adequate geographical coverage and diversification, to crowd-in private investors and to provide sufficient risk diversification as well as new solutions to address market failures and sub-optimal investment situations. Given its role under the Treaties, its capacity to operate in all Member States and the existing experience under the current financial instruments and the EFSI, the European Investment Bank (‘EIB’) Group should remain a privileged implementing partner under the InvestEU Fund's EU compartment. In addition to the EIB Group, national or regional promotional banks or institutions should be able to offer a complementary financial product range given that their experience and capabilities at regional level could be beneficial for the maximisation of the impact of public funds on the territory of the Union. Moreover, it should be possible to have other international financial institutions as implementing partners, in particular when they present a comparative advantage in terms of specific expertise and experience in certain Member States. It should also be possible for other entities fulfilling the criteria laid down in the Financial Regulation to act as implementing partners.
Amendment 133 #
Proposal for a regulation
Annex II – paragraph 1 – point 1 – point e a (new)
Annex II – paragraph 1 – point 1 – point e a (new)
(e a) Local and regional renewable energy production especially through energy communities.
Amendment 135 #
Proposal for a regulation
Annex II – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point d
Annex II – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point d
(d) railway infrastructure, other rail projects, inland waterway infrastructure and maritime ports;
Amendment 144 #
Proposal for a regulation
Annex II – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point h a (new)
Annex II – paragraph 1 – point 3 – point h a (new)
(h a) antimicrobial resistance, and notably reducing the use of antibiotics in humans and animals with the ’One health approach’ by preventative measures;
Amendment 146 #
Proposal for a regulation
Annex II – paragraph 1 – point 3 a (new)
Annex II – paragraph 1 – point 3 a (new)
3 a. promote substitution of products that are chemically hazardous with more sustainable alternatives.
Amendment 152 #
Proposal for a regulation
Annex II – paragraph 1 a (new)
Annex II – paragraph 1 a (new)
13 a. Seas and Oceans, through the development of a sustainable blue economy in line with the objectives of the Integrated Maritime Policy in particular through (a) maritime entrepreneurship (b) an innovative and competitive maritime industry (c) ocean literacy and blue careers (d) the International Ocean Governance agenda (e) maritime surveillance and security (f) cross-border cooperation (g) the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals, in particular SDG 14 (Life Below Water)
Amendment 158 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 4 a (new)
Recital 4 a (new)
(4a) The rules of the InvestEU Fund should endorse synergies with Member States’ resources under shared management, allowing in accordance with Article [10] of the Regulation [Common Provisions Regulation] and with Article [75] of the Regulation [Common Agriculture Policy] for voluntary contributions of part of Member States’ allocations into the InvestEU. This possibility should increase the added value of the EU backed budgetary guarantee by providing it to a wider range of final recipients and projects and diversifying the means of achieving the objectives of the funds under shared management.
Amendment 189 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 9
Recital 9
(9) Reflecting the importance of tackling climate change in line with the Union's commitments to implement the Paris Agreement and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, the InvestEU Programme will contribute to mainstream climate actions and to the swift achievement of an overall target of 2530 % of the Union budget expenditures supporting climate objectives. Actions under the InvestEU Programme are expected to contribute 340 % of the overall financial envelope of the InvestEU Programme to climate objectives. Relevant actions will be identified during the InvestEU Programme's preparation and implementation and reassessed in the context of the relevant evaluations and review processes.
Amendment 201 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 12
Recital 12
(12) Investment projects receiving substantial Union support, notably in the area of infrastructure, should be subject to sustainability proofing in accordance with guidance that should be developed by the Commission in cooperation with implementing partners under the InvestEU Programme and, using in an appropriate way the criteria established by [Regulation on establishment of a framework to facilitate sustainable investment] for determining whether an economic activity is environmentally sustainable and coherently with the guidance developed for other programmes of the Union. Such guidance should include adequate provisions to avoid undue administrative burden.
Amendment 230 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 19
Recital 19
(19) Each policy window should be composed of two compartments, that is to say an EU compartment and a Member State compartment. The EU compartment should address Union-wide market failures or sub-optimal investment situations in a proportionate manner; supported actions should have a clear European added value. The Member State compartment should give Member States the possibility to contribute a share of their resources of Funds under shared management to the provisioning of the EU guarantee to use the EU guarantee for financing or investment operations to address specific market failures or sub-optimal investment situations in their own territory, including in vulnerable and remote areas such as the outermost regions of the Union, to deliver objectives of the Fund under shared management. Actions supported from the InvestEU Fund through either EU or Member State compartments should not duplicate or crowd out private financing or distort competition in the internal market.
Amendment 235 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 19 a (new)
Recital 19 a (new)
(19a) Actions supported from the InvestEU Fund through either EU or Member State compartments should target sectors and issues where there are clear market or institutional failures inhibiting private sectors financing. InvestEU actions should focus on projects involving greater risks than private lenders are prepared to undertake on a commercial basis alone. They not duplicate or crowd out private financing or distort competition in the internal market.
Amendment 254 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 24
Recital 24
(24) The EU guarantee underpinning the InvestEU Fund should be implemented indirectly by the Commission relying on implementing partners with outreach to final recipients. There should be a level- playing field among all implementing partners and the selection of implementing partners should be transparent, justified by the nature of the intervention and free of any conflict of interests. A guarantee agreement allocating guarantee capacity from the InvestEU Fund should be concluded by the Commission with each implementing partner, to support its financing and investment operations meeting the InvestEU Fund objectives and eligibility criteria. The InvestEU Fund should be provided with a specific governance structure to ensure the appropriate use of the EU guarantee.
Amendment 279 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 28 a (new)
Recital 28 a (new)
(28a) The gender balance shall be ensured in the overall composition of the governance structure.
Amendment 423 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 – paragraph 3 – subparagraph 1
Article 7 – paragraph 3 – subparagraph 1
Financing and investment operations under the sustainable infrastructure policy windows referred to in point (a) of paragraph (1) shall be subject to climate, environmental and social sustainability proofing with a view to minimise detrimental impacts and maximise benefits on climate, environment and social dimension. For that purpose, promoters requesting financing shall provide adequate information based on guidance to be developed by the Commission. Projects below a certain size defined in the guidance shall be excluded from the proofing.
Amendment 445 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 7 a (new)
Article 7 a (new)
Amendment 498 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 1
Article 10 – paragraph 1
1. The EU guarantee shall be granted to the implementing partners in accordance with [Article 219(1)] of the [Financial Regulation] and managed in accordance with [Title X] of the [Financial Regulation]. The EU guarantee shall be irrevocable, unconditional and provided on first demand to eligible counterparts for the financing and investment operations covered by this Regulation and its pricing shall be exclusively linked to the characteristics and risk profile of the underlying operations, taking into due account the nature of the underlying operations and the achievement of the policy objectives targeted, including the possible application of specific derogative terms and incentives as needed, in particular: (a) in situations where stressed financial market conditions would prevent the realisation of a viable project; (b) where necessary to facilitate the establishment of investment platforms or the funding of projects in sectors or areas experiencing a significant market failure and/or suboptimal investment situation; (c) where necessary to address the social infrastructure gap;
Amendment 501 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 1 a (new)
Article 10 – paragraph 1 a (new)
Amendment 536 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 12 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 2
Article 12 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 2
For the EU compartment, the eligible counterparts shall have expressed their interest and shall be able to cover financing and investment operations in at least thretwo or more Member States. The implementing partners may also cover together financing and investment operations in at least thretwo or more Member States by forming a group. The implementing partners, whose contractual responsibility is limited by their respective national mandates, may also address market failures or suboptimal investment situations with respective, locally adapted, comparable instruments.
Amendment 589 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 17 – paragraph 5 – point a – point ii a (new)
Article 17 – paragraph 5 – point a – point ii a (new)
(iia) promote coordination and exchange of best practices in order to facilitate the role of the Commission to guarantee a uniform implementation of InvestEU by the different implementing partners;
Amendment 594 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 17 a (new)
Article 17 a (new)
Article 17a Risk Assessment Methodology 1. The Commission in cooperation with the EIB Group and after consulting the advisory board, composed of the implementing actors, shall supplement this Regulation by establishing a risk assessment methodology. Such risk assessment methodology shall include: (a) a risk rating classification, to ensure consistent and standard treatment of all operations independent from the intermediary institution; (b) a methodology to assess the value at risk and the probability of default based on clear statistical methods, including environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria; (c) a method to assess exposure at default and loss given default, taking into account the value of financing, the project risk, the repayment terms, the collateral, and other relevant indicators.
Amendment 598 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 17 b (new)
Article 17 b (new)
Amendment 663 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 19 – paragraph 4 – subparagraph 1
Article 19 – paragraph 4 – subparagraph 1
When acting in accordance with this Article, the Investment Committee shall be supported by the documentation provided by the implementing partners and any other document the Investment Committee considers relevant. Any project assessmentscoreboard provided conducted by an implementing partner shall not be binding on the Investment Committee for the purposes of a financing or investment operation benefiting from the coverage by the EU guarantee. The chairperson of the Investment Committee shall invite a representative of the relevant implementing partner to present its scoreboard and those representatives shall be available to respond to enquiries raised by members of the Investment Committee.
Amendment 709 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 20 – paragraph 6 a (new)
Article 20 – paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. The InvestEU Advisory Hub shall assist in the transfer of knowledge to the regional and local level, taking into account the existing local landscape, with a view to building up, where necessary, regional and local capacity and expertise as referred in paragraph 1. The InvestEU Advisory Hub may cooperate with national and regional promotional banks or institutions in order to reach its objective.