Changes from plenary report to adopted text

Removed(a) provide that the Beneficiary irrevocably and unconditionally authorises the Commission to pay disbursements to the entity implementing the fund upon request by that entity and that the Commission is acquitted of its payment obligations towards the Beneficiary by making the payment to that entity;

Removed(b) provide for the obligation of the Beneficiary to bear the costs of implementation and any fees due in respect of the implementation of the fund in accordance with the conditions agreed between the Commission and the entity implementing the fund.

Removed3a. The loan agreement shall be transmitted simultaneously to the European Parliament and the Council.

Removed1. Pursuant to Article 211(1) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046 a provisioning for the loans under this Regulation shall be constituted at the rate of 9% upon making available any funds falling under Article 6(3) of this Regulation. The provisioning shall be constituted from the envelope referred to in Article 6(2) point (a).

RemovedBudgetary commitments for the provisioning shall be made by 31 December 2027. By way of derogation from Article 211(2), last sentence of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046, the provisioning shall be paid progressively and fully constituted at the latest when the loans are fully disbursed.

Removed2. The provisioning shall be paid to the common provisioning fund through a specific budget line. It may also cover loans for macrofinancial assistance in accordance with Article 31(5) of Regulation (EU) 2021/947.The provisioning rate shall be reviewed at least once per year from the entry into force of this Regulation.

Removed3. The Commission is empowered to adopt a delegated act in accordance with Article 26 to amend the provisioning rate while applying the criteria set out in Article 211(2) of the Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046. The Commission shall inform the European Parliament and the Council of the outcome of the review.

RemovedArticle 19 Implementation of investment projects and programmes under the Western Balkans Investment Framework

Removed1. In order to benefit from the leverage of EU financial support to attract additional investment, infrastructure investments supporting the Reform Agendas shall be implemented through the WBIF.

Removed2. The delegated act referred to in Article 15 shall lay down the amount of funds to be made available for use under the WBIF.

Removed3. The Commission shall submit relevant investment project or programme proposals for the opinion of the WBIF Operational Board referred to in Article 35(8) of Regulation (EU) 2021/947 after adoption of the decision referred to in Article 21(3).

Removed4. At least 37% of the non-repayable financial support channelled through the WBIF shall account to climate objectives, calculated in accordance with Annex VI of Regulation (EU) 2021/241 of the European Parliament and of the Council .

Removed5. Financing under the Facility provided from the financial envelope referred to in Article 6(2) point (a), after deduction of the amount of provisioning, shall be implemented in indirect management taking into account a pipeline of investments and gradually provided through contributions paid into the joint fund established under the WBIF for receiving donors contributions.

Removed6. This financing shall not be made available for investments to be supported by the joint fund until the decision referred to in Article 21(3) has been adopted.

Removed7. Financing under the Facility provided from the loans as referred to in Article 6(5), shall be made available through the WBIF under the loan agreement between the Commission and the Beneficiaries in accordance with Article 17(2). Combined for all loan agreements, there shall be maximum twelve requests for disbursements per year from the fund managers of the joint fund referred to in Article 12(2) to the Commission. Investment projects and programmes may receive support from two financing sources referred to in paragraph 1 as well as from other Union programmes and instruments, subject to that such support from different sources, programmes and instruments provides for additionality and does not cover the same cost. For each investment project or programme, the Commission shall provide a detailed assessment to the WBIF Operational Board of its added value and additionality, synergies and complementarities with other Union programmes, in particular support provided under Regulation (EU) 2021/1529, as well as the arrangements taken in order to avoid the duplication of assistance and double funding.

Removed1. Following the submission of the Reform Agenda to the Commission, the Beneficiary may request the release of a pre-financing of up to 7% of the total amount foreseen under this Facility in accordance with Article 6(4).

RemovedNo pre-financing shall be made available in the case of deficiencies in the Beneficiaries’ control system that are addressed by specific measures in the Reform Agenda as described in Article 13(1) (f).

Removed2. The Commission may release the requested pre-financing after the adoption of the delegated act referred to in Article 15 and the entry into force of the Framework Agreement and of the loan agreement referred to. The funds shall be released in accordance with Article 21(3) first sentence, and subject to the respect of the preconditions set out in Article 5, which shall be explicitly assessed by the Commission prior to the delegated act.

Removed3. The Commission shall decide on the timeframe for the disbursement of the pre-financing, which may be disbursed in one or more tranches.

RemovedArticle 21 Assessment of the fulfilment of payment conditions, withholding, reduction and redistribution of funds, rules on payments

Removed1. Twice per year, the Beneficiary shall submit a duly justified request for the release of funds in respect of fulfilled payment conditions related to the quantitative and qualitative steps.

Removed2. The Commission shall develop in cooperation with the European Parliament and the Council guidelines on assessing whether the Beneficiary has achieved satisfactory fulfilment of the payment conditions set out in the delegated act referred to in Article 15(1) on the basis of information received by the Beneficiary and if available any relevant data submitted by the authorities of the Member States, OLAF and the European Court of Auditors. The satisfactory fulfilment of these payment conditions shall presuppose that measures related to the same reforms for which the Beneficiary had achieved satisfactory fulfilment in prior decisions have not been reversed by the Beneficiary. The Commission may be assisted by experts.

Removed3. Where the Commission makes a positive assessment of the satisfactory fulfilment of all applicable conditions, it shall adopt without undue delay a decision authorising the release of funds corresponding to these conditions. The Commission shall share its assessment and consult with the European Parliament and the Council prior to adopting its decision. That decision shall, in accordance with the split established in Article 6(4), set the amount of funds to be made available as financial assistance, channelled directly to the national budget and the amount to be made available through the WBIF. In respect of those amounts, the decision shall constitute the condition referred to in Article 12 for the amount of funds to be made available as financial assistance channelled directly to the national budget and the preliminary validation referred to in Article 12 for the amount to be made available through the WBIF.

Removed4. Where the Commission makes a negative assessment of the fulfilment of any conditions as per the indicative timetable, the release of funds corresponding to such conditions shall be withheld. The Commission shall share its assessment with the European Parliament and Council prior to adopting its decision. The withheld amounts may only be released when the Beneficiary has duly justified, as part of the subsequent request for release of funds, that it has taken the necessary measures to ensure satisfactory fulfilment of the corresponding conditions.

Removed5. Where the Commission concludes that the Beneficiary has not taken the necessary measures within a period of 12 months from the initial negative assessment referred to in paragraph 6, the Commission shall reduce the amount of the non-repayable financial support and of the loan proportionately to the part corresponding to the relevant payment conditions. During the first year of implementation, a deadline of 24 months shall apply, calculated from the initial negative assessment referred to in paragraph 6. The Beneficiary may present its observations within two months from the communication to them of the Commission’s conclusions.

Removed6. Any amount corresponding to payment conditions that have not been fulfilled by 31 December 2028 shall not be due to the Beneficiaries and shall be decommitted, or cancelled from the available amount of loan support, as appropriate.

Removed7. The Commission may reduce the amount of the non-repayable financial support, including by offsetting in line with Article 102 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046, or of the loan, in the event of identified cases of, or serious concerns in relation to, irregularities, fraud, corruption and conflicts of interests affecting the financial interests of the Union that have not been corrected by the Beneficiary, or a serious breach of an obligation resulting from the Framework Agreements or from the Loan Agreements, including on the basis of information provided by OLAF, the European Court of Auditors, or the reports of the Audit Board referred to in Article 22a. The European Parliament and the Council shall be informed ofsuch decisions.

Removed8. The Commission may decide to redistribute any amount reduced pursuant to paragraph 6 or 7 among other Beneficiaries of the Facility by amending the delegated act referred to in Article 15(1). The Commission shall transmit its assessment to the European Parliament and the Council prior to taking any decision on the redistribution of financial support. The Commission shall use the methodology set out in the Annex and take into consideration the absorption capacity of Beneficiaries for the redistribution of such financial support, while based on clear and transparent criteria. The Commission shall also provide technical assistance to address a lack of absorption capacity in the Beneficiaries.

Removed9. For the part of the Facility funding paid as financial assistance, channelled directly to the Beneficiaries’ national budgets, by way of derogation from Article 116(2) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046, the payment deadline as referred to in Article 116 (1) point (a), of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046 shall start running from the date of the communication of the decision authorising the disbursement to the Beneficiary pursuant to paragraph 4 of this Article.

Removed10. Article 116(5) of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046 shall not apply to payments made as financial assistance, channelled directly to the Beneficiaries’ national budgets pursuant to this Article and to Article 22 of this Regulation.

Removed11. Payment of funds under this Facility shall be made subject to the available funding and in accordance with the annual budgetary procedure. Funds shall be paid in instalments. An instalment may be paid in one or more tranches.

Removed12. The amount made available as financial assistance, channelled directly to the national budget, shall be paid following the decision referred to in paragraph 3 in accordance with the loan agreement.

Removed13. Payment of any amount of the support in the form of a loans, whether channelled directly to the national budget or through the WBIF, shall be subject to the submission by the Beneficiary of a request for payment in the form set out in the loan agreement.

Removed14. The amount made available through the WBIF shall be paid following the decision referred to in paragraph 3, following the request for payment referred to in paragraph 13 and following receipt of a payment request from the fund managers of the joint fund established under the WBIF for receiving donors’ contributions.

RemovedProtection of the financial interests of the Union

Removed1. In implementing the Facility, the Commission and the Beneficiaries shall take all the appropriate measures to protect the financial interests of the Union, taking into account the principle of proportionality and the specific conditions under which the Facility will operate, the preconditions set out in Article 5(1) and conditions set out in the specific Framework Agreements, in particular regarding the prevention, detection and correction of fraud, corruption, conflicts of interests and irregularities as well as the investigation and prosecution of criminal offences affecting the funds provided under the Facility. Each Beneficiary shall commit to a robust legal framework to fight fraud by means of criminal law, to implement effective and efficient management and control systems and ensure that amounts wrongly paid or incorrectly used can be recovered. The Beneficiaries shall also commit to ensure that the competent national authorities process, without delay, mutual legal assistance requests and extradition requests by the EPPO and Member States’ competent authorities concerning criminal offences affecting the funds under the Facility.

Removed2. The Framework Agreement shall provide for the following obligations of the Beneficiary:

Removed(a) regularly check that the financing provided has been used in accordance with the applicable rules, in particular regarding the prevention, detection and correction of fraud, corruption, conflicts of interests and irregularities;

Removed(aa) to protect whistleblowers;

Removed(b) take appropriate measures to prevent, detect and correct fraud, corruption, conflicts of interests and irregularities as well as to investigate and prosecute criminal offences affecting the financial interests of the Union, to detect and avoid double funding and to take legal actions to recover funds that have been misappropriated, including in relation to any measure for the implementation of reforms and investment projects or programmes under the Reform Agendas and to take appropriate measures to treat mutual legal assistance requests by the EPPO and Member States’ competent authorities concerning criminal offences affecting the funds under the Facility, without delay; to provide an obligation, where applicable, for the competent national authorities to report any criminal conduct affecting the funds under the Facility to the EPPO;

Removed(c) for the purpose of paragraph 1 of this Article, in particular for checks on the use of funds in relation to the implementation of reforms in the Reform Agendas, to ensure the collection of, and access to, in compliance with Union data protection principles and with applicable data protection rules, adequate data on persons and entities receiving funding, including beneficial ownership information, for the implementation of measures of the Reform Agenda under chapter III;

Removed(d) expressly authorise the Commission, OLAF, the Court of Auditors and, where applicable, the EPPO to exert their rights as provided for in Article 129 of Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2018/1046.

Removed(da) insert all information related to project implementation, in particular concerning performance and financial implementation and final recipients in an interoperable information system provided by the Commission;

Removed(db) to accompany a payment request with:

Removed(i) a management declaration that the relevant payment conditions have been met with the support of the funds, that the information submitted with the request for payment is complete, accurate and reliable and that the control systems put in place give the necessary assurances that the funds were or will be managed in accordance with all applicable rules;

Removed(ii) a list of all measures for the implementation of the Facility including a description of measures with the total amount of additional national funding, where applicable, of those measures and projects and indicating the amount of funds paid under the Facility and under other Union funds, including resources transferred from other Union programmes;

Removed(iii) a summary of the audits carried out, including weaknesses identified and any corrective actions taken;

Removed(dc) for the purpose of audit, control and discharge:

Removed(i) to maintain, and ensure access by the competent Union authorities, including the discharge authority, to:

Removed- detailed records on the implementation measures adopted, including information on national award procedures and contracts with intermediaries and recipients, indicating if applicable the total amount of any national cofinancing, other national contributions, or other contributions under the Facility or under other Union funds; and

Removed- evidence showing the correlation between the grants, non-repayable financial support or loans received and the costs incurred for the achievement of indicators.

Removed3. The Framework Agreement shall also provide for the right of the Commission to reduce proportionately the support provided under the Facility and recover any amount spent to achieve the objectives of the Facility or to ask for early repayment of the loan, in cases of irregularities, fraud, corruption and conflicts of interests affecting the financial interests of the Union that have not been corrected by the Beneficiary, or of a serious breach of an obligation resulting from such agreements. When deciding on the amount of the recovery and reduction, or the amount to be repaid early, the Commission shall respect the principle of proportionality and shall take into account the seriousness of the irregularity, fraud, corruption or conflict of interests affecting the financial interests of the Union, or of a breach of an obligation. The Beneficiary shall be given the opportunity to present its observations before the reduction is made or early repayment is requested.

Removed4. Persons and entities implementing funds under the Facility shall report any suspected cases of fraud, corruption, conflict of interests, irregularities and maladministration affecting financial interests of the Union without delay, to the Commission and OLAF, through a dedicated digital tool, equipped with the relevant whistleblower protection safeguards.

Removed4a. Monthly update of the final recipients of funds from the Facility shall be done in a publicly available single web-portal in accordance with the principle laid out in Article 4(7). The Commission shall provide the Beneficiaries with a platform to publish this information and make the information available on an interactive map.

Removed1. The Commission shall establish an Audit Board before the submission by the Beneficiaries of the first payment request.

Removed2. The Audit Board shall be composed of independent members appointed by the Commission. Representatives of Member States and other donors may be invited by the Commission to participate in the activities of the Audit Board.

Removed3. At least one-fifth of the Audit Board shall be composed of Beneficiaries’ nationals, provided that they have proven high professional competence and integrity and have no personal or professional affiliation to Beneficiaries’ authorities or officials as well as demonstrably independent international experts with a proven track record of understanding of the Beneficiaries’ economy and political system.

Removed4. The Audit Board shall exercise its functions in complete objectivity and operate in compliance with best applicable international practices and standards. It shall act without prejudice to the powers of the Commission, OLAF, the Court of Auditors and, where applicable, the EPPO.

Removed5. The Audit Board shall appoint an independent external auditor that provides an annual statement of assurance on the declarations by the Beneficiaries authorities that accompany a request for payment. It shall also approve the annual work plan of the independent external auditor.

Removed6. The Audit Board shall decide on recommendations to the Commission and the Beneficiaries’ authorities on amounts to be recovered following the findings of the independent external auditor, and inform the Commission and the Beneficiaries’ authorities of those recommendations.