PRESSE

Council of the General secretariat EN

PRESS FACTSHEET

Brussels, 07 December 2016

Factsheet on the EUROPA building

The Europa is the new building dedicated to host member state representatives when they meet in the and the Council of the European Union in .

Located at the heart of the European district, the Europa building is a blend of modernity and historic heritage. It combines a new and innovative lantern-shaped structure designed by the consortium "Philippe Samyn and partners architects and , lead and design partner, Studio Valle Progettazioni, architects, Buro Happold, engineers", with a renovated section, block A of the Résidence Palace, a partly listed complex designed by architect Michel Polak in 1922.

The building will be fully operational at the beginning of 2017.

1. Basic info/Key figures on the building

Key figures:  Gross surface area: 70 646 m2 ( +/- 1/3 of the size of Justus Lipsius or Berlaymont buildings)  Number of windows on the window frames façade = +/- 3750  Number of LED light tubes to lit the lantern: 374

 +/- 40% of the new Europa building is the renovated part of the Residence Palace

Each part of the building serves a different purpose:  the new lantern structure will serve to host meetings of the member states and bilateral and multilateral summits  the renovated part of the Residence Palace will host offices for the member state delegations, the President of the European Council, and a few support staff from the Council secretariat

Facilities included in the building:  3 meeting rooms with at least 32 interpretation booths each (capacity: +/- 330, +/- 150, +/- 80 )  3 specific catering/reception areas  10 other meeting rooms  1 room (+/- 120 seats) for press or public relations activities  A cafeteria and a canteen  Around 250 offices

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Examples of green/sustainable features of the building:  636 solar panels covering the entire top of the building  A system of rain water collection and storage to supply the sanitary facilities  A state-of-the-art system to regulate lighting, humidity and temperature inside the building

2. Key dates of the project  2004 : the European Council agrees to the Belgian offer of the Residence Palace site to construct a new building to address the needs stemming from the and the enlargement process.  September 2005: The joint venture "Philippe Samyn and partners architects and engineers, lead and design partner, Studio Valle Progettazioni, architects, Buro Happold, engineers" is awarded the contract following an architectural competition.  March 2007: a preliminary design is approved.  Nov. 2007 - Oct. 2008: demolition of the 1960's constructions and removal of asbestos  March 2008 : the Belgian state and the Council sign a final agreement on the governance of the project. The prime contractor is the Belgian Régie des bâtiments.  From Dec. 2008 to July 2011 : Infrastructure stage (including foundations)  September 2011: the actual construction of the building is launched  End June 2016: the building is delivered by the Belgian authorities to the Council's secretariat  January 2017: the move of most services and delegations is organised. The new Europa building will enter into normal operation mode. Some final adaptations/improvements will still be performed in the coming months.

3. Use of the building The Europa is a building dedicated to meetings involving the member states. It will host the European Council (heads of state or government) and most Council meetings (ministers) as well as EU summits with third countries (bilateral or multilateral summits). Some preparatory working groups will also take place in Europa (e.g. Coreper - involving member states ambassadors - and/or working party meetings).

It is a modern and secured environment designed for the work of our two institutions. It is a functional and compact building that has been designed for the purpose of organising meetings, in particular summits. The additional space and facilities will allow for more flexibility and efficiency in the work of the Council.

The Europa will help the Council's secretariat to provide a better level of service to delegations. It offers modern (videoconferencing, high quality audiovisual broadcast for public sessions, more possibilities in terms of interpretations, etc.).

Europa is connected to the Justus Lipsius by two footbridges. The two buildings will operate together as a single area to ensure the most effective use of space and resources. In this respect, for example, the main press centre will remain in the Justus Lipsius.

4. Why did EU leaders decide to build the Europa? The EU leaders (i.e. Presidents and Prime ministers of the member states) decided to start the construction of a new building to host the European Council and Council in 2004. This was made

2 necessary by the decision to host all formal summits in Brussels (taken in order to end the costly practice of organising all EU summits in member states).

The Justus Lipsius - the current building used for European Council and Council meetings - was never conceived to host meetings of heads of state or government. Moreover it was designed in the late 1980s, when the EU had 12 member states and has been in use since 1994.

Since 2004, the number of summits has constantly increased, from 4 (as provided in the treaty) to 8 or 9 per year. In 2015, a record of 12 summits (European Council or Eurozone) were organised. In addition, since 2009, the Council has also hosted summits between the EU and third countries (e.g. EU-China, EU-Mexico) as well as multilateral summits (e.g. EU-Africa).

5. When do you think the first Council meeting and/or summit will be organised in Europa? The entry into operation of the building is being phased-in. The objective is to ensure a smooth transition for all involved as well as maintaining, at all times, our capacity to organise meetings/summits even at short notice.

The building was handed over to the Council's secretariat at the end of June 2016. We are now working with the builder on the so-called "lifting of reservations". The Council's secretariat is also conducting some final work and adaptations that were not included in the main builder's contract, such as the final partitioning and furnishing of offices, some specific technical equipment, etc.) and the final testing and training of staff on all installations.

The first meetings of working groups have already taken place. The current working assumption is that the first ministerial meeting will be organised in January 2017 and the first European Council in the first semester of 2017, most probably the regular European Council meeting in March.

6. Why did it take several years to build the Europa? The planning, procurement and construction of public buildings inevitably spans several years.

Some specificities of the project also help explain the timetable: the construction took place in an urban area, on a site that presented several constraints: the work on the Schuman station; preservation and restoration of an historical building, etc.

The effective start of the construction was also delayed initially by the discovery of oil pollution in the ground and by an appeal made by one of the participants in the tender for the construction of the building.

Finally, it is important to keep in mind that the Council made changes to the project, once begun, to take into account of the institutional evolution of the EU (e.g. creation of the permanent position of PEC), new practical arrangements (e.g. decision to hold multilateral summits in Brussels) and the technological evolutions (e.g. HD broadcast, security, etc.)

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7. Construction cost of the building The budget decided in 2004 by the member states for the project amounts to €321m expressed in June 2016 terms (€240 million, expressed in 2004 terms). This has already been almost fully financed from the EU budget.

The difference between the two amounts in 2004 and 2016 is explained by the indexing of costs included in all construction projects. This indexing is meant to take into account, in particular, the evolution of the labour cost and prices of construction materials. This amount was updated following the standard formula applied to construction procurements in .

The definitive construction cost and budget impact for the Council will be finalised with the Belgian Régie des bâtiments in the coming months. based on an examination of the delivery delays on the one hand and the cost of modifications and improvements decided since 2004 on the other. Those changes/improvements were made necessary for: o institutional reasons (Lisbon Treaty, creation of a permanent PEC, changes in the working methods of the European Council - leaders meeting alone instead of with advisors - and the Council, etc.), o organisational reasons (decisions to host multilateral and bilateral summits in Brussels), o technological reasons (evolution of broadcast and security requirements)

8. Governance of the construction project The project is implemented in the framework of a convention concluded in 2008 between the Belgian State and the Council. While the Belgian authorities, through the public Régie des bâtiments, are the prime contractor for the building work, the Council remained in charge of the definition of the project and the selection of the design.

9. Selection of the building design An open architectural competition was organised to select the design of the building considering both the specificities of the project (i.e. the wish to conserve the historical Résidence Palace part) and the wish to have a building with an identity which would integrate in the European quarter.

Applications were reviewed by a selection board consisting of members nominated by Member States, representatives of the Belgian federal, regional and communal authorities, representatives of the International Union of Architects, representatives of the Council's secretariat.

The winner of the competition is the joint venture "Philippe Samyn and partners architects and engineers, lead and design partner, Studio Valle Progettazioni, architects, Buro Happold, engineers".

10. Is the Europa a 'green' building? It was one of the requests from the Council in the competition that the choice of design, materials and technical facilities should be in line with the concept of sustainable development.

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This approach to sustainable design is combined with the use of technology to ensure an environmentally-friendly building and efficient use of energy: o A surface of solar panels cover the entire top of the building; o A system of rainwater collection and storage supplies the sanitary facilities; o Lighting, humidity and temperature are be regulated inside the building by highly efficient, energy-saving technical equipment. o The morphology of the structure of the façade has been optimised allowing the amount of steel to be reduced by 30% compared to a traditional solution.

The preservation and restoration of as many parts of the historic building as possible demonstrate not only the wish to keep intact an important building in the urban history of Brussels, i.e. the Residence palace, but also apply the idea of durable and sustainable architecture.

11. Lighting of the lantern: how does it work? When will it be switched on? The lighting system of the lantern uses LEDs as the most efficient and eco-friendly lighting system. Most of the light does not originate from the lantern itself but is projected onto it (lamps are placed on the inner side of the façade). A white silkscreen printing pattern has been put on the lantern to maximise light reflection.

The lantern will be on for a few hours in the evening and in the morning (in winter). The exact lighting time will vary depending on sunrise/sunset time and the level of light outside.

12. Windows frame façade: why this collection of windows as a façade for the building? The external façade on the northern and eastern sides consists of a patchwork of 3750 restored wooden window frames, coming from renovation or demolition sites located in almost all the member states.

According to the concept of the architect, the objective of these windows is twofold: 1/ to promote the idea of sustainable development through recycling of materials, 2/ to be a testament to the EU's artisanship and cultural diversity.

It can also be seen as a reminder of the EU motto 'united in diversity' as all windows are different (diversity) but all are made of oak wood (unity).

13. Colour compositions : what are the patchworks of colours in the meeting rooms and other parts of the building ? The colour compositions have been designed by the Belgian artist Georges Meurant. They cover ceilings in meeting rooms, doors, carpet flooring in conference rooms as well as some space in the corridors, press room, catering facilities and lifts. For the architect, it is a way to bring more light and a warmer atmosphere in the building, in particular in the meeting rooms.

14. Residence palace : what is the history of the Residence palace complex? The Residence Palace, a fine example of Art Deco, was built between 1922 and 1927 by architect Michel Polak. The project included a residential area with apartments and its related facilities. During the Second World War the building was taken over and used by the occupying German forces as their headquarter.

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After the Second World War, the building was converted into offices for several Belgian government departments.

The complex includes several blocks. Since 2001, the Belgian government decided to convert block C into an international press centre. The original theatre and swimming pool are located in that block but are currently closed.

In 2004, the original facades of the Residence Palace, the entrances and the central ground-floor corridor of block A (the block of the Europa) were listed. The conservation of as many historic parts of the Residence palace as possible was one important aspect of the project for the Council.

15. Use of the Justus Lipsius once the Europa becomes operational The Justus Lipsius (JL) will continue to be an essential building for the Council's activities. The JL and the EB will work together as a connected space (there are two footbridges connecting the buildings), allowing the Council to conduct its activities in the most efficient way.

The JL will continue to host : o most of the working party meetings. Working parties are an essential part of the Council work (there are more than 160 groups) as they prepare the decisions that will be taken by ministers and leaders. The Europa will allow the GSC to host more working party meetings (from 19 to 22 per day), hence giving flexibility to speed up the work on priority files when needed. o some meetings of the Council (ministers) when the situation requires it; o the press centre - the main press centre, during both Councils and summits, will remain in its current location in the JL o most of the offices of the administration staff of the Council

The Council's secretariat will use the additional space made available in the JL building to improve the service provided to our stakeholders. For example: additional space for delegation staff when coming to the Council, additional space for rotating presidencies, current and future, dedicated space for inter-institutional meetings such as trilogues, etc.. A visitor centre is also planned to be opened in the Justus Lipsius in 2018.

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