European Parliament 2014-2019

Committee on Petitions

9.7.2019

NOTICE TO MEMBERS

Subject: Petition No 1399/2016 by E. S. (Bulgarian), bearing 83 signatures, on alleged administrative and procedural infringements on modernization of the railway section - in

1. Summary of petition

The petitioner denounces alleged gross administrative and procedural infringements, disrespect of fundamental citizens’ rights, environmental hazard and other violations related to the choice of railway path in the framework of the project on modernisation of the railway line -, section Elin Pelin – Septemvri in Bulgaria.. The petitioner is of the opinion that the current construction project would not only cause unnecessary expenditure of EU funds, but it would also unreasonably force people out of their private homes.

The petitioner requests the project to be stopped, in order to conduct a careful analysis of the environmental, health and other consequences. He also urges the European Commission to review the mechanisms for approving and controlling the funds allocated to this project.

2. Admissibility

Declared admissible on 4 April 2017. Information requested from Commission under Rule 216(6).

3. Commission reply, received on 30 June 2017

In accordance with the shared management principle governing the cohesion policy, the preparation, selection and implementation of projects fall under the remit of Member States. Before the Commission approves a major transport project – i.e. when the total eligible cost exceeds EUR 75,000,000 - the managing authority must ensure that the necessary information (as stipulated in Article 101 of the Common Provisions Regulation 1303/2013) is transmitted to the European Commission. Following the notification by Bulgaria, the European Commission will carry out a quality review of the major project application in order to assess

CM\1185799EN.docx PE608.128v03-00

EN United in diversityEN whether it is compliant with the rules applicable to investments supported by the ESIF and whether the information is complete.

So far, the Commission has not received an official application to approve a project for the modernisation of (a) section(s) of the railway line between Sofia-Plovdiv under the Operational Programme on Transport and Transport Infrastructure 2014-2020. The application and its approval by the Commission are a prerequisite for EU co-financing. The Commission will only be able to assess a project application for the line Sofia-Plovdiv once it has received the official application including all necessary documentation from the managing authority.

4. Commission reply (REV.), received on 21 September 2018

The section “Elin Pelin – ” is financed, as a major project, by the Cohesion Fund (CF), whereas the section “Kostenets – Septemvri” is financed by the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF).

The financing of the section “Elin Pelin – Kostenets” was approved by the Commission by Decision C (2018) 664 of 31.01.2018. The shared management principle implies that project implementation is the responsibility of the Member State which has designated as managing authority for the relevant operational programme the Ministry of Transport, Information Technology and Communication - MTITC. As far as the Commission services are aware, construction of this section has not started. It is advisable to contact the managing authority MTITC and the beneficiary (the National Company for Railway Infrastructure - NRIC) in charge of the implementation of the project for more information regarding progress on the sections and for any technical comments.

As regards the section"Kostenets-Septemvri", the Action “Modernisation of the Kostenets– Septemvri railway section” was selected in the call CEF Transport Cohesion 20151. It is part of a global project to modernise the Sofia - Plovdiv railway line on the Orient/East-Med Core Network Corridor. Currently, according to the last information provided by the beneficiary (NRIC), the works have not started since important delays have been registered regarding the public procurement procedures.

As far as the land acquisition procedures are concerned for “Kostenets - Septemvri”, the Detailed Zoning Plans for the three municipalities concerned (Septemvri, Kostenets and Belovo) should be fully achieved in 2018 and land acquisition will follow. Finally, the project had all the necessary approvals regarding the environmental aspects and no issues were identified during the evaluation.

5. Commission reply (REVII), received on 9 July 2019

The section “Elin Pelin - Kostenets” is financed, as a major project, by the Cohesion Fund (CF), whereas the section “Kostenets – Septemvri” is financed by the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF).

1 https://ec.europa.eu/inea/en/connecting-europe-facility/cef-transport/projects-by-country/bulgaria/2015-bg-tm- 0045-w

PE608.128v03-00 2/4 CM\1185799EN.docx EN The request for Cohesion Fund co-financing for the major project “Modernization of the Sofia - Plovdiv railway line: railway section Elin Pelin - Kostenets” was submitted to the Commission in August 2017. In line with the applicable rules governing the European Structural and Investment Funds1, the Commission appraised the major project on the basis of the information provided by the Member State, including the technical design, alignment of the railway line, the Environmental Impact Assessment Decision adopted by the Bulgarian authorities and the related Bulgarian court’s decision on this project, the cost-benefit analysis, the recommendations and analysis of Jaspers (Joint Assistance to Support Projects in European Regions), the climate change analysis, the multi-criteria analysis, the declaration of water authorities, as well as the application form containing additional information on technical, environmental and socio-economic analysis.

Following the appraisal of all the above-mentioned major project documentation by the Commission’s services, including consultation of experts at Jaspers, the Commission determined that the requested financial contribution for this major project selected by the managing authority was justified. Therefore, the Commission adopted Decision C (2018) 664 approving the financial contribution for the major project “Modernization of the Sofia - Plovdiv railway line: railway section Elin Pelin - Kostenets” in January 2018.

According to shared management principles, project implementation is the responsibility of the Member State which has designated as managing authority for the relevant operational programme the Ministry of Transport, Information Technology and Communication (MTITC). As far as the Commission is aware, construction of this section has not started. The managing authority MTITC and the beneficiary (the National Company for Railway Infrastructure (NRIC)) in charge of the implementation of the project can provide more information regarding progress on the sections and any additional technical and administrative comments.

As regards the section “Kostenets - Septemvri”, its modernisation was selected in the call CEF Transport Cohesion 20152. It is part of a global project to modernise the Sofia - Plovdiv railway line on the Orient/East-Med Core Network Corridor. Currently, according to the latest information provided by the beneficiary (the National Company for Railway Infrastructure (NRIC)), the works have not started since significant delays have been reported regarding the public procurement and land acquisition procedures.

Conclusion

According to the information provided, the project has obtained all the necessary approvals regarding the environmental aspects. Additionally, no other issues were identified during the evaluation.

1 Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 laying down common provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and laying down general provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006, OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 320–469. 2 https://ec.europa.eu/inea/en/connecting-europe-facility/cef-transport/projects-by-country/bulgaria/2015-bg-tm- 0045-w

CM\1185799EN.docx 3/4 PE608.128v03-00 EN This petition is open since 2017 and the Commission has already provided replies on several occasions (30 July 2017, 21 September 2018). If the petitioner is aware of any improper or unlawful conduct that may violate national or EU legislation, the petitioner may consider reporting thereof to the national administrative and judicial bodies. In case of suspicion of irregularities, the petitioner may report directly to the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF)1 or to the Bulgarian counterpart, “Anti-Fraud Coordination Service” (AFCOS).

1 https://ec.europa.eu/anti-fraud/olaf-and-you/report-fraud_en

PE608.128v03-00 4/4 CM\1185799EN.docx EN