On the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the safety, resilience and sustainability of space activities in the Union.
IMCO-AD-779484
Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection · Rapporteur: François Kalfon
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The Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection gives its opinion on the proposed regulation on the safety, resilience and sustainability of space activities in the Union, proposing amendments to the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy as lead committee.¶¶ The rapporteur wants a harmonised European space market with clear, fair rules for all operators, and proposes removing several derogations and exemptions so that all operators selling services on the EU market follow the same rules.¶¶ The amendments ask the Commission to support small and medium-sized enterprises through a one-stop shop, and to back the EU space programme with long-term investment under the European Competitiveness Fund.¶¶ They also seek to limit the recognition of equivalence for third-country operators to a transitional period for negotiating bilateral agreements, and to make imports of space services conditional on opening new markets for EU operators.¶¶
Committee position. The committee proposes a series of amendments to harmonise the regulation, remove most derogations and exemptions, support SMEs through a one-stop shop, and limit equivalence recognition for third-country operators to a transitional period.¶¶¶
Key points
- The rapporteur proposes to remove derogations and exemptions, keeping them only for fundamental research and for clearly identifiable situations such as a crisis or a shortage of an essential resource.¶
- The amendments rest on the principle that all operators selling services on the EU market must abide by the same rules.¶
- The Commission is asked to provide financial support to small and medium-sized enterprises through a one-stop shop.¶
- The rapporteur says the regulation's objectives will be meaningless unless the European Competitiveness Fund provides sustained, long-term investment in the EU space programme.¶
- The rapporteur proposes limiting recognition of equivalence under Article 105 to a transitional period for negotiating bilateral agreements on cooperation and mutual recognition of standards, provided this does not destabilise the EU market.¶
- Importing space services into the EU market must be made contingent on opening new markets for EU operators.¶
- The amendments add new recitals on EU liability under the 1974 Convention on international liability for damage caused by space objects, on promoting new market opportunities from EU space data, and on space situational awareness as a core component of the Union Space Programme.¶¶¶
- They add recitals on coordinating standardisation with the European Cooperation for Space Standardisation, on a correspondence matrix between ESA and Commission environmental footprint methodologies, and on a Space Sector Competitiveness Support Helpdesk for micro and small enterprises and research institutions.¶¶¶
- The amendments require the Commission and the Agency to have proportionate supervisory powers, tools and resources, including information requests, investigations and on-site inspections, and to impose proportionate fines and penalty payments.¶¶
- They require the Agency to set up and operate the Union Register of Space Objects as an operational hub, with consolidated lists published online and compatibility with national and international registers.¶¶¶
- They require space services providers to hold an e-certificate, and contracting authorities procuring space services or data to verify the certificate and ensure critical control and processing functions are located in the Union.¶¶
- They add provisions on oversight of foreign investment in EU space operators, on OLAF's powers to carry out administrative investigations, and on a triannual review and a 'space check' of Union legislation.¶¶¶
Who is affected
- Space operators and space services providers selling services in the EU, who must follow the same rules and hold an authorisation or e-certificate.¶¶¶
- Small and medium-sized enterprises, including start-ups, and educational and research institutions, which get a dedicated Support Helpdesk and adapted procedures.¶¶¶
- Third-country space operators and launch operators, whose registration in URSO and equivalence recognition are made subject to conditions and time limits.¶¶¶
- Member States, which keep authorisation rights and national security competences but must recognise each other's authorisations.¶¶¶
- Contracting authorities procuring space services or data, which must verify the e-certificate and the location of critical functions.¶
Figures and deadlines
- Suspension of authorisation deadlines should not be longer than 12 months from the date of receipt of the application.¶¶
- Qualified technical bodies must issue an opinion within 6 months from receipt of the technical file.¶
- The competent authority must issue or reject an authorisation within 12 months from receipt of the application.¶
- The Commission must decide on a proposed suspension or withdrawal within 30 working days from receipt of the Agency's proposal.¶
- The Agency must propose a decision on registration of a third-country operator not later than 5 months from the notification.¶
- The Commission must decide on registration no later than 90 days after submission of the Agency's proposal.¶
- The Agency must issue a technical assessment on a derogation application within 1 month, and the Commission must decide within 2 months of receiving it.¶¶
- An equivalence decision is valid for a period not exceeding 3 years and may be renewed once for a maximum of 2 years.¶