On discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the EU Joint Undertakings for the financial year 2024

OPINION

The Committee on Transport and Tourism calls on the Committee on Budgetary Control, as the committee responsible, to incorporate the following into its motion for a resolution:

1. Welcomes the ‘clean’ opinion for the 2024 financial year provided by the European Court of Auditors (‘the Court’) in relation to the reliability of the annual accounts as well as the legality and regularity of the revenues and payments underlying the accounts of the Clean Aviation Joint Undertaking (CAJU), the Single European Sky ATM Research 3 Joint Undertaking (SESAR 3 JU) and the Europe’s Rail Joint Undertaking (EU Rail); encourages the joint undertakings to enhance the visibility and effectiveness of communicating their results and successful projects to the public;

2. Acknowledges the significant contributions of the three joint undertakings in advancing research, innovation, and technology development across various sectors, including aviation, air traffic management (ATM), and rail, as integral to achieving the EU’s strategic objectives of sustainability, digital transformation, and competitiveness;

Part I – Discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the Clean Aviation Joint Undertaking (CAJU)

3. Welcomes CAJU’s performance in 2024, which resulted in strong budget execution rates for both commitment and payment appropriations; remarks that, while commitment execution reached 100 %, the lower payment rate of 84.4 % was mostly due to services delivered but not yet invoiced and frontloading for 2025 activities;

4. Draws attention to the shortcomings identified by the Court in its evaluation of CAJU’s management and control systems, particularly regarding the legality and regularity of its operational expenditure, and welcomes the implementation of several ex-ante controls aimed at reducing similar errors in the future; notes that the errors found by the Court had a financial impact in three Horizon 2020 payment transactions; welcomes the dedicated monitoring actions introduced to accelerate the execution of Horizon Europe projects;

5. Acknowledges the actions taken by CAJU to address several of the Court’s observations made in the previous years, including the low implementation rate for the infrastructure and operating payments, especially of the Horizon Europe payments budget, as well as the outdated business continuity plan (BCP) and disaster recovery plan (DRP); encourages CAJU to fully resolve them in the coming year;

6. Recalls that 2024 marked the conclusion of the decade-long Clean Sky 2 (CS2) programme; observes that, although technical delays were reported, the scope of work for most of the CS2 major demonstrators remained unchanged, affirming the programme’s ambitious goals at its conclusion; remarks that, to track progress, a bi-monthly monitoring system was implemented to compare the current completion plan against the original CS2 demonstrator closure schedule, consequently, only 3 out of 107 demonstrator activities were still pending by the end of 2024; welcomes the publication of the CS2 Technology Evaluation Global Assessment Report, which confirmed that the programme had largely achieved the objectives set out in the Council Regulation;

7. Commends CAJU for its work in executing the phase 1 of the Clean Aviation programme, which involved implementing, monitoring, and assessing selected innovation and coordination actions from the 2022 and 2023 calls for proposals; notes that by the end of 2024, two years into Clean Aviation phase 1, the three thrusts of the programme, i.e. Ultra-efficient regional aircraft, Ultra-efficient short and medium-range aircraft, and Hydrogen-powered aircraft architectures, had successfully consolidated key technologies into a coherent aircraft concept, which allowed for an initial assessment of performance at the aircraft concept level, with the first results showing significant potential in CO2 emissions reductions and reporting on other GHG emissions; remarks that, with phase 1 approaching its closure, no new calls for proposals were launched and that instead CAJU focused on strategic planning for phase 2; in this regard, welcomes the revision of the Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda, which serves as CAJU’s strategic roadmap within Horizon Europe and incorporates pivotal adjustments to align with the EUR 1.7 billion EU funding allocation without compromising the programme’s ambition or scope;

8. Points out that in 2024, CAJU prioritised the collaboration with the Clean Hydrogen JU, SESAR3 JU and the co-programmed partnership for batteries (BATT4EU) to ensure the delivery of compliant hydrogen, ATM services and batteries technologies, which included planning of the respective work programmes and calls for proposals; furthermore, welcomes CAJU’s engagement with leading regional and national research and innovation programmes for aviation as well as the work of a dedicated group focused on potential synergies with the Innovation Fund;

9. Welcomes the steps taken by CAJU in 2024 to strengthen cooperation with the European Union Aviation Agency (EASA) to de-risk and demonstrate new technologies, to develop industry standards and regulatory material and to monitor the impact of the Clean Aviation programme projects to guarantee their conformity with the European Green Deal and EU Climate Law;

Part II – Discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the Single European Sky ATM Research 3 Joint Undertaking (SESAR 3 JU)

10. Highlights that December 2024 saw the adoption of the 2025 edition of the European ATM Master Plan, serving as an EU roadmap that sets the vision for 2045, reinforces the SESAR 3 JU’s role in attaining the Single European Sky (SES), and guides the transition to a data-driven, cloud-based, service-oriented architecture;

11. Recognises that SESAR 3 JU fulfilled its strategic goals and implemented the activities planned for the first year of its 2024–2025 biannual work programme, welcoming the continuous progress in achieving the objectives outlined in its Single Basic Act and delivering the Digital European Sky (DES);

12. Recalls that DES is implemented through a portfolio of projects designed to develop and deploy technological solutions aiming to enhance the performance of the ATM system; notes that, following the 2023 launch of the projects under the first exploratory research call (ER1), 18 projects were selected under ER2, alongside one project under the joint call with the EU-Rail JU and one digital sky demonstrator funded under the Connecting Europe Facility; highlights that this brought the DES portfolio to 78 projects, representing a total investment of around EUR 650 million and involving over 360 participants; furthermore, indicates that during 2024, SESAR 3 JU prepared the calls specifications for ER3 and second industrial research call (IR2) to be launched in 2025, ensuring alignment with the development priorities identified in the European ATM Master Plan;

13. Observes that in 2024, SESAR 3 JU executed 42 % of its commitment appropriations and 36 % of payment appropriations, assuming that the low execution outcome stemmed from the fact that the operational expenditure under the Horizon Europe reached only a 39 % commitment rate and that appropriations for IR2 remained uncommitted and will be activated in 2025;

14. Expresses regret over the shortcomings in budget planning and implementation for administrative expenditure, as highlighted by the Court; warns that the persistently low payment implementation rates under SESAR’s infrastructure and operating budget and the significant accumulation of unused administrative payment appropriations may indicate a structural problem in its budget planning and/or implementation; notes that, given the ongoing nature of the issue, the Court’s observation made in this regard in 2023 remains unresolved;

15. Welcomes the targeted membership expansion successfully completed by SESAR 3 JU, which increased its geographical coverage to the United Kingdom, associated with Horizon Europe since January 2024;

16. Notes with satisfaction that throughout 2024, SESAR 3 JU strengthened collaboration with key stakeholders, including the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), to identify standardization needs and facilitate early regulatory and certification processes; furthermore, notes that SESAR 3 JU fostered synergies with other EU bodies, such as the CAJU and the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), while also seeking collaboration with national ATM initiatives, all of which solidified its leadership role in modernizing European ATM;

17. Points out the growing relevance of the security and defence dimension within SESAR 3 JU’s research and innovation agenda, reflecting the need for enhanced interoperability and resilience in European air traffic management; welcomes the JU’s enhanced cooperation with the European Defence Agency (EDA) and other defence stakeholders, particularly in incorporating military requirements into the development of dual-use technologies, unmanned aerial systems (UAS) integration, cybersecurity, and air-traffic management innovation; commends SESAR’s role in fostering synergies between civil and military aviation, supporting Europe’s strategic autonomy and operational preparedness; urges further advancement of its dual-use and defence-related projects under the European ATM Master Plan, ensuring that future deployment phases continue to reflect the EU’s priorities on safety, resilience, and secure cross-border mobility;

18. Welcomes SESAR’s progress in integrating drones and innovative air mobility into European airspace through U-space research and large-scale demonstration projects; acknowledges the development of digital and automated air-traffic management solutions enabling safe, efficient, and scalable drone operations for emergency response and infrastructure inspection tasks; encourages the JU to continue supporting the implementation of the European Drone Strategy 2.0 and to deliver mature U-space services that enhance safety, interoperability, and public trust in drone technologies across Europe;

Part III – Discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the Europe’s Rail (EU-Rail) Joint Undertaking

19. Notes that 2024 was a transitional year for EU-Rail, marked by the appointment of a new Executive Director and a Head of Corporate Services;

20. Recalls that 2024 was also a closing year for administrative and financial activities under the Shift2Rail (S2R) programme, which concluded 101 projects and saw 99.4 % of its maximum available funding paid out, achieving a total research and innovation value of EUR 764.3 million; in this context, notes that the S2R members validated in-kind contributions totalling EUR 25.6 million for operational activities (IKOP) and EUR 147,6 million for additional activities (IKAA), both above the regulatory obligation; welcomes EU-Rail’s uninterrupted operation during this period;

21. Highlights EU-Rail’s significant progress in strengthening interoperability, resilience, and security within the European rail system, as demonstrated by its work on network management, traffic control, and system architecture; recalls that 2024 marked a shift to focusing entirely on the EU-Rail Programme activities and welcomes the first outputs provided under the EU-Rail’s System Pillar, notably the focus on developing a unified and secure operational concept, as well as the efforts to enhance resilience through vulnerability studies and climate adaptation of infrastructure; acknowledges that these initiatives contribute to the creation of a fully integrated and interoperable Single European Rail Area, supporting both efficient civilian mobility and the Union’s broader strategic and defence-mobility objectives; notes that under its Innovation Pillar, eight new grant agreements were signed, stemming from the 2023 and 2024 calls, furthermore, EU-Rail kick-started the second set of exploratory research activities with six new grant agreements, complementing the work of the flagship projects in different areas of research and innovation; welcomes the formal establishment of the EU-Rail High Level Deployment Group, completing the governance structure of the joint undertaking and providing a dedicated mechanism to accelerate the coordinated roll-out of innovative rail solutions; welcomes its initial focus on the Future Railway Mobile Communication System;

22. Notes that the 2024 implementation rate for EU-Rail’s active operational budget reached 99,9 % in commitment appropriations and 87,9 % in payment appropriations;

23. Observes that by the end of 2024, the Programme had engaged 361 organizations from 27 countries, noting that this engagement is set to expand further following the June 2024 call for expression of interest to select new associated members;

24. Points out that the Court’s 2023 observation regarding outdated BCP and DRP remains unresolved, while acknowledging that the updated plans were approved by EU-Rail in December 2024, with testing scheduled for 2025;

25. Welcomes the joint efforts of EU-Rail and the other JUs and agencies; notes with appreciation that EU-Rail became the first joint undertaking to conclude joint grant agreements with SESAR 3 JU and the Smart Networks and Services Joint Undertaking (SNS JU), strengthening cross-sector cooperation on multimodal traffic management and testing the next EU rail communication system; notes that in 2024, EU-Rail joined the Clean Hydrogen JU stakeholders group to cooperate on potential synergies between the Clean Hydrogen JU and the rail sector; stresses the strategic importance of EU-Rail’s continuous partnership with EUSPA and the European Space Agency (ESA) on the European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) for rail, noting that, guided by the Commission and full coordinated with the European Union Agency for Railways (ERA), this collaboration is crucial for developing technical foundation for competitive and resilient satellite-based rail services.

ANNEX: DECLARATION OF INPUT

The rapporteur for opinion declares under his exclusive responsibility that he did not include in his opinion input from interest representatives falling within the scope of the Interinstitutional Agreement on a mandatory transparency register, or from representatives of public authorities of third countries, including their diplomatic missions and embassies, to be listed in this Annex pursuant to Article 8 of Annex I to the Rules of Procedure.

INFORMATION ON ADOPTION BY THE COMMITTEE ASKED FOR OPINION