cef transport calls evaluation and application process · cef transport calls evaluation and...

CEF Transport Calls

Evaluation and application process

Motorways of the Sea workshop – 28 September 2016

Laura Alcoverro Via INEA Evaluation manager Unit R1 – Programme Support, Coordination & Communication

How do the CEF Transport calls work? • Legal basis:

• CEF Regulation (Regulation No 1316/2013)

• TEN-T Guidelines (Regulation No 1315/2013)

• EU Financial Regulation and Rules of Application

• Work Programmes: • Multi-annual

• Annual

• Outline general CEF Transport objectives and priorities for actions to be funded in a specific year

• Specific calls for proposals: • Launched by INEA together with application forms and various

guidance documents

• Outline all conditions for submission and evaluation of proposals

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The call process

Principles for the evaluation and selection process

• Basis: admissibility, eligibility, selection and award criteria of the work programme and the call for proposals

• Equal treatment: all proposals evaluated against the same criteria; no preferential treatment to any applicant

• Transparency: adequate feedback to applicants on the outcomes of the evaluation at every stage of the process

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Call publication and application support

• Call published in Official Journal and announced on specific call page on INEA website

• Call texts, Guide for Applicants, application forms available on call page at publication

• Helpdesk operational as of call publication: FAQs made available on call page

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Admissibility Committee (INEA) • Checks compliance with admissibility

conditions: • Has the proposal been submitted electronically in

TENtec?

• Has the proposal been submitted on time?

• Is the proposal complete?

• Has the proposal been signed by the applicant(s)?

• 1 negative reply -> proposal NOT admissible

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Eligibility Committee (INEA) • Checks compliance with eligibility

conditions:

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One or more Member States (2 for MoS proposals)

International organisations, joint undertakings /or public or private undertakings / bodies established in Member States

Participation from neighbouring / third countries (and entities established therein) possible under certain conditions

Eligible applicants

Projects of common interest (Article 7 TEN-T Guidelines)

Vary from call to call

Priority-specific criteria

Eligible actions

With the agreement of a Member State

concerned

External Evaluation: overview • External experts provide technical assessment on the basis of the information submitted in a proposal in a two-step process:

1. Individual assessment

2. Consensus meeting for each proposal

• As from CEF Transport 2015 calls, additional input from CBA-specific experts

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External Evaluation: overview

Who are the external experts?

• Are selected from the database used by several EU funding programmes (EMPP/EMI) and chosen on the basis of their experience, gender and geographic balance

• Sign a contract, confidentiality and absence of conflict of interest declaration

• Evaluate in their personal capacity - not as representatives of a country or employer

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External Evaluation: individual assessment

• Done remotely

• Each proposal assessed independently by at least three experts

• No contact between experts

• Each expert completes the evaluation form, comments and scores award criteria on a scale from 0 to 5 points

• Scores must be in line with comments

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External Evaluation: consensus meeting

• Done centrally at INEA premises

• The three experts meet to reach consensus on comments and scores for the award criteria

• An INEA moderator facilitates the discussion and ensures consistency between comments and scores

• The proposal must have at least 3 points for each criterion to be recommended for funding

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Award criteria

Relevance

•Contribution of the proposed Action to the TEN-T & CEF priorities and priorities of the calls

•EU added value

Maturity

•Is the proposed Action ready to go?

Impact

•Why is the proposed Action worth funding?

•Expected effect of CEF funding on financial viability

•Socially and economically desirable investment

•Climate and environmental aspects

Quality

•Completeness and clarity of the proposal

•Description of the planned activities

•Coherence between objectives, activities and planned resources

•Soundness of the project management process 12

Additional input from CBA

assessment

Scores

5 (Excellent) The proposal successfully addresses all relevant aspects of the criterion. Any shortcomings are minor.

4 (Very good) The proposal addresses the criterion very well but a small number of shortcomings are present.

3 (Good) The proposal addresses the criterion well, but a number of shortcomings are present

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

2 (Fair) The proposal broadly addresses the criterion but there are significant weaknesses

1 (Poor) The criterion is inadequately addressed or there are serious inherent weaknesses

0 (Insufficient) The proposal fails to address the criterion or cannot be assessed due to missing or incomplete information

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Internal Evaluation (Commission)

• Prepares the list of proposals recommended and not recommended for funding on the basis of technical evaluation, paying particular attention to:

• Contribution to the balanced development of the network

• Complementarity with other EU funded projects

• Comparative EU added value in relation to other proposed Actions

• Budgetary constraints

• Potential synergies across the different CEF sectors and/or other EU Programmes

• Any risks of double-funding from other Union sources

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Internal Evaluation (Commission)

• In addition, for proposals to be funded from the Cohesion envelope of the CEF:

• The programming for the European Structural and Investment Funds

• How the proposed Action fits in the national transport plan in the Member State(s) concerned where appropriate

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Subsequent steps

• Commission drafts Selection Decision

• Member States approve the Selection Decision in the CEF Coordination Committee (Transport configuration)

• European Parliament is informed on the list of proposals recommended for funding

• Commission formally adopts the Selection Decision, which includes the list of proposals selected for funding, and becomes legally binding

• Publicity actions (i.e. press release, brochure)

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Grant agreement preparation and signature (INEA)

• Once Selection Decision is adopted, successful applicants are invited by INEA to prepare the individual grant agreement

• Grant agreement is signed between the beneficiaries (applicants) and INEA and covers the technical, legal and financial aspects of the proposal based on evaluation results

• Model grant agreement is published on INEA website on the call page

• Project management carried out by INEA

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PREPARING A SUCCESSFUL

PROPOSAL

How to apply: READ, REFLECT, REMEMBER

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READ: get to know the call documents

• First familiarise yourself with all of the call documents on the call webpage, especially:

• Work Programme(s)

• Carefully read the priority descriptions

• Call texts

• Identify the call to which your proposal is most relevant

• Take special note of the section on Priorities and Results which provide specific information on what is expected in the proposals

• Carefully read the section on Eligibility Criteria

• Carefully read the section on Award Criteria, which explain on what the proposal will be evaluated

• Guide for Applicants+ Application forms + FAQs

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READ: how to use TENtec electronic proposal submission tool

• TENtec is the system used to manage CEF projects during their entire lifecycle (submission, evaluation and implementation)

• Fully electronic proposal submission using TENtec eSubmission tool: all application forms and access to TENtec eSubmission module available via call page on INEA website

• Need ECAS/EU login password for access

• Step-by-step instructions available in the Guide for Applicants

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READ: Application forms

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Part A

Main characteristics of the proposal

Part B

Administrative information

Part C

Information on compliance with EU law

Part D

Technical and financial information

Application Form

Application form part A

• Essential information on the applicants and on the proposal (summary of the action, timing, activities and milestones, budget and requested funding, contribution to CEF objectives)

• The descriptions of the proposed Action and activities will also be used for the grant agreement: be complete, informative and precise!

• Must be encoded using the TENtec eSubmission module (Word version available on call webpage for reference only)

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Application form part A

• The full application form part A is automatically generated on the basis of the data entered

• Includes forms that require signature of the applicants (A2.2) and Member State validation (A2.3). These need to be uploaded separately

• A map must be provided through the Interactive Map Editor, embedded in the TENtec eSubmission module

• For works or mixed proposals under MoS, a cost-benefit analysis (CBA) must be uploaded separately

• Some forms/ supporting documents are only requested for certain types of applicants – check the forms for more details

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Application form part B

• Further administrative information on applicants: • Financial identification form + additional documents referred to in the

form are requested for all applicants

• Legal entity form and additional supporting documents (if applicable) – check the forms for more details

• Annexes B-I, B-II, B-III, B-IV need to be completed, signed, and uploaded to TENtec (if applicable) – check the forms for more details

• Information used to demonstrate compliance with the financial and operational capacity check (required by Financial Regulation)

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Financial and operational capacity check

• Financial capacity check Financial analysis based on a set of ratios, carried out at same time as evaluation – applicants to supply information based on amount of grant requested

• Operational capacity check Proof of technical and operational capacity of applicant to complete the proposed Action

• Complements information from application form D2.3

• Proof: activity report, CVs, reports on similar projects, etc

Certain types of applicants DO NOT need to demonstrate financial and operational capacity – check the forms for more details

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Application form part B

Application form part C

• Information on compliance with EU law

• For all MoS proposals: • Section III. Compatibility with EU law on state aids

• Section V. Compatibility with Union law on public procurement

• Section VI. Other sources of EU financing (remember the same proposal cannot receive grants from more than one EU funding source)

• Depending on the type and content of your proposal: • Section I. Compliance with EU environmental policy – check the

forms for more details

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Application form part D

Detailed, technical information describing the proposed Action and its activities

• Core part for the evaluation of your proposal

• You demonstrate how your proposal addresses the four blocks of award criteria:

• Relevance

• Maturity

• Impact

• Quality

• Include information about the global project the proposed Action refers to, if applicable

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• Relevance: contribution of the proposed Action to the TEN-T and CEF policy objectives and EU dimension

• Does your proposed Action… • meet the objectives of the call and priority under which it is submitted?

• address EU transport policy objectives?

• make a positive contribution to the TEN-T network?

• make a positive contribution to other EU policies?

Motivate your replies and, where possible, support your statements with qualitative/quantitative data

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• Maturity: state of preparation of the proposed Action and its activities. The proposed Action should be "ready to roll"

• Has it received political commitments?

• Up to which extent are the administrative procedures completed?

• Has it received the necessary and legally obligatory approvals (e.g. building permits)?

• Are procurement issues, if any, settled?

• Is the required funding (other than CEF) secured? Have additional sources of funding been explored?

• Can you provide the relevant supporting documentation?

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• Maturity (cont.) • Explain what is pending, why and which is the state of play of ongoing

procedures

• Remember that…

• Actions should start, at the latest, within 18 months of the call deadline

• Should your proposal be selected for funding and you are unable to start on time, the CEF grant may be terminated and you'll be unable to submit the same proposal again

Consider applying in future calls if your proposal is not mature enough

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• Impact: expected effect of the EU financial support on the financial viability of an economically and socially desirable investment

• Works -> direct and indirect socio-economic effects

• Studies -> usefulness for decision-making

• Describe the benefits that the proposed Action is expected to bring

• Explain why your proposed Action is worth funding and which would be the effect of CEF Transport funding

Prove that CEF Transport funding will make a difference

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• Quality: soundness of the proposed Action, as well as completeness and clarity of the proposal

• Quality of the proposed Action: • Consistency (i.e. coherence between objectives, proposed activities,

planned resources, and project management processes, from a technical and financial point of view)

• Appropriate planning and available resources to achieve the objectives

• Reasonability of costs

• Work and timeplan realistic and sound

• Appropriate monitoring and control mechanisms foreseen during the implementation and after the completion

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• Overall quality of the proposal: • Is it clearly written and easy to follow?

• Are the objectives and activities clearly described?

• Does the proposal provide enough elements to be assessed against the four award criteria?

• Is there an overall coherence throughout the different parts of the application?

• ANNEXES: may be provided as additional evidence or illustration of statements included in the application but they are not part of the application

Remember that neither assumptions nor requests for further information will be made

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REFLECT: call content and requirements

CEF Transport funding is a competitive process based on defined

award criteria in the work programme and call text

Do you understand the priorities, objectives and intended results as defined in

the call text and the work programme?

Does your proposed Action address these points?

Can you justify why YOUR proposal should ultimately be selected for funding?

Preparing a good application requires time and effort – as does the

resulting project management

Do you have both the time and resources to prepare a good application?

Do you understand the requirements of the grant agreement if your proposal is

selected for funding?

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• Calls have requirements on applicants

• Do all applicants in the proposal meet the eligibility criteria?

• Who will serve as coordinator?

• Does this organisation understand the requirements of this role?

• Calls have requirements on actions

• Does your proposed action meet the eligibility criteria of the call?

• Does your proposed action meet the eligibility criteria of the priority/sub-priority?

• Member State approval is necessary for all applications to be eligible

• Do you understand how this approval process is done in your Member State?

• Do you know who is your Member State contact point?

• Have you taken into consideration the time it will take to obtain the approval(s)?

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• Can you effectively organise the information in your proposal/application forms?

• Financial: provide a business and/or financial plan to

• justify your costs and the need for financial support

• explain financial sustainability

• assess your proposed budget in general

• Technical: give clear and concise explanations, yet provide

• comprehensive description of objectives and how they will be achieved

• ample descriptions of your activities and milestones

• Operational: show concrete evidence on how your proposed Action

• supports the objectives/aims of the call

• addresses the award criteria

• mitigates any possible risks and delays

• incorporates a clear timetable and planning overview

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REFLECT: content of the application

• Provide ONLY relevant information using only the application forms – focus only on the objective of the call

• Do not rely on the additional supporting documents to provide the essential information!

• Use simple, clear language - Responses need to be clear, well-structured, substantiated and concise

• Be coherent in describing the objective, activities, duration and budget

• Be consistent through your statements in different parts of the application

Experts have limited time to read and assess the proposals. They must find the relevant information and evidence in the proposal in order to evaluate it.

No assumptions nor requests for additional information will be made

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REMEMBER: time flies…

• Start early and don't forget about the deadline • Completing an application is time consuming, especially for first time

applicants and multi-applicant proposals

• Contact the relevant EU Member State ministry and competent authorities at an early stage -> National procedures/deadlines may be in place to endorse CEF Transport applications

• Avoid uploading all information and supporting documents and at the last minute

• Electronic submission only using the TENtec eSubmission module

• If you haven't submitted your proposal on time, it will be declared inadmissible and will not be evaluated!

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REMEMBER: help is available

• INEA is here to support you through the entire application process:

• Helpdesk: [email protected]

• FAQs (general and priority-specific) Where relevant for all applicants: answers published in FAQs (no individual responses!)

• Where too specific to a proposal and would provide a comparative advantage: not answered

• FAQ notification service (registration through the call page)

• Individual responses provided until the deadline on technical questions related to TENtec eSubmission module

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mailto:[email protected]







REMEMBER: think about the evaluators

• Avoid jargon and don’t take any background knowledge for granted -> explain any specific/local issues about the context of your proposal that may be evident to you but not to an external reader

• Experts have to read a lot in a short time -> make your proposal appealing (e.g. structured, clear writing, correct grammar and spelling)

• Respond to the questions as precisely as possible but don't be too long (40 pages max. for part D) -> your proposal will be evaluated only on the basis of information provided in the application forms

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REMEMBER: last checks before submission • Check if any information or document is still missing from

your proposal well before the deadline (proposal checklist)

• Upload all forms/annexes requiring signatures

• Upload all required supporting documents and make them clearly identifiable by their file name in English

• Do one last check to ensure that your proposal is complete, clear and easy to follow -> Maybe your draft can be reviewed by more experienced colleagues and/or native speakers – use their advice to improve it before submission

• Keep originals of all documents – they may be requested later

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REMEMBER: CEF Transport calls are open and competitive

• Transparency and equal treatment of all applicants is ensured throughout the whole evaluation process

• Anticipate oversubscription: CEF Transport calls face large demand for a limited budget

• Increase the chances of getting CEF Transport funding for your proposal by preparing (and submitting) a good application

Best of luck with your proposal preparation for upcoming calls!

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http://ec.europa.eu/inea

@inea_eu

Look for INEA!

[email protected]

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