European Commission - Daily News

European Commission - Daily News

Daily News 29 / 11 / 2021
Brussels, 29 November 2021
President von der Leyen addresses the special session of the World Health Assembly of the
WHO
Commission President Ursula von der Leyen addressed this morning the World Health Assembly of
the World Health Organization (WHO), which gathers between 29 November and 1 December for its
second-ever special session. The President welcomed the Assembly's decision to start negotiations
towards an international instrument to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.
Following the emergence of the Omicron variant, President von der Leyen commended the
leadership of South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa, underlining that South Africa's analytical
work and transparency have allowed a swift global response to save lives. She praised South Africa
as an example of international cooperation in times of cross-border health threats. Building on the
Global Health Summit of May and on the G20 Summit last month, President von der Leyen
reaffirmed the EU's commitment to uphold equity, good governance, multilateral cooperation and
solidarity as the only ways out of the current health crisis. The European Union and its Member
States will continue working to help achieve the global vaccination target of 70% in 2022 and will
support capacity building for sequencing, testing, treatments and vaccination. In this sense, the
President confirmed that the EU aims at sharing at least 700 million vaccine doses by mid-2022 with
low and middle-income countries. That is on top of the €3 billion in financing that the EU provided to
help create the ACT-Accelerator for global vaccination through COVAX and the ongoing efforts to
develop vaccine manufacturing in Africa and in South America. The full speech is available here and
can be re-watched here. (For more information: Eric Mamer – Tel.: +32 229 94073; Dana Spinant –
Tel.: +32 229 90150)

President von der Leyen opens the European Hydrogen Week
Today, President Ursula von der Leyen opened the European Hydrogen Week. Executive Vice-
President Frans Timmermans will deliver a speech this afternoon, Commissioner Breton will
intervene on Tuesday and Commissioners Kadri Simson and Adina Vălean will deliver keynote
speeches on Wednesday. President von der Leyen said in her opening speech: “Clean hydrogen will
have a central place in the climate-neutral economy of the future and I am proud of Europe's role as
the world's clean hydrogen trailblazer. At the beginning of this year, more than 200 new hydrogen
projects have been announced globally. 55% of them are in Europe… We have to scale up clean
hydrogen production, expand its applications, and create a virtuous circle where demand and supply
feed each other and bring the prices down. That is the principle. This is without any doubt a global
endeavour, but I want Europe to be leading the race.” This year's European Hydrogen Week will mark
the public launch of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership – as the successor of the Fuel Cells and
Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH JU). Together with the European Clean Hydrogen Alliance, the
Clean Hydrogen Partnership will be a key instrument for implementing the EU Hydrogen Strategy
and for achieving the European Green Deal's ambitious goals. Funded under Horizon Europe with €1
billion that will be matched by the industry and academia, the new partnership will support research
and innovation actions to produce, store, distribute and use hydrogen and accelerate the
development and deployment of clean hydrogen technologies for the whole economy, in particular for
hard to decarbonise sectors, such as heavy industries and heavy-duty transport applications.
Building on the objectives of the EU Hydrogen Strategy, the event will discuss the opportunities
associated with the production and use of hydrogen and hydrogen-based fuels in the different
sectors of the economy and how hydrogen will play a key role in the European Green Deal. On
Tuesday, the European Clean Hydrogen Alliance will present an ambitious pipeline of viable
investment projects for the large-scale deployment of renewable and low-carbon hydrogen. On
Wednesday, the focus will be on how the EU is planning to reach at least 6 GW of renewable
hydrogen electrolysers by 2024, with the objective to scale up to 40 GW by 2030 and how to
implement the ambitious plans on Alternative Fuels Infrastructure. President's speech is available
online. Find more information here and follow it livestreamed. (For more information: Eric Mamer –

Tel.: +32 229 94073; Dana Spinant – Tel.: +32 229 90150; Tim McPhie – Tel.: +32 229 58602)

Commission hosts second matchmaking event to speed up the development and production
of COVID-19 medicines
Today and tomorrow, the Commission is hosting a pan-European matchmaking event to accelerate
and upscale the development and production of COVID-19 medicines in Europe, as part of the
actions under the EU Strategy on COVID-19 Therapeutics. Following a first matchmaking event on
COVID-19 medicines in July 2021 and a previous matchmaking event on COVID-19 vaccines in
March 2021, this event aims at strengthening the participation of EU companies in value chains for
COVID-19 therapeutics and speeding up connections among the participants. It also broadens the
focus: from therapeutics specifically used to treat COVID-19, to also including those used to treat
the symptoms of COVID-19, as well the production of disposable materials, such as syringes, and
ingredients needed for making such medicines. The event gathers companies from the European
Economic Area as well as other businesses and organisations included in the portfolio of 10 most
promising treatments, presented by the Commission in the follow-up to the COVID-19 Therapeutics
strategy. In order to facilitate matchmaking events, the Commission issued a comfort letter in March
2021 (based on the Antitrust Temporary Framework adopted by the Commission on 8 April 2020)
providing guidance, relevant also for this event, on how the matchmaking and exchanges between
participating companies, including direct competitors, can take place in compliance with EU
competition rules. The matchmaking event is organised by the Commission's Task Force for industrial
scale-up of COVID-19 vaccines and therapeutics, in close cooperation with the European Cluster
Collaboration Platform. The event is also hosted in partnership with the Council of European
BioRegions (CEBR) and the European Cluster Alliance (ECA), which are supporting the Commission
in running an EU survey to assess EU capacities for COVID-19 therapeutics production. More
information about the event is available here. (For more information: Sonya Gospodinova – Tel.: +32
229 66953; Federica Miccoli – Tel.: +32 229 58300)

NextGenerationEU: La Commission reçoit de la France une demande de paiement de 7,4
milliards d'euros au titre de la Facilité pour la reprise et la résilience *
La Commission a reçu la première demande de paiement de la France au titre de la facilité pour la
reprise et la résilience (FRR) pour un versement de 7,4 milliards d'euros de soutien financier (net du
préfinancement). Pour rappel, le plan global de relance et de résilience de la France s'élève à 39,4
milliards d'euros, exclusivement sous forme de subventions. Les paiements au titre de la FRR
dépendent de la réalisation par la France des investissements et des réformes décrits dans son plan
de relance et de résilience. Ce premier paiement est conditionné par l'atteinte de 38 jalons et cibles.
La Commission dispose à présent de deux mois pour faire son évaluation. Elle transmettra ensuite au
Comité économique et financier du Conseil son évaluation préliminaire du respect par la France des
jalons et cibles requis pour ce paiement. De plus amples informations sur le processus des demandes
de paiement au titre de la FRR sont disponibles dans ce document questions-réponses. De plus
amples informations sur le plan français de relance et de résilience sont disponibles ici. (Pour plus
d'informations: Arianna Podesta – Tél.: +32 229 87024; Andrea Masini — Tél.: + 32 229 91519)

Commission announces European Newsroom project at the European News Media Forum
Today, the Commission is holding its second edition of the European News Media Forum to discuss
the transformation of the media industry. In this context, the Commission announced it would
support the development of a “European Newsroom” bringing together 16 news agencies. Vice-
President for Values and Transparency, Věra Jourová, said: “By working together across borders,
media are stronger. We have seen the incredible results of cross-border investigations, such as the
recent Pandora papers. The Commission is increasing its support for this type of collaboration, with
the European Newsroom today and a series of new journalism partnerships by the end of the year.”
Vice-President Jourová will participate in the closing session at 17:50 (her speech will be
webstreamed and published here). Commissioner for Internal Market, Thierry Breton, who opened
the forum this morning, said: “We are organising Europe's information space and increasing citizens'
access to quality information. This first-ever pan-European newsroom – which we announce today –
will allow journalists to report jointly on EU affairs and promote a spirit of collaboration back at home.
Next year, we will present a Media Freedom Act to boost media pluralism and improve the resilience
of the sector as a whole.” The first edition of the European News Media Forum was held in March
2021. It helped prepare the Commission's first-ever recommendation to Member States on the safety
of journalists. This second edition brings together stakeholders from the news media sector to
discuss revenue streams, business models, community engagement, diversity, media convergence,

new formats and partnerships. The Forum is part of a broader effort to support the recovery and
transformation of the media and audiovisual sectors, as announced in the Media and Audiovisual
Action Plan. This includes increased EU funding for media projects, such as the European Newsroom
announced today, following a €1.76 million open call for proposals. This initiative will create a hub for
news correspondents to work together on EU affairs. The project will start operating in January.
Information on this and other calls related to the media sector is also available. (For more
information: Johannes Bahrke – Tel.: +32 229 58615; Charles Manoury – Tel.: +32 229 13391)

Commission launches the resilience dashboards: a new digital tool to help EU countries
monitor their resilience
Today, the Commission is launching an interactive website to navigate the resilience dashboards, a
set of indicators and information on resilience in Member States and non-EU countries. The
dashboards were first announced in the Commission's 2020 Strategic Foresight Report, focused on
resilience as a new compass for EU policy-making. Developed in cooperation with Member States and
relevant stakeholders, these dashboards help countries, and the EU as a whole, to identify their
capacities and vulnerabilities when it comes to navigating their economic and societal transitions,
while coping with challenges and potential shocks. Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič, responsible for
Interinstitutional Relations and Foresight, said: “The resilience dashboards are where strategic
foresight and policy meet – and I invite policymakers to make the most of them. They provide
valuable forward-looking and holistic insights into capacities and vulnerabilities, helping us shape our
decisions in a way that will strengthen resilience in the EU and in our Member States. Importantly,
the dashboards will also contribute to measuring our economic and social wellbeing, by going beyond
a conventional GDP approach.” The dashboards take a forward-looking perspective, as the selection
of indicators takes account of megatrends likely to have a significant impact on the EU's future. They
are also holistic, as they span four interrelated dimensions: social and economic, green, digital, and
geopolitical. The 2022 Annual Sustainable Growth Survey, published last week as part of the Autumn
package, mentions the potential use of the resilience dashboards in the upcoming country reports in
the European Semester. Read the press release of the Commission's Joint Research Centre here. (For
more information: Daniel Ferrie – Tel.: 32 229 86500; Sinéad Meehan-van Druten – Tel.: +32 229
84094)

Sommet de l'ASEM: l'Europe et l'Asie réaffirment leur partenariat commun et leur
engagement en faveur d'une reprise plus forte après la pandémie
Lors du 13 e sommet Asie-Europe (ASEM) qui s'est tenu les 25 et 26 novembre en format virtuel
depuis Phnom Penh, au Cambodge, les dirigeants ont réaffirmé leur partenariat commun et leur
engagement en faveur de la reprise après la pandémie de COVID-19. Intitulé « Renforcer le
multilatéralisme pour une croissance partagée », ce sommet a réuni les chefs d'État ou de
gouvernement de 30 États européens et de 20 partenaires asiatiques, l'Union européenne et le
secrétaire général de l'Association des Nations de l'Asie du Sud-Est (ASEAN/ANASE). Ursula von der
Leyen, présidente de la Commission européenne, et Charles Michel, président du Conseil européen,
représentaient l'Union européenne à ce sommet. Les dirigeants ont procédé à un échange de vues
sur les défis mondiaux et sur une reprise socio-économique durable après la pandémie, dans le but
de s'accorder sur les moyens de garantir une reprise verte et de renforcer la coopération en matière
de politique étrangère et de sécurité. Dans son discours d'ouverture, Ursula von der Leyen,
présidente de la Commission européenne, a déclaré: « Depuis plus de 25 ans, le sommet Asie-
Europe est le forum le plus large réunissant nos deux continents. Il a permis de relever certains des
grands défis qui se posaient à nous. Au cours des prochaines années, ce partenariat deviendra
encore plus important pour ce qui est de la reprise après la pandémie. Nous devons reconstruire
ensemble un monde plus durable et plus équitable, nous devons renforcer le multilatéralisme. Parce
que l'Asie et l'Europe sont étroitement liées et parce qu'ensemble nous pesons de manière
considérable dans la balance mondiale ». De plus amples informations sont disponibles dans le
communiqué de presse. (Pour plus d'informations: Eric Mamer – Tél.: +32 229 94073; Dana Spinant
– Tél.: +32 229 90150; Nabila Massrali – Tél.: +32 22 988093)

Competition: G7 'Compendium of approaches to improving competition in digital markets'
In the framework of the UK Presidency of the G7, the European Commission has contributed,
together with the G7 competition authorities and with those of South Africa, South Korea, India and
Australia, to the development of a ‘Compendium of approaches to improving competition in digital
markets'. This document provides an overview of how different authorities are working to promote

competition in digital markets, highlighting that there is a high level of commonality in the
approaches that competition authorities are taking to address competition concerns in these
markets. The European Commission is committed to continuing these important discussions in
international fora for competition policy and enforcement. (For more information: Arianna Podesta –
Tel.: +32 229 87024; Giulia Astuti – Tel.: +32 229 55344; Maria Tsoni – Tel.: +32 229 90526)

Aides d'État : la Commission autorise un régime français d'un montant de 700 millions
d'euros visant à compenser les dommages subis par certaines entreprises en raison de la
pandémie
La Commission européenne a autorisé, en vertu des règles de l'UE en matière d'aides d'État, un
régime français d'un montant de 700 millions d'euros visant à soutenir certaines entreprises
particulièrement touchés par la pandémie de coronavirus et les mesures restrictives mises en place
par le gouvernement français pour limiter la propagation du virus. Le régime sera ouvert aux
entreprises actives dans certains secteurs fortement affectés par les fermetures, notamment la
restauration, l'évènementiel, l'hébergement ainsi que les agences de voyage, les salles de sport, les
musées et les parcs de loisir. Sont aussi éligibles les entreprises dont l'activité a été, dans les faits,
fortement affectée par des mesures administratives de fermeture touchant d'autres entreprises avec
lesquelles elles sont en relation d'affaires. Les bénéficiaires admissibles au régime pourront obtenir
une indemnisation sous la forme de subventions directes à hauteur d'un montant correspondant à
70 % des pertes d'exploitation subies pendant les périodes de fermeture. La Commission a analysé la
mesure au regard de l'article 107(2)(b) du Traité sur le fonctionnement de l'Union européenne, qui
autorise les États membres à indemniser les dommages causés directement par des évènements
extraordinaires, tels que la pandémie de coronavirus. La Commission a conclu que le régime était
conforme aux règles de l'UE en matière d'aides d'État. Margrethe Vestager, vice-présidente
exécutive chargée de la politique de concurrence, a déclaré: « Les fermetures pour limiter la
propagation de la pandémie ont abouti à des pertes de chiffre d'affaires très sensibles pour certaines
entreprises, alors que leurs coûts ne pouvaient pas être ajustés à la baisse. Ce régime de 700
millions d'euros permettra à la France d'indemniser partiellement ces entreprises pour les dommages
subis. Nous continuons à travailler en étroite coopération avec les États membres afin de trouver des
solutions pratiques permettant d'atténuer les répercussions économiques de la pandémie de
coronavirus, dans le respect de la réglementation de l'UE. » Un communiqué de presse est disponible
en ligne. (Pour plus d'informations: Arianna Podesta – Tél.: +32 229 87024; Giulia Astuti – Tél.: +32
229 55344; Maria Tsoni – Tél.: +32 229 90526)

Mergers: Commission clears the creation of a joint venture by Cremer and Clyde Investment
The European Commission has approved, under the EU Merger Regulation, the creation Cremer
Sustainable Foods, a new joint venture based in Singapore, by Cremer of Germany and Clyde
Investment of Singapore. Cremer Sustainable Foods will engage in contract manufacturing and sale
of plant-based intermediate and finished meat and seafood substitutes in South East Asia. Cremer is
active in trading, processing and transport of agricultural, raw and basic materials, as well as oleo-
chemical products. Clyde Investments is active in contract manufacturing of plant-based protein
products. The Commission concluded that the proposed acquisition would raise no competition
concerns, because Cremer Sustainable Foods will have no activity in the European Economic Area in
the near future. The transaction was examined under the simplified merger review procedure. More
information is available on the Commission's competition website, in the public case register under
the case number M.10496. (For more information: Arianna Podesta – Tel.: +32 229 87024; Maria
Tsoni – Tel.: +32 229 90526)

Mergers: Commission clears acquisition of joint control of Gastrade by DESFA, Ms.
Copelouzou, DEPA Commercial, GasLog and BTG
The European Commission has approved, under the EU Merger Regulation, the acquisition of joint
control of Gastrade by Hellenic Gas Transmission System Operator S.A. (‘DESFA'), Ms. Asimina Eleni
Copelouzou, DEPA Commercial, all of Greece, GasLog of Cyprus and Bulgartransgaz EAD (‘BTG') of
Bulgaria. Gastrade is developing the Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Floating Storage and Regasification
Unit (FRSU) to be located offshore of Alexandroupolis in Northern Greece. DESFA owns, operates,
maintains, manages, exploits and develops the National Natural Gas System in Greece. Ms.
Copelouzou is the founding shareholder of Gastrade. DEPA Commercial is active in the supply,
wholesale and retail trading of natural gas in Greece. GasLog owns and operates LNG vessels. BTG is
a Bulgarian state-owned operator of natural gas transmission and storage in Bulgaria. The
Commission concluded that the proposed acquisition would raise no competition concerns, given: (i)

the presence of competing gas import infrastructures; and (ii) the Greek regulations in place,
including those concerning the tariffs to be charged by LNG terminals and those laying down access
obligations to LNG terminals and to DESFA's transmission system. The transaction was examined
under the normal merger review procedure. More information is available on the Commission's
competition website, in the public case register under the case number M.10139. (For more
information: Arianna Podesta – Tel.: +32 229 87024; Maria Tsoni – Tel.: +32 229 90526)

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Commissioner Várhelyi on a two-day visit to Jordan
Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement, Olivér Várhelyi, will be in Jordan on Tuesday, 30
November, and Wednesday, 1st December, to take forward the discussions on EU-Jordan partnership
as well as on the implementation of the New Agenda for the Mediterranean and its Economic and
Investment Plan for Southern Neighbourhood. On the first day of the visit, the Commissioner will
meet Prime Minister Bisher Al-Khasawneh, Minister of Foreign Affairs Ayman Safadi, Minister of
Planning and International Cooperation Nasser Shraideh, as well as business representatives and civil
society organisations working with Syrian refugees, among others. On Wednesday, 1st December,
the Commissioner will participate at the opening of the annual Euro-Arab Border Security Conference
on the topics of border control management and security and common migratory challenges across
the Mediterranean. The mission takes place after 6 th Regional forum of the Union for Mediterranean
and the 3 rd EU-Southern Neighbourhood Ministerial meeting in Barcelona on 29 November. More
details on EU-Jordan relations and the Southern Neighbourhood. Coverage provided by EbS. For
more details, please consult the dedicated factsheets on EU's relations with Jordan and the Southern
Neighbourhood in general. (For more information: Ana Pisonero - Tel.: +32 229 54320 ; Elisa Castillo
Nieto – Tel.: +32 229 63803)

La commissaire Simson est à Paris demain pour prendre part au Salon mondial du nucléaire
2021 et assister à des réunions concernant l'énergie *
Demain, 30 novembre, la commissaire à l'énergie, Kadri Simson, se rendra à Paris, en France, pour
participer au Salon mondial du nucléaire 2021, où le commissaire au marché intérieur, Thierry
Breton, prendra également la parole par message vidéo. Dans la matinée, Kadri Simson prononcera
un discours d'ouverture à l'occasion de ce Salon, puis participera à des réunions bilatérales avec
Barbara Pompili, ministre française de la transition écologique, et Emmanuelle Wargon, ministre
française déléguée au logement. Plus tard dans la journée, elle rencontrera des représentants des
acteurs clés: Sylvie Bermann, ambassadrice de France et présidente du Salon mondial du nucléaire
et présidente du conseil d'administration de l'Institut des hautes études de la défense nationale;
Patrick Fragman, président-directeur général de Westinghouse Electric Company; et Jean-Bernard
Lévy, PDG du groupe EDF. (Pour plus d'informations : Tim McPhie - Tél : +32 229 58602 ; Ana
Crespo Parrondo - Tél : +32 229 81325)

Competition: EU and China meet during 22nd Competition Week to discuss competition
policy priorities
Officials and experts from the EU and China will meet online from 29 November to 2 December 2021
to discuss about their cooperation on competition law and enforcement. The discussions will focus on
the green transition and how China's Fair Competition Review System and the EU's State Aid
framework can contribute to it. Participants will also discuss mechanisms to control potentially anti-
competitive acquisitions in the digital sector and the practical challenges of investigating digital
markets. In addition, there will be updates on the proposed revisions to China's Anti-Monopoly Law
and recent regulatory and competition policy developments in the EU. The 22 nd EU-China
Competition Week follows the longstanding tradition of biannual competition dialogue between the
EU and the anti-monopoly enforcement agencies in China. It is part of the Competition Cooperation
project, a 5-year EU funded programme offering technical cooperation to competition authorities in
Asia. It also provides a platform for exchanges on competition policy between the European
Commission Directorate-General for Competition (DG Competition) and the Chinese State
Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR). The objective is to exchange experiences and

strengthen convergence in competition policy, to the benefit of citizens and businesses in both the
EU and in Asia. More information about the European Commission' bilateral dialogue with China in
the field of competition policy is available on the Commission's website. (For more information:
Arianna Podesta – Tel.: +32 229 87024; Maria Tsoni – Tel.: +32 229 90526)

Visite de la vice-présidente Jourová à Paris pour préparer la présidence française du conseil
de l'Union européenne
La vice-présidente de la Commission européenne pour les valeurs et la transparence Věra Jourová
sera demain en visite à Paris pour échanger avec des membres de l'exécutif et des régulateurs afin
de préparer la future présidence française du conseil de l'Union européenne qui débutera le premier
janvier prochain (programme). La visite sera l'occasion de présenter l'ensemble des mesures
adoptées jeudi dernier par la Commission visant à protéger l'intégrité des élections et un débat
démocratique ouvert, et en particulier le règlement sur la transparence de la publicité politique.
Seront aussi évoqués les moyens et actions nécessaires à la protection des démocraties
européennes, notamment la lutte contre la haine en ligne, la désinformation et la préservation de
l'État de droit ainsi que des mesures spécifiques telles que la future législation européenne sur la
liberté des médias annoncée par la présidente von der Leyen, visant à protéger l'indépendance des
médias. (For more information: Johannes Bahrke – Tel.: +32 229 58615; Christian Wigand - Tel.:
+32 229 62253; Charles Manoury – Tel.: +32 229 13391; Katarzyna Kolanko - Tel.: +32 229 63444)

Liste des points prévus à l'ordre du jour des prochaines réunions de la Commission
Veuillez noter que ces informations sont données sous réserve de modifications.

Prochains événements de la Commission européenne
Eurostat: communiqués de presse

The Spokesperson's Service has re-opened the Berlaymont press room to a limited number
of journalists. For more information, please see here.

UPDATED ON 29-11-2021 at 14:30
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