European railway associations call for the creation of a successor to EU-Rail

icarussmith20
1 day ago
3 min read

Five European railway associations (CER, EIM, UIP, UITP, and UNIFE) are calling on the European Commission to create a successor to the EU-Rail Joint Undertaking partnership, within the Horizon Europe program, to continue and boost the development of the European railway sector. At the same time, they support the Commission’s proposal for the new European Competitiveness Fund (ECF) under the next multiannual financial framework (MFF) 2028-2034.

The successor to the EU-Rail Joint Undertaking should have a minimum investment of EUR 3 billion and EUR 15 billion for the pre-implementation phase to enable the mobilization of long-term private investment, increase the competitiveness of the European rail energy supply industry, contribute to achieving the political objectives of the single European railway area, but also cover regional/urban rail systems and thus strengthen and develop our European industry.

The associations point out that a legal framework should ensure that no direct financial contribution is required from members in order to ensure the widest possible participation of private and public entities. Contributions in kind should be an option, which would facilitate access to the partnership, especially for small players, mainly in the local, urban rail market. Contributions in kind enhance the industry’s commitment and dedication to an innovative rail sector.

In line with the objectives of the Horizon Europe program, the association supports better inclusion of SMEs and supports any simplification to reduce the administrative burden, ensuring a focus on technical content.

Also with regard to the creation of the successor to EU-Rail, the associations point out that there should be clarity and predictability regarding budgetary commitments. In this regard, fixed budgetary commitments should be assumed in proportion of 50% by the EU and 50% by the industry.

Currently, the EU contribution is flexible, set at a maximum of 50%, resulting in the problem that if the EU reduces its contribution, this must be compensated by industry. Also, given the duration of the partnership, there should be some flexibility to adjust the budget allocation and related competitive calls.

Other requests submitted by associations

The next MFF has EUR 1.8 trillion available, including EUR 243 billion for the ECF and EUR 51 billion for the next Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) program, Transport component.

These investments demonstrate the European Union’s commitment to technological sovereignty, green and digital transitions, and global competitiveness. In this financial context, we call on the European Commission, the European Parliament, and Member States to ensure that the funds generate concrete benefits across the European Union. In addition to establishing the successor to the EU-Rail Joint Undertaking, the associations also call for:

Ensuring a sufficient budget for research and innovation, half of which comes from the Horizon Europe instrument, with the rest coming from the European rail industry and sector, plus EUR 15 billion for pre-deployment funding through the ECF, national and private investment, ensuring the necessary level of technological maturity and accelerating market uptake.
Maintaining the inclusive partnership framework that connects the European Commission, the European Union Agency for Railways (ERA), industry, operators, infrastructure managers, research institutes, and SMEs, reflecting the financial contributions of each member.
Ensuring synergies between the transport funding components of the MFF. The European rail sector expresses its strong support for the next CEF-Transport financial instrument – the backbone of EU transport infrastructure investment policy. The associations state that the CEF budget should be increased to EUR 100 billion in order to adequately finance transport investments, and that the transfer of funds from national and regional partnership plans (NRPPs) to the CEF should remain possible.
Furthermore, in developing the European rail sector, the associations call for the differences, commonalities, and links between the Horizon Europe NRPP and CEF-Transport programs to be defined and outlined together with stakeholders in the sector in order to get the most out of these ambitious programs for Europe.