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COOPERATION AGREEMENT

between the European Economic Community and the Kingdom of Norway on a research and development programme in the field of metals and mineral substances

THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC COMMUNITY,

hereinafter referred to as 'the Community',

and

THE GOVERNMENT OF THE KINGDOM OF NORWAY,

hereinafter referred to as 'Norway',

Whereas, by its Decision of 17 May 1982, the Council of the European Communities, hereinafter referred to as 'the Council', adopted a research and development programme (1982 to 1985) in the raw materials sector, including a sub-programme on metals and mineral substances;

Whereas comprehensive metal and mineral research programmes, taking into account disciplines such as geology of ore deposits, applied geophysics and applied geochemistry, are carried out in Norway, financed by, in particular, the Royal Norwegian Council for Scientific and Industrial Research and institutes such as the Geological Service of Norway, the Norwegian Institute of Technology and the University of Oslo;

Whereas the Community and Norway expect to derive mutual benefit from a coordination of the research and development work which they carry out in the field of metals and mineral substances;

Whereas on 18 July 1978 the Council agreed on certain details of cooperation within the framework of European cooperation in the field of scientific and technical research (COST),

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

The Community and Norway, hereinafter referred to as the 'Contracting Parties', shall cooperate for a period lasting until 31 December 1985 in the Community programme on minerals (indirect actions and coordinated activities), hereinafter referred to as 'the programme', as described in Annex A.

Article 2

The financial contribution by the Contracting Parties to the implementation of the programme shall be 25 575 000 ECU, divided as follows:

- 25 million ECU from the Community for a four-year period beginning on 1 January 1982,

- 575 000 ECU from Norway for the period referred to in Article 1.

The ECU is that defined in the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities and in the financial provisions adopted pursuant to that Regulation.

The rules governing the financing of this Agreement are set out in Annex B.

Article 3

For Norwegian persons and undertakings, the terms and conditions for the submission and evaluation of proposals, as well as for the granting and conclusion of shared-cost contracts, shall be the same as those applied for Community persons and undertakings.

Article 4

The Commission of the European Communities, hereinafter referred to as 'the Commission', shall ensure the implementation of the indirect actions and be responsible for the coordinated activities of the programme.

The Management and Coordination Advisory Committee for raw materials and other materials, hereinafter referred to as 'the Committee', shall be enlarged to include representatives appointed by Norway, not exceeding three in number, for the purpose of all activities arising from the programme covered by this Agreement.

The terms of reference and the composition of the Committee are defined in accordance with the Council Decision of 29 June 1984 on structures and procedures for the management and coordination of Community research, development and demonstration activities.

Article 5

Information resulting from the execution of the indirect actions listed in Annex A shall be disseminated in accordance with Council Regulation (EEC) No 2380/74 of 17 September 1974 adopting provisions for the dissemination of information relating to research programmes for the European Economic Community as far as the Commission is entitled to do so. The rights and obligations for Norway and Norwegian persons and undertakings shall be the same as those laid down by the above Regulation for Member States and persons and undertakings which pursue a research or production activity on the territory of a Member State.

Article 6

1. In accordance with a procedure laid down by the Commission after having consulted the Committee, Norway and the States taking part in the coordinated activities listed in Annex A (hereinafter referred to as 'the participating States'), and the Commission, shall regularly exchange all useful information resulting from the execution of the research covered by such activities. The participating States shall provide the Commission with all information relevant for coordination purposes. They shall also endeavour to provide the Commission with information on similar research planned or carried out by other bodies. Any information shall be treated as confidential if so requested by the participating State which provides it.

2. The Commission shall prepare annual progress reports on the basis of the information supplied and forward them to the participating States.

3. At the end of the coordination period the Commission, after having consulted the Committee, shall forward to the participating States a comprehensive report on the execution and results of the coordinated activities.

Article 7

The Contracting Parties shall consult with each other, if one of them so requests, on any problem arising out of the application of this Agreement.

Article 8

This Agreement shall apply, on the one hand, to the territories in which the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community is applied and under the conditions laid down in that Treaty and, on the other hand, to the territory of the Kingdom of Norway.

Article 9

1. As soon as possible after signing this Agreement, each of the Contracting Parties shall notify the Secretary-General of the Council of the European Communities of the completion of the internal procedures necessary for the implementation of this Agreement.

2. This Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the month following that in which the second of the Contracting Parties forwards the notification referred to in paragraph 1.

Before this Agreement enters into force, Norway may take part in the work of the Committee.

3. Other European States which took part in the Ministerial Conference held in Brussels on 22 and 23 November 1971 may be associated with the programme, under fair and equitable conditions, by separate Agreements with the Community.

The Community shall keep Norway informed of such further Agreements.

4. The Secretary-General of the Council of the European Communities shall notify each of the Contracting Parties of the lodging of the notifications referred to in paragraph 1 and of the date of entry into force of this Agreement.

Article 10

This Agreement shall be drawn up in a single original in the Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Greek, Italian and Norwegian languages, each text being equally authentic. It shall be deposited in the archives of the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Communities, which shall forward a certified copy to each of the Contracting Parties.

ANNEX A

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

1.2.3 // // // // Research topics // Indirect action // Coordinated action // // // // 1. EXPLORATION // // // 1.1. Geology of ore deposits and of their host rocks // × // × // 1.2. Geochemical methods // × // × // 1.3. Geophysical methods // × // × // 1.4. Remote sensing // × // × // 1.5. Drilling techniques // × // × // 1.6. Statistics and geostatistics applied to exploration data // × // × // 2. ORE PROCESSING // // // 2.1. Complex lead, zinc and copper ores // × // × // 2.2. Other complex and oxidized ores // × // × // 2.3. Aluminium from low-grade sources // × // × // 2.4. Chromium from low-grade sources // × // × // 2.5. Phosphates // × // × // 2.6. Slags and residues // × // × // 2.7. Modelling and control in mineral processing // × // × // 2.8. Improved mineralogical analysis // × // × // 3. MINING TECHNOLOGY // // // 3.1. Problems associated with depth // × // × // 3.2. Marginally economic deposits // × // × // 3.3. Geostatistics and modelling in mineral exploitation // × // × // // //

ANNEX B

FINANCING RULES

Article 1

These provisions lay down the financial rules referred to in Article 2 of the Agreement.

Article 2

When the Agreement enters into force, the Commission shall send to Norway a call for funds corresponding to the amount laid down in Article 2 of the Agreement.

This contribution shall be expressed both in ECU and in the currency of Norway, the value of the ECU being that defined in the Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities and determined on the date of the call for funds.

The total contributions shall cover the travel and subsistence costs of the delegates to the Committee, in addition to the implementation costs proper.

Norway shall pay its contribution to the costs under the Agreement at the latest three month after the issue of the call for funds by the Commission. Any delay in payment shall give rise to the payment of interest by Norway - at a rate equal to the highest discount rate obtaining in the participating States on the due date. The rate shall be increased by 0,25 of a percentage point for each month of delay. The increased rate shall be applied to the entire period of delay.

Article 3

The funds paid by Norway shall be credited to the relevant programmes as budget receipts allocated to a heading in the statement of revenue of the budget of the Commission.

Article 4

The provisional timetable for the implementation costs referred to in Article 2 of the Agreement is appended hereto.

Article 5

The Financial Regulation applicable to the general budget of the European Communities shall apply to the management of the appropriations.

Article 6

At the end of each financial year, a statement of appropriations for the programme shall be prepared and forwarded to Norway for information.

Appendix

PROVISIONAL TIMETABLE REFERRED TO IN ARTICLE 4 OF ANNEX B

1.2,3.4,5.6,7.8,9.10,11.12,13 // // // // // // // // // 1982 // 1983 // 1984 // 1985 // 1986 // Total // // // // // // 1.2.3.4.5.6.7.8.9.10.11.12.13 // // AC // AP // AC // AP // AC // AP // AC // AP // AC // AP // AC // AP // // // // // // // // // // // // // // 1. Initial estimate of overall requirements: // // // // // // // // // // // // // - staff // 453 800 // 453 800 // 512 000 // 512 000 // 548 200 // 548 200 // 592 000 // 592 000 // - // - // 2 106 000 // 2 106 000 // - administrative operating expenditure // 198 300 // 198 300 // 219 300 // 219 300 // 238 000 // 238 000 // 253 000 // 253 000 // - // - // 908 600 // 908 600 // - contracts // 4 124 900 // 1 417 900 // 10 209 700 // 2 459 700 // 4 613 800 // 5 163 800 // 3 478 000 // 10 836 000 // - // 2 549 000 // 22 426 400 // 22 426 400 // Total // 4 777 000 // 2 070 000 // 10 941 000 // 3 191 000 // 5 400 000 // 5 950 000 // 4 323 000 // 11 681 000 // - // 2 549 000 // 25 441 000 (*) // 25 441 000 (*) // // // // // // // // // // // // // // 2. Revised estimate of expenditure taking into account additional requirements resulting from the accession of Norway: // // // // // // // // // // // // // - staff // 453 800 // 453 800 // 512 000 // 512 000 // 548 200 // 548 200 // 592 000 // 592 000 // - // - // 2 106 000 // 2 106 000 // - administrative operating expenditure // 198 300 // 198 300 // 219 300 // 219 300 // 238 000 // 238 000 // 253 000 // 253 000 // - // - // 908 600 // 908 600 // - contracts // 4 124 900 // 1 417 900 // 10 209 700 // 2 459 700 // 4 613 800 // 5 163 800 // 4 053 000 // 11 056 000 // - // 2 904 000 // 23 001 400 // 23 001 400 // New Total // 4 777 000 // 2 070 000 // 10 941 000 // 3 191 000 // 5 400 000 // 5 950 000 // 4 898 000 // 11 901 000 // - // 2 904 000 // 26 016 000 // 26 016 000 // // // // // // // // // // // // // // 3. Difference between (1) and (2) to be covered by contribution from Norway // - // - // - // - // - // - // 575 000 // 220 000 // - // 355 000 // 575 000 // 575 000 // // // // // // // // // // // // //

AC = account credited.

AP = account paid.

(*) The amount of 441 000 ECU accrues from the transfer derived from the integration of the programme on uranium exploration extraction into the programme on raw materials.