Like the European Commission in July (see EUROPE 13452/18), the Council of the EU is expected, on Friday 29 November, to recognise the progress made since the start of the implementation of the EU Space Programme in 2021, “particularly in consolidating the various EU space activities under a single regulatory framework, significantly enhancing the coherence, efficiency, and strategic impact of the EU’s space-related initiatives”.
According to draft conclusions, the European ministers will stress that, despite the difficult global context, the programme has maintained its overall trajectory of success and has begun to integrate new components in an appropriate manner. It has contributed to the EU’s strategic priorities, according to the ministers, who will also praise its role in strengthening “the EU’s resilience and strategic autonomy in an open economy” and its contribution to reducing dependence on non-European space systems.
The EU Council is expected to welcome as well the successful implementation of Copernicus, Galileo and EGNOS and the timely progress in new initiatives such as GOVSATCOM and Space Situational Awareness (SSA). However, it may regret that some of Galileo’s capabilities have not yet been achieved, “partly due to issues related to launch services“. The EU Council is therefore expected to ask the Commission to give priority to the deployment of satellites.
It could also call on the Commission and the Member States to continue strengthening space surveillance and tracking (SST) capabilities.
The EU Council will reportedly stress the “urgent need” to address the growing threats to the safety and resilience of the Space Programme. “Decisive action is required to ensure the long-term sustainability of space activities”, says the EU Council, which also recognises the need to reduce the dependence of the EU’s space programme on third countries.
Furthermore, Member States are expected to commend the overall performance of the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA) in managing the tasks assigned under the Space Programme, its role as the programme’s space safety oversight structure and its efforts, “which have helped to ensure efficient service delivery and secure management of space assets and to promote innovation and market take-up within the EU space sector”.
The EU Council will reportedly call for the streamlining of procurement processes and greater integration of new players into the programme. It could stress as well the importance of “open and transparent public procurement processes which support the development of a diversified and innovative European space industry, taking into account the objective of promoting the Union’s strategic autonomy”.
Finally, the ministers are expected to invite the Commission to promote a strong EU space economy by strengthening competitiveness, innovation, entrepreneurship, skills and capacity building in all Member States.
To see the draft conclusions: https://aeur.eu/f/egx (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)