In the new draft Common Provisions Regulation for Cohesion Policy, Major Projects are replaced by Operations of Strategic Importance, while large investment projects are no longer subject to an EU centralised approval mechanism. Nor is there an explicit mention of using Cost-Benefit Analysis. However, significant obligations regarding the selection of operations will remain in force, with a major shift of responsibilities from the EU to Member States.

At the national level, establishing and enforcing the methodology and criteria for the selection of operations will continue to be part of the remit of the Managing Authority and the Monitoring Committee.

Notably, Article 67 of the draft Common Provisions Regulation (CPR) indicates that in selecting operations the Managing Authority shall:

• ensure that selected operations present the best relationship between the amount of support, the activities undertaken and the achievement of objectives;
• verify that the beneficiary has the necessary financial resources and mechanisms to cover operation and maintenance

The former requirement means that the cost-benefit ratio of a project should be optimised; the latter demands an analysis of the long-term sustainability of the project. Article 67 therefore indicates that rigorous project appraisal techniques must be applied in project selection, and that CBA should still be used for the selection of larger projects.

For the next programming period 2021–2027, a new Economic Appraisal VADEMECUM will be provided by the EC, to support Member States. It will highlight good practices in project appraisal, offering a guide to simplified CBA, and other appraisal techniques, such as cost-effectiveness tests and multi-criteria analyses.

In this online course, experts from the European Commission, the European Investment Bank, JASPERS and INEA (the Innovation and Networks Executive Agency) will discuss:

• best practice in using CBA for project appraisal
• best practice from Major Projects
• the new DG REGIO requirements
• alternative project appraisal techniques; project quality standards, 2021-2027
• Operations of Strategic Importance (OSI)
• Using CBA under the Connecting Europe Facility

Who will benefit most?

• Beneficiaries eligible for Structural Funds, the Cohesion Fund, CEF and IPA III, Managing authorities, intermediate bodies, auditors and consulting companies;
• Other actors involved in EU funding programmes and

What you will learn in this course

The training will present principles, methods and criteria which can be used by public decision-makers. It will help them to better understand what information is required in order to assess the financial and economic viability of an investment project, and so make the best co-financing decisions in 2021–2027. It will also show us how to avoid mistakes.

Key elements will be practised during workshops with the direct involvement of our EC, INEA, EIB and JASPERS experts. You will receive the most relevant information about the future use of CBA in the post-2020 period.