Joint Statement of the European Space Agency and the European Investment Bank

The European Space Agency, an international intergovernmental organisation, hereinafter referred to as “ESA” and duly represented by Johann-Dietrich Wörner, Director General,

 and

the European Investment Bank, the European Union's bank, hereinafter referred to as “EIB” and duly represented by Ambroise Fayolle, Vice President,

Recalling that ESA provides for and promotes for exclusively peaceful purposes, cooperation among European States in space research and technology and their space applications, with a view to their being used for scientific purposes and for operational space applications systems, delivering benefits to the citizens of Europe and beyond;

Recalling that ESA represents the interests of 22 Member States and has various cooperation agreements with numerous other States and organisations;

Recalling that ESA is one of the few agencies in the world to be active in nearly all space domains: space science, human spaceflight, exploration, Earth Observation, transportation, navigation, telecommunications, technology and operations;

Recalling that since 1975, ESA has been instrumental to the development of space capabilities and a globally successful European space sector, including that of global champions such as Eutelsat and Arianespace;

Taking into account that ESA’s Strategy Towards Space 4.0 for a United Space in Europe acknowledges the emergence of new actors and the increasing commercialisation of space, with the traditional value-added chain being transformed through digital technologies, new business models, and smart integrated services. ESA’s Space 4.0 strategic goal is that “in addition to the role as programme manager and implementer through taxpayer’s money […] we should build capabilities in respect of supporting private investments in space, especially by providing technical knowledge and, if needed, risk and investment sharing”;

Recalling that the EIB is the financial investment arm of the European Union (“EU”) created by the Treaty establishing the European Union;

Recalling that the EIB is the EU’s bank owned by and representing the interests of the EU Member States, working closely with other EU institutions and supporting sustainable investment projects that contribute to EU policy objectives, notably to growth and employment in Europe;

Recalling that pursuant to Article 18(7) of its Statutes, as a complement to its lending activity, the EIB may provide technical assistance services in accordance with the terms and conditions set out by its Board of Governors;

Recalling that EIB’s activities focus on the four priority areas: (i) Innovation and skills; (ii) Access to finance for smaller businesses; (iii) Infrastructure; and (iv) Climate and environment;

Acknowledging the importance that Europe maintains an independent access to space;

Acknowledging that ESA and EIB share the objective of enhancing the competitiveness of European industry and promoting investments in space capabilities and capacities, notably through innovation, thus leading to smart growth, highly qualified jobs as well as improving the day-to-day lives of European citizens through innovative products and services;

Acknowledging that ESA and EIB share the view that the access to finance for the various space actors in Europe needs to be facilitated;

Acknowledging that ESA and EIB contribute to these goals by relying on their respective unique experience, expertise, means and resources which can be complementary and which can be used in synergy to deliver shared objectives;

Acknowledging that thanks to decades of institutional investments in space, the space sector is no longer only the preserve of institutional players and that there is an increasing interest in and growing importance of commercialisation at every level of the space value-added chain, from space manufacturing, to transportation, satellite operations and the development of consumer services based on satellite signals and data;

Acknowledging that space innovation is also a pervasive enabler of new value-added products and services in many application sectors such as, amongst others, energy, transport, agriculture, health and epidemics, climate change, security, finance with space thus having an impact on many segments of the economy and the lives of the citizens themselves;

Recalling that ESA and EIB have effectively collaborated in the past, capitalising on their distinct yet complementary roles;

Through this Joint Statement, acknowledge that they share the mutual interest in and declare their political intent to explore ways and means for establishing a closer cooperation to advance their mutually beneficial dialogue and technical working level to enhance the competitiveness of the European space sector by supporting investments, with a focus on:

• raising awareness among investors of the potential of space as a driver for innovation and growth and the need to attract, pool and channel financing with the aim of increasing investment in the European space sector, thus helping create a level-playing field for European companies to grow and become globally competitive;

• identifying and assessing the potential to support actors in the space sector that have promising short- or medium-term growth perspectives;

• exploring opportunities for improving the access to finance for promoters of space projects, including via the study of suitable joint instruments in order to facilitate and increase available financing in the coming years

Done in twofold in the English language, in Luxembourg on 10 July 2018

For the European Investment Bank: Ambroise Fayolle, Vice President

For the European Space Agency: Johann Dietrich Wörner, Director General