Dear Mr P.,
On 18 February 2000, you made a complaint to the European Ombudsman on behalf of the Finnish Environment Institute concerning the alleged failure by the European Commission to pay the second instalment by the European Commission in relation to the project "Management of water runoff in arable farming areas" (LIFE97/ENV/FIN/000335). Furthermore, the complainant alleged that the Commission had not replied to a request for the extension of the project.
On 27 March 2000, I forwarded the complaint to the President of the European Commission. On 7 April 2000, you informed me that, as requested, the project has been extended until 31 December 2000. On 5 July 2000, the Commission sent an opinion on your complaint and I forwarded it to you with an invitation to make observations, which you sent on 16 August 2000.
I am writing now to let you know the results of the inquiries that have been made.

THE COMPLAINT

In 1997 the Commission decided in favour of funding the project "Management of water of runoff in arable farming areas" (LIFE97/ENV/FIN/335). The project officially began on 1 August 1997, and was to run for 32 months. The final budget for the project is FIM 4.2 million of which, according to the Commission's decision, the LIFE fund was to provide 49,16 %.
The Commission paid the first instalment of 40 % (FIM 830 000) early on, during the initial stage of the project. However, the next instalment of 40 %, which was to have been paid by the Commission on the basis of an interim report on the project, has still not been forthcoming. The interim report dealt with work on the project and its results from the period of 1 August 1997 until 30 November 1998, and was forwarded to the Commission in mid-February 1999. Accordingly, the next instalment should have been paid to the project, at the latest, by the end of April the same year.
A request for an extension of the project until the end of year 2000 has been made to the Commission, but the Commission has not replied to this request.
The complainant alleges that the Commission has failed:
(i) to pay the second instalment of its support for the project, which was due by the end of April 1999;
(ii) to reply to a request, made on the basis of a progress report submitted in October 1999, for extension of the project until the end of the year 2000.

THE INQUIRY

The Commission's opinion
In its opinion the Commission made the following points:
The Commission confirmed the facts as the complainant presented them. Furthermore, the Commission explained that the post as desk officer for LIFE Environment projects in the Nordic Countries (Denmark, Finland and Sweden) was vacant during the period of September 1998 - December 1999 as a result of administrative procedures and lack of candidates with the necessary linguistic requirements. The absence of a desk officer combined with a very high workload for the other country desks has led to considerable delays in the evaluation and processing of files from Finland, Denmark and Sweden which most of the time require specific linguistic skills.
As to the complaint, the Commission explained that since December 1999 there has been a new desk-officer for the Nordic countries and the backlog with outstanding issues is constantly being reduced. With regard to the issues related to project LIFE97/ENV/FIN/335 progress has been made during the last months:
- Following an exchange of e-mails concerning justifications for the project extension asked for by the Beneficiary in October 1999, an extension until 31 December 2000 was granted by the Commission in a letter dated 17 March 2000 (also notified to the Beneficiary by fax on 17 March 2000), and
- The desk has reviewed the payment request for the second payment and this request is currently being transferred to the financial unit for payment.
The Commission apologised for the delays which occurred during the absence of a desk officer responsible for LIFE Environment projects in Finland and assures that in the light of the changed circumstances these previously encountered delays will be significantly reduced.
The complainant's observations
The complainant has not sent any observations.
On 29 August 2000, the European Ombudsman's secretariat contacted the complainant in order to inquire whether the complainant was satisfied with the outcome. The complainant expressed his satisfaction with the positive outcome of the inquiry. According to the complainant, the final payment was made in May 2000.

THE DECISION

1 Alleged failure to pay the second instalment
The complainant alleged that the Commission had not paid the second instalment of its support for the project which was due by the end of April 1999. In its opinion the Commission explained that the absence of a desk officer combined with a very high workload for the other country desks led to considerable delays in the evaluation and processing of files from Finland. The Commission apologised for the delays, which occurred during the absence of a desk officer responsible for LIFE Environment projects in Finland. The complainant expressed his satisfaction to the outcome. The Commission has therefore taken steps to settle the matter and has thereby satisfied the complaint.
2 Alleged failure to reply to a request for an extension
The complainant alleged a failure to reply to a request, made on the basis of a progress report submitted in October 1999, for extension of the project until the end of the year 2000. In its opinion the Commission explained that the project extension until 31 December 2000 was granted by the Commission in a letter to the complainant dated 17 March 2000. On 7 April 2000, the complainant informed the Ombudsman about the extension. The Commission has therefore taken steps to settle the matter and has thereby satisfied the complaint.
3 Conclusion
It appears from the European Commission's opinion and the complainant's observations that the Commission has taken steps to settle the matter and has thereby satisfied the complaint. The Ombudsman therefore closes the case.
The President of the European Commission will also be informed of this decision.
Yours sincerely,
Jacob SÖDERMAN