Financing of additional activities within projects in implementation under the PA16/RO12 Programme, Round 2/2016

Within the PA16/RO12 Programme Conservation and revitalisation of cultural and natural heritage, 28 projects with a total value of 71,862,272.54 RON are financed through EEA Grants 2009-2014.

According to EEA Regulation (art. 6.9), unallocated funds after calls for projects and funds that have upon project closure not been fully utilized can be reallocated to finance additional activities that contribute to the objectives of already approved projects. Therefore, the possibility of increasing the grant awarded in the financing contract by including additional activities – new activities (new outputs) or expansion of activities already provided in the project (increase existing outputs) - is available only for projects under implementation in PA16/RO12 Programme.

Financing such additional activities aims at increasing the project’s impact and its sustainability by including new output indicators or increasing those already included in the approved project.

The eligible beneficiaries for submitting an application to increase the awarded grant in order to implement additional activities and / or extend the already approved activities (both hereinafter called additional activities) are project promoters who are implementing a grant contract under PA16/RO12 Programme when submitting the application for proposed additional activities.

The budget allocated by the Programme Operator to finance additional activities within the projects is 500.000 EUR. This amount may be increased if additional financial resources are identified. Any increase in the budget call will be announced on the Programme website (http://www.fonduri-patrimoniu.ro)

The value of the proposed additional activities shall be between 10,000 EUR and 100,000 EUR (calculated using InforEuro exchange rate of the month when the call was launched 1 Euro = 4.4530 RON), but shall not exceed 50% of the initial grant for the on-going project. The budget template will be filled in RON, VAT included.

The supplementation of the initial grant does not change the project grant rate established in the grant contract, respectively 100% for public institutions and maximum 90% for NGOs and other private entities. Therefore, the latter will consider providing co-financing corresponding to the additional grant approved.

Approved expenses related to proposed additional activities will be included in the project budget, with the update (if necessary) of the implementation and reporting schedule. PP may request in advance maximum 50% of the approved amount for additional activities. Further payments will be made under the same conditions as those stipulated in the initial grant contract.

Following the approval of the application for funding additional activities, the project implementation period may be extended no later than 30 April 2017 and the final date of eligibility of expenditure shall not exceed 31st May 2017.

Eligible activities and costs are the same as those mentioned in the original call text (large projects and small grant scheme), except activities and costs related to construction works, indirect costs (overheads) and contingencies costs, which are not eligible. During the assessment process, the Programme Operator will check both the justification of the additional activities proposed in relation to the project objectives, and the proportionality of costs in relation to the expected results.

The grant contract related to approved additional activities will be amended accordingly by addendum (grant increased, additional activities included, budget updated, reviewing the implementation and reporting schedule, extending implementation period etc.).
The project promoter will be responsible for preparing and submitting the application form for proposed additional activities and obtaining, in advance, the partner’s agreement for the proposed additional activities (for projects undertaken in partnership) if the case. A project promoter may submit up to one application form for additional activities.

The application file for additional activities within the projects under implementation may be submitted by registered mail, by courier or submitted personally at the premises of the Programme Operator (Project Management Unit, Ministry of Culture, 22 Unirii Bld., 5th floor, room 503, 3rd district, Bucharest). The deadline for submission of applications is 2nd of December 2016, 14:00.

The application file for additional activities must include the following documents:

  1. Application form – drafted in Romanian and a summary in English – original document
  2. Budget for proposed additional activities – original document
  3. Written agreement of project partner, if applicable – certified copy of the original document
  4. Supporting documents for market research to justify the expenses related to proposed additional activities

All pages will be numbered and stamped. The application file will contain an identical copy of the documents scanned in .pdf format. The application form and budget will be submitted in editable version too.

Evaluation and selection of applications for additional activities are the responsibility of the Programme Operator. The final decision on funding additional activities will be made by the Selection Committee based on the evaluation of each application by two independent experts according to the assessment grid. During the evaluation process, the Programme Operator may request additional clarifications. In order to be eligible for financing, a project must have at least 70 points (the average of the scores awarded by the two assessors). In case of equal scores, the tie will be based on the criterion "Contribution of the additional activities results to the increase of the Programme’s outputs". If in this case the scores are still equal, the tie will be done according to the score obtained under "Contribution of the additional activities to project sustainability".

The list of approved applications, in the order of their score, will be published on the Programme Operator’s website. After the reunion of the Selection Committee the additional grant will be awarded according to the ranking list, within the available budget. Should the Programme Operator identify additional funds, other proposals for additional activities will be financed according to the ranking list and within the supplemented budget.

Financing additional activities will fully comply with the requirements of the applicant's guide for the call for large projects and small grant scheme as well as the grant contracts already concluded.