This week has seen ESS and the Spanish In-Kind Partner ESS Bilbao secure the final In-kind Contribution Agreement (IKCA) for the Construction Phase. This important agreement, which is the final piece in ESS’s in-kind partnership puzzle, marks the successful conclusion of a negotiation process that began in 2019.
The negotiations were complex and comprehensive, covering not only the IKCA as a framework but also significant amendments to ten critical technical annexes. These intricate discussions were finalised in 2022, allowing both the Spanish central government and the Basque government to begin the political processes necessary to extend the ESS Bilbao consortium’s mandate.
Mario Perez, the ESS Bilbao Executive Director, signed the agreement on behalf of the ESS Spanish Council, Ana Aricha, the Vice Deputy Director General for International Consortia, Organisations and Research Infrastructures, Secretary General for Research in the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities. Mario Perez noted that “the internal agreements in preparation to signing the agreement have marked a major step in securing the future of ESS-Bilbao and all its staff. I want to take the opportunity to thank Fiamma García-Toriello, Head of the ESS-Bilbao Management Office, for her great work in finalising this agreement. All of the team here look forward to continuing the excellent collaboration with their central ESS colleagues”.
Helmut Schober, ESS Director General, emphasises the importance of this achievement: “The signing of the Spanish IKCA represents the successful conclusion of a long and challenging negotiation process. This landmark is a testament to the collaboration, perseverance, and strategic partnership between ESS and ESS Bilbao, setting the stage for the successful realisation of one of Europe’s most significant research infrastructure projects. I look forward to the continuing close collaboration with Spanish participants at all levels of the project.”
The negotiations on behalf of ESS were handled by a team from the In-kind Management Division, expertly led by the Senior Legal Officer, Magnus Eriksson, with crucial support from the Accelerator, Target, and Neutron Scattering Systems (NSS) sub-projects. Mark Robinson, the Division Head: “This agreement solidifies ESS’s legally binding commitments with all its in-kind partners. It provides a symmetry to the entire In-Kind landscape and enables us to fully recognise and credit ESS Bilbao for their substantial contributions to the construction of the ESS facility. It further allows us to harmonise and re-fresh the terms and conditions of all ten Spanish In-Kind Contribution Technical Annexes which together form a substantial contribution to the ESS facility”.