EARTO publishes 'Position Paper on the Future EU Governance for Technology Infrastructures'

EARTO, the organisation representing the interests of research and technology organistions in Europe, has published a 'Position Paper on the Future EU Governance for Technology Infrastructures'.

EARTO regards RTOs as the primary operators, investors, and innovators within the European technology infrastructures (TIs) ecosystem and calls for them to be fully represented in the governance of the EU Forum on Technology Infrastructures (the ‘TI Forum’). EARTO supports the establishment of the dedicated EU Forum on Technology Infrastructures as foreseen in the European Strategy on RTIs (September 2025) and calls for its governance to be purpose-fit, inclusive and operational from early 2027 onwards to oversee the development of the pilots launched. In its paper, EARTO analyses three governance scenarios and recommends a phased, pragmatic approach: launch with a credible advisory structure and build towards a full Forum with an investment mandate. The paper stresses the importance of multi-stakeholder representation in governance, a TI-specific mandate clearly distinct from ESFRI, sectoral thematic working groups, and a permanent secretariat.

The position paper includes seven recommendations:

1. Launch the EU Forum on Technology Infrastructures – Preparatory Phase immediately, targeting operational launch by early 2027 at the latest, as a Scenario C-type advisory mechanism with a binding transition to a full Forum by 2028.
2. Establish a permanent, CSA-funded secretariat from the outset, with capacity to develop investment roadmaps, maintain a European TI mapping tool and support thematic working groups.
3. Define the Forum’s mandate as investment-linked from Phase 2 onwards, with a formal role in advising on FP10 RTIs programme & European Competitiveness Fund’s priorities and national co-investment frameworks, including via the NRPPs (i.e. to be introduced in their upcoming template).
4. Establish clear interfaces between the Forum and ESFRI to exploit synergies while preserving the TI specific mandate and governance.
5. Integrate the Charter of Access for Industrial Users to RTIs into the TI Forum’s mandate, making access policy development a core Forum activity whilst taking into account the different modes of access that TIs can provide.
6. Ensure that the TI Forum’s thematic groups are aligned with the EU Competitiveness Compass and the European Competitiveness Fund’s priorities to ensure TI governance is embedded in the EU industrial strategy.
7. Involve EARTO and its members, and other key TIs’ owners, actively in the design and governance of the Forum: as the primary operator community for European TIs for a long time, RTOs must be co architects of the Forum, in order to make use of their experience in an optimal way.

For more information:

EARTO Position Paper on the Future EU Governance for Technology Infrastructures