FIEC Newsletter – 05 Σεπτεμβρίου 2023

During the General Assembly meeting held on 29 June, Alain Grizaud was elected President of our French member federation FNTP (Fédération Nationale des Travaux Publics) for a 3-year term. He succeeds Bruno Cavagné, who has held the FNTP presidency since 2013.Mr Grizaud took over the management of Cousin Pradère in 1985, a family business specialised in pipe-laying based in Castelsarrasin, in the Tarn-et-Garonne region, which he continues to run today with his son, Florent.

FIEC congratulates Mr Grizaud for his election and thanks Bruno Cavagné, the outgoing FNTP President for the commitment and valuable work done during the last 10 years.

On 7 July, FIEC Vice-President, Jean-Pierre Paseri, was elected president of Routes de France, a member organisation of our French member Fédération Nationale des Travaux Publics (FNTP).A public works engineer, Mr. Paseri has dedicated his career to the construction of transport infrastructure, in particular roads and highways.

At the FIEC Conference & General Assembly held in Rome on 12 May, former EU Commissioner and Chief Negotiator on Brexit, Michel Barnier, stressed the importance of unity in Europe during a time of heightened political tension around the world. Mr Barnier looked ahead, together with FIEC and its members, and shared his views on the upcoming EU 2024 elections.If you missed the event you can read the article published by Construction Europe. on the FIEC website at this link. and you can watch a short video with the key moments by clicking on the button below.

On 31st July, the European Commission officially adopted the first set of the so-called European sustainability reporting standards (ESRS) under the new Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). The standards cover the full range of environmental, social, and governance issues, including climate change, biodiversity and human rights. They provide information for investors to understand the sustainability impact of the companies in which they invest.

The standards must now be approved by the European Parliament and the Member States. They will apply from 1st January 2024 onwards.

On 11 July, the European Parliament officially adopted its position on the proposal for a revised Construction Products Regulation (CPR).MEPs agreed to exclude the “direct installation” of products but, compared to the Council’s position, did not explicitly exclude “services” from the scope. A broad definition of “economic operators” was also retained in the position.

Interinstitutional negotiations on the CPR between the European Parliament, the Member States and the European Commission started on 17 July under the Spanish EU Council Presidency.

On 12 July, MEPs also adopted their position on the controversial Nature Restoration Law (NRL) proposal.  The trialogue negotiations started at the end of July.

Moreover, MEPs officially adopted the agreement resulting from interinstitutional negotiations on the recast Energy Efficiency Directive, which will, inter alia, oblige Member States to renovate each year at least 3% of the total floor area of heated and/or cooled buildings owned by public bodies.

European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic (Slovakia) will temporarily oversee the “Green Deal” after Executive Vice President Frans Timmermans quit to run as a candidate in Dutch national elections in November.Sefcovic previously oversaw EU relations with the United Kingdom and the EU’s joint gas-buying programme to replace Russian gas supplies.