Press release
03 April 2009
Ministry of Education and Research
Agreement reached: Denmark prepared to pay 12.5 per cent of European Spallation Source in Lund
Sweden has offered to host the European Spallation Source (ESS) research facility. Several other European countries are also interested in building the facility, which will cost around SEK 13 billion.
Sweden has offered to pay 30 per cent of the cost of the facility, while one of its competitors, Spain, has offered to cover 50 per cent. Endeavours are therefore under way to form a Nordic-Baltic consortium to match the Spanish bid.
Sweden's Minister for Higher Education and Research Lars Leijonborg and Denmark's Minister for Science, Technology and Innovation Helge Sander today signed an agreement under which Denmark will co-host the project.
The agreement establishes that Denmark will cover 12.5 per cent of the costs of the ESS. The agreement also means that ESS data centres will be situated in Copenhagen.
"I am delighted that Sweden and Denmark together can offer the rest of Europe an absolutely world-class research environment," says Mr Leijonborg.
The decision on which country is to build the ESS is planned for May. As the current holders of the Presidency of the EU, the Czech Republic has undertaken management of the decision-making process, which will culminate in a meeting in Prague on the evening of 4 May.
"The campaign is very intense at the moment. I myself am darting around Europe convincing my colleagues that Lund is the best place for this important research facility. Now that the agreement with Denmark is complete I have even more good arguments to back my cause," says Mr Leijonborg.
