European Research Infrastructure Consortiums and Economic Activity: To What Extent (If Any) Should ERICs be Subjected to Rules that Restrict Their Economic Activity?

In 2009, the European Union introduced the European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC) to provide a legal framework for organisations in which EU Member States and other countries could collaborate on the establishment and operation of research infrastructures. Today, 30 ERICs have been set up and operate with headquarters in various European countries. As ERICs’ primary task is to conduct research activities, they are subject to rules limiting their ability to engage in economic activity. This article examines these rules in light of recent Commission statements regarding the concept of economic activity under the regulation that established the ERIC (the ERIC Regulation) and offers suggestions for amending the regulation’s rules on economic activity.