Dear Madam, Sir,

Under the right of access to documents in the EU treaties, as developed in Regulation 1049/2001, I am requesting documents which contain the following information:

- the OLAF report about the €400mln loan to Volkswagen (Volkswagen Antrieb RDI)
- the administrative recommendation received from OLAF regarding the loan to Volkswagen
- EIB internal documents, including but not limited memo's, papers, e-mails, and letters, discussing the above-mentioned report and/or recommendation from OLAF regarding the loan to Volkswagen

All the best,
Peter Teffer
EUobserver
Rue Montoyer 18B
1000 Brussels
Belgium

EIB Infodesk, European Investment Bank

Dear Mr. Teffer,

Thank you for your e-mail and interest in the European Investment Bank
(EIB), the long-term financing institution of the European Union.

We hereby confirm receipt of your query.

Your request is currently being dealt with and we will get back to you as
soon as possible.

Many thanks for your kind understanding.

Yours sincerely,
Infodesk Team
European Investment Bank
[EIB request email]
_______________________
For more details concerning EIB procedures for handling information
requests, please refer to the EIB Group "Transparency Policy":
(http://www.eib.org/infocentre/publicatio....
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us.

___________________________________________________________
From: [FOI #5060 email]
To: [email address]
Cc:
Sent: 18/01/2018 14:13:57
Subject: access to documents request - OLAF report VW

Dear Madam, Sir,

Under the right of access to documents in the EU treaties, as developed in
Regulation 1049/2001, I am requesting documents which contain the
following information:

- the OLAF report about the €400mln loan to Volkswagen (Volkswagen Antrieb
RDI)
- the administrative recommendation received from OLAF regarding the loan
to Volkswagen
- EIB internal documents, including but not limited memo's, papers,
e-mails, and letters, discussing the above-mentioned report and/or
recommendation from OLAF regarding the loan to Volkswagen

All the best,
Peter Teffer
EUobserver
Rue Montoyer 18B
1000 Brussels
Belgium

-------------------------------------------------------------------

This is a request for access to information under Article 15 of the TFEU
and, where applicable, Regulation 1049/2001 which has been sent via the
AsktheEU.org website.

Please kindly use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #5060 email]

If [EIB request email] is the wrong address for information requests to European
Investment Bank, please tell the AsktheEU.org team on email
[email address]

This message and all replies from European Investment Bank will be
published on the AsktheEU.org website. For more information see our
dedicated page for EU public officials at
[1]https://www.asktheeu.org/en/help/officers

-------------------------------------------------------------------

______________________________________
EIB Request Reference: IFD000010197688

show quoted sections

References

Visible links
1. https://www.asktheeu.org/en/help/officers

Dear Madam, Sir,

I refer to my access to documents request from 18 January 2018, which the EIB registered the same day. The EIB had the obligation to answer within 15 working days, but today is already the 22nd working day since my request. I would like to urge you to respond promptly to my request.

All the best,
Peter Teffer

PS: the request involved:
- the OLAF report about the €400mln loan to Volkswagen (Volkswagen Antrieb RDI)
- the administrative recommendation received from OLAF regarding the loan to Volkswagen
- EIB internal documents, including but not limited memo's, papers, e-mails, and letters, discussing the above-mentioned report and/or recommendation from OLAF regarding the loan to Volkswagen

EIB Infodesk, European Investment Bank

Dear Mr. Teffer,

Thank you for your message regarding your access to documents request of
18 January 2018 sent to the European Investment Bank (EIB) via the
AsktheEU.org website.

We would like to confirm that your request is still being handled by the
Bank in accordance with the provisions of the EIB Group Transparency
Policy
(http://www.eib.org/infocentre/publicatio...).

Given the complexity of your request, and in line with Articles 5.23 and
5.24 of the EIB Group Transparency Policy, we have extended the time limit
to respond. We expect to be able to get back to you shortly and within the
30 working days extended deadline foreseen in the Transparency Policy for
such cases.

We thank you in advance for your understanding.

With kind regards,
Infodesk Team
European Investment Bank
[EIB request email]
_______________________
For more details concerning EIB procedures for handling information
requests, please refer to the EIB Group "Transparency Policy":
(http://www.eib.org/infocentre/publicatio...).
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us.
___________________________________________________________
From: [FOI #5060 email]
To: [email address]
Cc:
Sent: 19/02/2018 14:06:33
Subject: RE: access to documents request - OLAF report VW

Dear Madam, Sir,

I refer to my access to documents request from 18 January 2018, which the
EIB registered the same day. The EIB had the obligation to answer within
15 working days, but today is already the 22nd working day since my
request. I would like to urge you to respond promptly to my request.

All the best,
Peter Teffer

PS: the request involved:
- the OLAF report about the €400mln loan to Volkswagen (Volkswagen Antrieb
RDI)
- the administrative recommendation received from OLAF regarding the loan
to Volkswagen
- EIB internal documents, including but not limited memo's, papers,
e-mails, and letters, discussing the above-mentioned report and/or
recommendation from OLAF regarding the loan to Volkswagen

show quoted sections

Dear Madam, Sir,

Thank you for your message dated 19 February 2018, replying to my access to documents request.

You said that you decided to extend the time limit to respond because of “the complexity of [the] request”, and you refer to articles 5.23 and 5.24 of the EIB Group Transparency Policy:

“In exceptional cases, for example in the event of an application relating to a very long document or when the information is not readily available and complex to collate, the time-limit may be extended and the correspondent shall be informed accordingly no later than 15 working days following receipt. .. The Bank shall, however, endeavour to provide a reply to such complex requests no later than 30 working days following receipt.”

Could you explain what made my request so complex?

I can imagine that the third category of my request (EIB internal documents, including but not limited memo's, papers, e-mails, and letters, discussing the above-mentioned report and/or recommendation from OLAF regarding the loan to Volkswagen) could be considered as either complex or voluminous.

But I have strong doubts that the first two items (the OLAF report about the €400mln loan to Volkswagen (Volkswagen Antrieb RDI) and the administrative recommendation received from OLAF regarding the loan to Volkswagen) are either “very long” or “complex to collate”.

Please be advised that you have the option to disclose the report and the administrative recommendation first, and then come back to the more complex parts of the request.

All the best,
Peter

EIB Infodesk, European Investment Bank

Dear Mr Teffer,

Thank you for your follow up message of 22 February 2018 requesting
clarification as to why your access to documents request has been
considered complex by the Bank.

In response to your question, your original access to documents request
concerns two items (the OLAF report and the administrative recommendations
received from OLAF) which are not EIB documents. As such, and in line with
article 5.9 of the EIB group Transparency policy regarding third-party
documents, the Bank needs to consult with the third party in order to
establish whether the information contained in the document is
confidential according to the EIB Transparency Policy. As indicated in
footnote 8 of article 5.22 of the EIB Transparency Policy, requests
concerning information that relates to third parties may be subject to
increased deadlines.

In addition, and as indicated in your message, your original access to
documents request also concerns several unspecified documents (EIB
internal documents, including but not limited to memos, papers, e-mails,
and letters, discussing the above-mentioned report and/or recommendation
from OLAF regarding the loan to Volkswagen) which need to be first
identified and then assessed in accordance with the provisions of the EIB
Transparency Policy.

Within this context, and as indicated in our previous reply, we are aiming
to be able to provide you with a response as comprehensive as possible in
the coming days and within the 30 working days deadline foreseen for such
requests.

Yours sincerely,
Infodesk Team
European Investment Bank
[EIB request email]
_______________________
For more details concerning EIB procedures for handling information
requests, please refer to the EIB Group "Transparency Policy":
(http://www.eib.org/infocentre/publicatio...).
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us.
___________________________________________________________
From: [FOI #5060 email]
To: [email address]
Cc:
Sent: 22/02/2018 14:51:39
Subject: RE: access to documents request - OLAF report VW

Dear Madam, Sir,

Thank you for your message dated 19 February 2018, replying to my access
to documents request.

You said that you decided to extend the time limit to respond because of
“the complexity of [the] request”, and you refer to articles 5.23 and 5.24
of the EIB Group Transparency Policy:

“In exceptional cases, for example in the event of an application relating
to a very long document or when the information is not readily available
and complex to collate, the time-limit may be extended and the
correspondent shall be informed accordingly no later than 15 working days
following receipt. .. The Bank shall, however, endeavour to provide a
reply to such complex requests no later than 30 working days following
receipt.”

Could you explain what made my request so complex?

I can imagine that the third category of my request (EIB internal
documents, including but not limited memo's, papers, e-mails, and letters,
discussing the above-mentioned report and/or recommendation from OLAF
regarding the loan to Volkswagen) could be considered as either complex or
voluminous.

But I have strong doubts that the first two items (the OLAF report about
the €400mln loan to Volkswagen (Volkswagen Antrieb RDI) and the
administrative recommendation received from OLAF regarding the loan to
Volkswagen) are either “very long” or “complex to collate”.

Please be advised that you have the option to disclose the report and the
administrative recommendation first, and then come back to the more
complex parts of the request.

All the best,
Peter

show quoted sections

EIB Infodesk, European Investment Bank

Dear Mr Teffer,

We refer to your access to documents request of 18 January 2018, sent via
the “AsktheEU.org” platform to the European Investment Bank (EIB). We also
refer to our acknowledgment of receipt of the same date. Your application
has been processed under the provisions of the EIB Group Transparency
Policy (EIB-TP).

While the EIB is committed to a policy of presumption of disclosure and
transparency, it also has a duty to respect professional secrecy in
compliance with European laws, as well as legislation to protect personal
data. There are therefore certain constraints on the disclosure of
information/documents held by the Bank, which are further described in
section 5 of the EIB-TP.

With regard to your request for the disclosure of the OLAF report on the
possible misuse of EU funds and European Investment Bank loans by the
Volkswagen Group, the EIB has consulted with OLAF, who is the author and
the owner of the requested report, and assessed whether the information in
the document is confidential according to the EIB-TP (1).

On the basis of this assessment, we regret to inform you that the EIB is
not in a position to disclose this report, as its disclosure would
seriously undermine the protection of i) the privacy and the integrity of
individuals, ii) ongoing court proceedings, iii) the purpose of
investigations (2).

The same exceptions of the EIB TP apply to your request for the disclosure
of the administrative recommendation received from OLAF (which are part of
the OLAF report). The EIB has also taken note of the response provided by
OLAF to your request for public access to this information (3).

We would also like to inform you that the EIB has not produced any
specific internal document related to the above-mentioned report and/or
recommendations from OLAF. Internal e-mails and exchanges related to this
matter cannot be disclosed based on the above-mentioned exceptions of the
EIB TP, as well as to protect the Bank’s decision-making process (4).

On the basis of OLAF’s findings we now know that the EIB was misled by
Volkswagen. The OLAF report recommends that the EIB applies all relevant
measures vis-à-vis Volkswagen AG as provided for under the Bank’s
Anti-Fraud Policy (5).

The EIB continues to keep the evolution of other ongoing judicial
inquiries under review. Naturally, this is being done in close cooperation
with OLAF and all the other stakeholders concerned.

As you know, the EIB is currently not considering any new loans to
Volkswagen and will continue reviewing its business relationships with
Volkswagen in light of the OLAF recommendations and of the outcome of the
ongoing judicial inquiries.

The Bank is considering other potential actions on this matter, but these
can only be taken in the light of the above-mentioned reviews, and are yet
to be decided.

Naturally, the EIB is not a judicial authority and any potential action
will have to be taken solely on the basis of the Bank’s remit and the
measures available to it.

We hope you find this information useful and remain at your disposal
should you need any further clarifications (6).

Yours sincerely,

Infodesk Team
European Investment Bank
[EIB request email]

(1) In line with article 5.9 of the EIB-TP.

(2) In line with article 5.4 b) and with the third and fourth bullets of
article 5.5 of the EIB-TP, respectively.

(3)
[1]https://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/4596...

(4) In line with article 5.6 of the EIB-TP.

(5)
[2]http://www.eib.org/infocentre/publicatio...

(6) In line with Article 5.31 of the EIB Group Transparency Policy, please
be informed that, should you consider this reply as unsatisfactory, you
have the right to make a confirmatory application or lodge a complaint
with the EIB Complaints Mechanism.

_______________________
For more details concerning EIB procedures for handling information
requests, please refer to the EIB Group "Transparency Policy":
(http://www.eib.org/infocentre/publicatio...).
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us.
___________________________________________________________
From: [FOI #5060 email]
To: [email address]
Cc:
Sent: 18/01/2018 14:13:57
Subject: access to documents request - OLAF report VW

Dear Madam, Sir,

Under the right of access to documents in the EU treaties, as developed in
Regulation 1049/2001, I am requesting documents which contain the
following information:

- the OLAF report about the €400mln loan to Volkswagen (Volkswagen Antrieb
RDI)
- the administrative recommendation received from OLAF regarding the loan
to Volkswagen
- EIB internal documents, including but not limited memo's, papers,
e-mails, and letters, discussing the above-mentioned report and/or
recommendation from OLAF regarding the loan to Volkswagen

All the best,
Peter Teffer
EUobserver
Rue Montoyer 18B
1000 Brussels
Belgium

-------------------------------------------------------------------

This is a request for access to information under Article 15 of the TFEU
and, where applicable, Regulation 1049/2001 which has been sent via the
AsktheEU.org website.

Please kindly use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #5060 email]

If [EIB request email] is the wrong address for information requests to European
Investment Bank, please tell the AsktheEU.org team on email
[email address]

This message and all replies from European Investment Bank will be
published on the AsktheEU.org website. For more information see our
dedicated page for EU public officials at
[3]https://www.asktheeu.org/en/help/officers

-------------------------------------------------------------------

______________________________________
EIB Request Reference: IFD000010197688

show quoted sections

References

Visible links
1. https://www.asktheeu.org/en/request/4596...
2. http://www.eib.org/infocentre/publicatio...
3. https://www.asktheeu.org/en/help/officers

Dear Madam, Sir,

This is to inform you that 30 working days have passed since my access to document request, and according to the applicable EU rules I am entitled to have received a response by now.

All the best,
Peter

Dear Madam, Sir,

Thank you for your reply to my access to documents request, and your extensive explanation as to why the EIB wishes not to disclose the requested documents.

Please forward this to whomever deals with confirmatory applications.

I would like to request a review of the decision not to disclose the documents.

The argument for not disclosing the report and the administrative recommendation is based on the assertion that OLAF is “the owner of the requested report”.

However, I would like to argue that since OLAF has sent a copy of the report to the EIB, the EIB has become owner of the report, or at the very least co-owner.

I therefore believe that articles 5.5, 5.6, and 5.7 of the EIB's transparency policy apply. Those state that exceptions shall apply “unless there is an overriding public interest in disclosure”.

I believe there is such an overriding public interest, because the documents will give insight as to how a company was able to mislead the EIB and acquire a loan based on incorrect information. That, as well the recommendation, will likely contain information needed to assess whether the EIB has learned from the experience.

Moreover, since my request was filed, the overriding public interest has been expressed very clearly by the European Parliament.

On 8 February 2018, the European Parliament adopted a resolution which “Calls on the EIB to publish all relevant documents regarding loans to the automotive industry for the development of diesel technology, including the respective European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) report and its recommendations on EIB loans to Volkswagen...”

The resolution was adopted by 493 votes in favour – or 79 percent of votes cast.

(See http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getD...)

Even if the argument that the report and recommendation are fully owned by OLAF holds up in the internal review - the 'internal e-mails and exchanges related to this matter' are not owned by OLAF. It therefore follows that articles 5.5, 5.6, and 5.7 of the EIB's transparency policy apply, and that those documents should be released if there is "an overriding public interest in disclosure". I believe that this overriding public interest exists, because the internal response of the bank is essential to evaluate whether lessons have been learned from the case.

Without prejudice to the above, it also seems that the bank has not considered partial publication of the report; the administrative recommendation; and/or the internal e-mails and exchanges related to the report.

Regardless of the above, I would also like to argue that my request could be seen in the context of the Aarhus convention.

The decision to grant a loan to VW – which reportedly has been at least partially used to develop an engine with an illegal defeat device, emitting NOx beyond EU limits – could be seen as “administrative measures, environmental agreements, policies, legislation, plans and programmes, affecting or likely to affect the elements of the environment within the scope of subparagraph (a) above, and cost-benefit and other economic analyses and assumptions used in environmental decision-making” (article 2b of the convention)

While the Aarhus convention also allows refusal of documents under certain exceptions, it also stresses that “the public interest served by disclosure and ... whether the information requested relates to emissions into the environment” should be taken into account.

All the best,
Peter Teffer

EIB Infodesk, European Investment Bank

Dear Mr. Teffer,

This is to acknowledge receipt of your confirmatory application of 2 March
2018, which is being handled in accordance with the provisions of article
5.32 of the EIB Group Transparency Policy.

Yours sincerely,

Infodesk Team
European Investment Bank
[EIB request email]
_______________________
For more details concerning EIB procedures for handling information
requests, please refer to the EIB Group "Transparency Policy":
(http://www.eib.org/infocentre/publicatio...).
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us.

___________________________________________________________
From: [FOI #5060 email]
To: [email address]
Cc:
Sent: 02/03/2018 12:08:47
Subject: Internal review of access to documents request - OLAF report VW

Dear Madam, Sir,

Thank you for your reply to my access to documents request, and your
extensive explanation as to why the EIB wishes not to disclose the
requested documents.

Please forward this to whomever deals with confirmatory applications.

I would like to request a review of the decision not to disclose the
documents.

The argument for not disclosing the report and the administrative
recommendation is based on the assertion that OLAF is “the owner of the
requested report”.

However, I would like to argue that since OLAF has sent a copy of the
report to the EIB, the EIB has become owner of the report, or at the very
least co-owner.

I therefore believe that articles 5.5, 5.6, and 5.7 of the EIB's
transparency policy apply. Those state that exceptions shall apply “unless
there is an overriding public interest in disclosure”.

I believe there is such an overriding public interest, because the
documents will give insight as to how a company was able to mislead the
EIB and acquire a loan based on incorrect information. That, as well the
recommendation, will likely contain information needed to assess whether
the EIB has learned from the experience.

Moreover, since my request was filed, the overriding public interest has
been expressed very clearly by the European Parliament.

On 8 February 2018, the European Parliament adopted a resolution which
“Calls on the EIB to publish all relevant documents regarding loans to the
automotive industry for the development of diesel technology, including
the respective European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) report and its
recommendations on EIB loans to Volkswagen...”

The resolution was adopted by 493 votes in favour – or 79 percent of votes
cast.

(See
[1]http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getD...)

Even if the argument that the report and recommendation are fully owned by
OLAF holds up in the internal review - the 'internal e-mails and exchanges
related to this matter' are not owned by OLAF. It therefore follows that
articles 5.5, 5.6, and 5.7 of the EIB's transparency policy apply, and
that those documents should be released if there is "an overriding public
interest in disclosure". I believe that this overriding public interest
exists, because the internal response of the bank is essential to evaluate
whether lessons have been learned from the case.

Without prejudice to the above, it also seems that the bank has not
considered partial publication of the report; the administrative
recommendation; and/or the internal e-mails and exchanges related to the
report.

Regardless of the above, I would also like to argue that my request could
be seen in the context of the Aarhus convention.

The decision to grant a loan to VW – which reportedly has been at least
partially used to develop an engine with an illegal defeat device,
emitting NOx beyond EU limits – could be seen as “administrative measures,
environmental agreements, policies, legislation, plans and programmes,
affecting or likely to affect the elements of the environment within the
scope of subparagraph (a) above, and cost-benefit and other economic
analyses and assumptions used in environmental decision-making” (article
2b of the convention)

While the Aarhus convention also allows refusal of documents under certain
exceptions, it also stresses that “the public interest served by
disclosure and ... whether the information requested relates to emissions
into the environment” should be taken into account.

All the best,
Peter Teffer

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #5060 email]

This message and all replies from European Investment Bank will be
published on the AsktheEU.org website. For more information see our
dedicated page for EU public officials at
[2]https://www.asktheeu.org/en/help/officers

-------------------------------------------------------------------

______________________________________
EIB Request Reference: IFD000010197688

show quoted sections

References

Visible links
1. http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getD...)
2. https://www.asktheeu.org/en/help/officers

Dear Madam, Sir,

This is to remind you that today's marks the 15th working day since the EIB has received my confirmatory application on 2 March 2018, related to my access to documents request covering:

- the OLAF report about the €400mln loan to Volkswagen (Volkswagen Antrieb RDI)
- the administrative recommendation received from OLAF regarding the loan to Volkswagen
- EIB internal documents, including but not limited memo's, papers, e-mails, and letters, discussing the above-mentioned report and/or recommendation from OLAF regarding the loan to Volkswagen

I hope for a swift reply.

All the best
Peter Teffer

EIB Infodesk, European Investment Bank

Dear Mr. Teffer,

We refer to your confirmatory application of 02 March 2018 sent to the
European Investment Bank (EIB) via the AsktheEU.org website.

We would like to confirm that your confirmatory application is still being
handled by the Bank in accordance with the provisions of the EIB Group
Transparency Policy
(http://www.eib.org/infocentre/publicatio...).
Please refer to Article 5.32 of the Policy.

In line with Articles 5.23 and 5.24 of the EIB Group Transparency Policy,
we have extended the time limit to respond given the complexity of the
issues raised in your confirmatory application. This complexity is based
on the number of allegations and on the fact that your request not only
concerns access to a document of which the EIB is not the author, but also
access to a large number of other related documents.

We expect to be able to get back to you shortly and within the 30 working
days extended deadline foreseen in the Transparency Policy for such cases.

We thank you in advance for your understanding.

Yours sincerely,
Infodesk Team
European Investment Bank
[EIB request email]
_______________________
For more details concerning EIB procedures for handling information
requests, please refer to the EIB Group "Transparency Policy":
(http://www.eib.org/infocentre/publicatio...).
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us.

___________________________________________________________
From: [FOI #5060 email]
To: [email address]
Cc:
Sent: 23/03/2018 17:02:24
Subject: RE: Internal review of access to documents request - OLAF report
VW

Dear Madam, Sir,

This is to remind you that today's marks the 15th working day since the
EIB has received my confirmatory application on 2 March 2018, related to
my access to documents request covering:

- the OLAF report about the €400mln loan to Volkswagen (Volkswagen Antrieb
RDI)
- the administrative recommendation received from OLAF regarding the loan
to Volkswagen
- EIB internal documents, including but not limited memo's, papers,
e-mails, and letters, discussing the above-mentioned report and/or
recommendation from OLAF regarding the loan to Volkswagen

I hope for a swift reply.

All the best
Peter Teffer

show quoted sections

Dear Madam, Sir,

This is to remind you that today's marks the 30th working day since the EIB has received my confirmatory application on 2 March 2018, related to my access to documents request covering:

- the OLAF report about the €400mln loan to Volkswagen (Volkswagen Antrieb RDI)
- the administrative recommendation received from OLAF regarding the loan to Volkswagen
- EIB internal documents, including but not limited memo's, papers, e-mails, and letters, discussing the above-mentioned report and/or recommendation from OLAF regarding the loan to Volkswagen

Hopefully this will result in a reply arriving today.

All the best
Peter Teffer

InfoDesk, European Investment Bank

1 Attachment

Dear Mr. Teffer,

Please find attached the EIB response to your confirmatory application.

Yours sincerely,
Infodesk Team
European Investment Bank

_______________________
For more details concerning EIB procedures for handling information requests, please refer to the EIB Group "Transparency Policy":
(http://www.eib.org/infocentre/publicatio...). If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us.

show quoted sections