Translation of "Associés solidaires " (French → English) :

Q. whereas the lack of recognition faced by social and solidarity-based economy enterprises, which are sometimes not even recognised as economic stakeholders, makes it more difficult for them to access both public and private financing; whereas the Structural Funds and European programmes should contribute to modernising economic structures, including the social and solidarity-based economy, which is represented by different types and sizes of undertakings (cooperatives, mutual societies, foundations, associations and new forms of social and solidarity-based economy enterprises), most of them SMEs and micro-enterprises;

The members of the Verbund are bound together by an association agreement providing for joint liability and a transfer of liquidity.

On 23 December 2014 ÖVAG held an extraordinary general meeting where it was decided to take the necessary steps to put ÖVAG into wind-down (Abbaugesellschaft), subject to approval from the national regulators, the SSM and the Commission. The core functions of ÖVAG as the central organisation for the Verbund would be transferred to one of the primary banks as part of a new restructuring plan (‘the new restructuring plan’) for the Verbund which included a system of fully joint and several liability.

In contrast with the asymmetric liability structure between primary banks and central organisation, the Verbund will be integrated into a fully joint and several liability arrangement under the new restructuring plan.

Can Article 48(3) of Directive 2004/18/EC, in conjunction with Article 2 thereof, be interpreted as meaning that in the contract notice or the tendering specifications the contracting authority can (or even must) lay down the rules under which the economic operator may rely on the capacities of other entities, for example in what way the economic operators must participate in the performance of the contract, in what way the capacity of the economic operator and another entity can be combined, and whether the other entity will bear joint and several liability with the economic operator for the due performance of the contract in so far as ...[+++]the economic operator has relied on its capacities?

(a) a unit constituted by several devices or appliances which have been integrally combined by the manufacturer for the protection of an individual against one or more potentially simultaneous risks;