The Circular City Centre - C3

The CCA 1 programme 'First steps: prepare and plan' is designed to help cities develop the building blocks of a circular city strategy. The strategy will establish a structured framework for the circular transition in the city and support in identifying and implementing circular projects and initiatives. It can also act as a tool to foster collaboration among local stakeholders within and beyond the municipal administration and align their efforts with existing sustainability plans and programmes. Cities completing the CCA 1 programme will gain a comprehensive understanding of the circular economy, be able to make a high-level assessment of the state of circularity in the city, identify key circular actions and stakeholders and gain an understanding of how to secure financing for circular actions and projects. This will help cities select focus areas with a high potential for circularity, formulate a circular vision and set goals and targets to achieve that vision.

The CCA 2 programme 'Next steps: facilitate and act' is designed to help cities take circular action on the ground by creating a pipeline of circular projects. The programme is specifically aimed at cities that have initiated progress in their circular transition, guided by a circular strategy, roadmap or similar strategic document. The CCA 2 programme is particularly beneficial for cities that have completed the CCA 1 programme, but it is open to all EU cities that already have a circular strategy or roadmap and want to progress to create a pipeline of circular projects. The CCA 2 programme will help cities identify sectors with high circular potential and choose a sector in which they will conceptualise, evaluate and develop project ideas into a circular project pipeline.

The CCA 3 Programme 'Final steps: invest and implement' is designed for cities that have identified circular projects that need further development to progress towards financing and implementation. The programme is well suited for cities that have completed the C3 CCA 1 and/or CCA 2 programmes, but is open to all EU cities that have a circular strategy or roadmap, as well as public sector project promoters acting on their behalf. As part of this programme, cities will receive comprehensive guidance on how to develop their circular projects to be implementation-ready and aligned with common requirements for funding and financing. At the start of the programme, up to two circular projects will be selected based on their scope, maturity and potential impacts. The city representatives will then work closely with C3 experts to assess the quality and soundness of the selected projects, identifying areas for improvement. The goal of the CCA 3 programme is to help cities improve critical aspects of their circular projects and understand how to secure the financing required for their implementation. For circular projects that need more detailed support than offered under the CCA 3 programme, the Circular Project Advisory (CPA) Programme can offer more extensive and tailored technical assistance in different aspects of project preparation and development.

The CPA programme provides advisory support to public promoters of mature investment projects with a minimum project cost of EUR 20 million. Once a CPA Expression of Interest is submitted to C3, it will be assessed for its attractiveness and potential, in terms of its technical innovativeness, economic case, financial viability and circular impact. If the proposal is selected to receive support, the C3 team and the project promoters will discuss and agree together on the exact scope of CPA support. The teams will then start working side by side to help develop the project with regards to its circular aspects and/or to fill gaps in project documentation so that the promoter can secure funding and/or financing for its implementation. Support under this programme is free of charge, however the time and resource commitment of the promoter is crucial to achieve the desired outcomes.

The CPA support consists of up to 200 expert-days input provided over of period of time to be agreed on, typically between six months and one year. The work is carried out in close 1-to-1 collaboration with the promoter, aiming at providing persisting benefits which goes well beyond the duration of the assignment. While the CPA support cannot substitute for promoter’s own efforts, it provides a booster to increase the circularity and maturity of the project at different levels: material flows, technical solutions, organisation and governance, underlying business case, etc. The main goal and outcome of the CPA is to ensure that the project is as circular as possible and attractive as an investment opportunity for sustainability-oriented providers of financing.