20.12.2011 Official Journal of the European Union L 337/1 (Legislative acts) REGULATIONS REGULATION (EU) No 1310/2011 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 13 December 2011 amending Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 as regards repayable assistance, financial engineering and certain provisions related to the statement of expenditure THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 177 thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the European Commission, After transmission of the draft legislative act to the national parliaments, Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee (1), After consulting the Committee of the Regions, Acting in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure (3), Whereas: (1)  Member States have had positive experiences with repayable assistance schemes at the level of operations during the programming period 2000 to 2006 and have therefore continued such schemes or have started to implement repayable assistance schemes in the current programming period 2007 to 2013. Some Member States have also included descriptions of those schemes in their programming documents, which were approved by the Commission. (") Opinion of 27 October 2011 (not yet published in the Official Journal). (3) Position of the European Parliament of 1 December 2011 (not yet published in the Official Journal) and decision of the Council of 12 December 2011. (2) () ) O] O] Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 of 11 July 2006 laying down general provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund and the Cohesion Fund (%) sets out financial engineering instruments with precise areas and scope of intervention. However, the repayable assistance schemes implemented by Member States in the form of reimbursable grants and credit lines managed by managing authorities through intermediate bodies are neither appropriately covered by the provisions on financial engineering instruments, nor by other provisions of Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006. It is therefore necessary, in accordance with Article 11(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1081/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 July 2006 on the European Social Fund (%), which already provides that assistance can take the form of reim- bursable grants, for Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 to be amended in order to provide that the Structural Funds may co-finance repayable assistance. That amendment should cover reimbursable grants and credit lines managed by managing authorities through intermediate bodies which are financial institutions. Given that the financial resources used through repayable assistance are totally or partially reimbursed by the bene- ficiaries, it is necessary to introduce appropriate provisions for the reuse of the repayable assistance reim- bursed for the same purpose or in accordance with the objectives of the operational programme in question so as to ensure that the funds that are repaid are properly invested and the support provided by the Union is used as effectively as possible. It is necessary to clarify that the provisions on major projects, revenue-generating projects and durability of operations should not be applicable as a matter of principle to financial engineering instruments, as those provisions are meant for other types of operation. L 210, 31.7.2006, p. 25. L 210, 31.7.2006, p. 12.