Important decisions on the commissioning of the FAIR facility
FAIR Council met in Darmstadt on July 8 and 9, 2025
10.07.2025 |
With great commitment from all parties involved, the FAIR Council, the highest decision-making body of the international accelerator project FAIR (Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research), met for its regular meeting in Darmstadt on July 8 and 9, 2025. Almost all of the representatives of the international FAIR shareholders met on site to agree on the further key decisions for the commissioning of the unique research facility.
The two-day meeting focused on the further roadmap for the on-schedule installation and commissioning of the globally unique FAIR facility. The FAIR Council decided to extend the international FAIR Convention by a further 10 years. The commissioning budget for 2026 was approved. Furthermore, the Polish shareholder confirmed an additional budget contribution to the FAIR project. As a result, the FAIR Council was able to pave the way for the time-critical procurement of technical components for the CBM experiment and the associated experiment beamline.
“These are important decisions for FAIR,” said Swedish FAIR Council Chairperson Catarina Sahlberg “They give the project the necessary backing and make it possible to implement further decisive steps within the tight schedule.”
The successful progress of the recent FAIR-Phase-0 experimental period with GSI's existing accelerator facility was particularly emphasized. The results to date impressively confirm the scientific potential of the experiments planned for FAIR.
Another strong signal: the incumbent Chairperson of the FAIR Council was re-elected for a further term of office. Her re-election is an expression of confidence in the successful work of recent years. At the same time, the Council thanked two important colleagues who have supported the project for many years and are now relinquishing their roles: Ministerialdirigent Volkmar Dietz, Head of Sub-Department 71 in the BMFTR, has been active in the FAIR Council since 2017, including 4 years as Chairperson, and is now taking his well-deserved retirement. Thomas Beier has been supporting the project for many years, even before the international FAIR Convention was signed and FAIR GmbH was founded in 2010. Mr. Beier has been involved in the FAIR project for more than 20 years as Scientific Secretary of the FAIR Council and is now relinquishing this role in light of his other responsibilities, including as Scientific Secretary of other FAIR bodies.
About FAIR
The Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research (FAIR) is one of the world's largest and most ambitious research projects in fundamental physics. An internationally operated particle accelerator facility is being built in Darmstadt that will provide new insights into the structure of matter and the origin of the universe. FAIR stands for cutting-edge research, innovation and global cooperation. The FAIR Council is made up of delegates from the international FAIR shareholders and is the highest decision-making body of FAIR GmbH. It is responsible for strategic decisions on the management and implementation of the project, which is supported by the nine partner countries.