State Aid Law Blog

State Aid Uncovered Blog

In Lexxion’s State Aid Uncovered blog, Prof. Phedon Nicolaides publishes weekly critical analyses of recent State aid judgments and decisions. Each post presents the key points of a court judgment or EU Commission decision, places it in the context of similar case law or practice, assesses the underlying reasoning and highlights any inconsistencies or contradictions.

Guest contributions from other State aid experts will also be published on the blog at irregular intervals to complement the content of the blog posts.

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13. January 2026  |   by Phedon Nicolaides

Definition of Public Service Obligation & Calculation of Public Service Compensation – PART I
Definition of Public Service Obligation & Calculation of Public Service and Compensation
A competitive selection process whereby only one bidder submits an offer does not conform with the fourth Altmark condition. Introduction Commission decision 2025/2453 that was published in the Official Journal of 30 December 2025 approved State aid totalling EUR 853.6 million in the form of public service compensation [PSC] for Corsica Linea and La Méridionale.[1] The PSC was granted by […]
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5. January 2026  |   by Phedon Nicolaides

Transfer of Public Land Free of State Aid
State Aid Blogs - Blog 1 Bild Madrid
For valuation of public land to be credible, it should preferably be carried out by external experts. Introduction  In December 2011, the Commission asked the Spanish authorities for information on alleged state aid in the transfer of public land from Madrid City Council to Real Madrid football club. In December 2013, the Commission decided to open the formal investigation procedure […]
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30. December 2025  |   by Phedon Nicolaides

State Aid to Support a Technology Hub
State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered photos 92
Introduction  As part of the digital transition, Member States try to revitalise old industrial regions. A case in point is a recent Commission decision on the establishment of a technology hub in Poland’s former coal mining region of Katowice [SA.114301].1  The purpose of the Polish measure was to incentivise the development of new skills in the region. The aided project is a […]
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23. December 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

No Imputability to the State of Investment by a State Enterprise
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Introduction  The past three articles have dealt with cases where the Commission or an EU court concluded that they were free of state aid or there were doubts as to whether they constituted state aid.  Today’s article reviews another case concerning a state intervention that was free of state aid. In decision SA.100862, the Commission found that transfer of state assets to a Finnish undertaking did not confer an advantage […]
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16. December 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Services Inextricably Linked to the Functions of the State
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Introduction  There are many cases where recipients of public subsidies perform non-economic activities and, therefore, those subsidies do not constitute state aid in the meaning of Article 107(1) TFEU. By contrast, there are only a handful of cases where activities that are normally economic in nature become non-economic because they are inextricably linked to a function reserved for the state or the […]
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9. December 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Compensation to the Operator of a Canal Lock that Provides Free Services May Constitute State Aid
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Introduction State aid rules are often perceived as straightjacket on Member State policies. Yet, the fundamental logic of the criteria used by the Commission and endorsed by EU courts to determine the compatibility of state aid force Member States to ask, at minimum, why they intervene, what is the most appropriate method of intervention and how much money is required […]
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2. December 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Arbitration Decision that is Free of State Aid
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Introduction Some cases seem to run forever. In 1960, Dimosia Epicheirisi Ilektrismou [DEI], the then sole supplier of electricity in Greece, entered into an agreement with Alouminion, an aluminium smelter, to provide electricity at preferential rates. The agreement expired in 2006. However, DEI and Alouminion, and its successor Mytilinaios and now Metlen, were not able to agree on a new […]
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25. November 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Judicial Challenges to Recovery of Incompatible State Aid do not Prove that Recovery is Absolutely Impossible
State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered photos 81
Introduction Member States can, in theory, escape from the obligation to recover state aid that the Commission has found to be incompatible with the internal market if they can demonstrate that it is absolutely impossible. When they appear before the Court of Justice of the EU [CJEU] for failing to recover incompatible aid, they always claim but rarely succeed to […]
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18. November 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

State Aid to Support an Intermodal Terminal whose Development Had Already Started
State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered photos 78
Introduction State aid that is granted after the start of works lacks incentive effect and cannot be compatible with the internal market. However, state aid may enable the expansion of a project that has already started. The aid may be compatible if the expansion was not foreseen when the project was launched and if the subsidised costs are different from […]
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10. November 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

The First State Aid Measure Approved under CISAF: Lots of Presumptions
State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered photos 77
Introduction This article reviews one of the first Commission decisions authorising state aid under the new Clean Industry State Aid Framework [CISAF]. It concerns an Italian measure that was originally notified to the Commission under the Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework, but then re-notified in July 2025 under CISAF after CISAF was adopted by the Commission in June 2025. The […]
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9. December 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Compensation to the Operator of a Canal Lock that Provides Free Services May Constitute State Aid
State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered photos 86
Introduction State aid rules are often perceived as straightjacket on Member State policies. Yet, the fundamental logic of the criteria used by the Commission and endorsed by EU courts to determine the compatibility of state aid force Member States to ask, at minimum, why they intervene, what is the most appropriate method of intervention and how much money is required […]
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2. December 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Arbitration Decision that is Free of State Aid
State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered photos 82
Introduction Some cases seem to run forever. In 1960, Dimosia Epicheirisi Ilektrismou [DEI], the then sole supplier of electricity in Greece, entered into an agreement with Alouminion, an aluminium smelter, to provide electricity at preferential rates. The agreement expired in 2006. However, DEI and Alouminion, and its successor Mytilinaios and now Metlen, were not able to agree on a new […]
read more
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25. November 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Judicial Challenges to Recovery of Incompatible State Aid do not Prove that Recovery is Absolutely Impossible
State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered photos 81
Introduction Member States can, in theory, escape from the obligation to recover state aid that the Commission has found to be incompatible with the internal market if they can demonstrate that it is absolutely impossible. When they appear before the Court of Justice of the EU [CJEU] for failing to recover incompatible aid, they always claim but rarely succeed to […]
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18. November 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

State Aid to Support an Intermodal Terminal whose Development Had Already Started
State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered photos 78
Introduction State aid that is granted after the start of works lacks incentive effect and cannot be compatible with the internal market. However, state aid may enable the expansion of a project that has already started. The aid may be compatible if the expansion was not foreseen when the project was launched and if the subsidised costs are different from […]
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10. November 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

The First State Aid Measure Approved under CISAF: Lots of Presumptions
State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered photos 77
Introduction This article reviews one of the first Commission decisions authorising state aid under the new Clean Industry State Aid Framework [CISAF]. It concerns an Italian measure that was originally notified to the Commission under the Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework, but then re-notified in July 2025 under CISAF after CISAF was adopted by the Commission in June 2025. The […]
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4. November 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

The Commission Must Examine the Presence and Compatibility of Indirect State Aid
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Introduction  The Commission, in its 2016 Notice on the Notion of State Aid, made an important distinction between “indirect” beneficiaries and “secondary” beneficiaries of state aid. All state aid measures have secondary effects for the simple reason that direct aid recipients do not function in isolation from the rest of the economy. When they spend the aid they receive, third […]
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28. October 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Regulatory Acts such as the Granting of Betting Rights May Not Constitute State Aid
State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered photos 73
Introduction Regulatory acts that confer a selective advantage without involving any transfer of state resources do not constitute State Aid. As is well established in the case law, Member States do not need to maximise revenue from granting licences, permits or authorisations when they act as regulators. Such licences, permits or authorisations may even be granted for free. Therefore, when […]
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21. October 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

State Aid for Decarbonisation of Steel Works
State Aid Blogs - Your paragraph text 1
Introduction  The decarbonisation of industry receives the second largest amount of environmental aid after reduction of environmental and energy taxes. Across different industrial sectors, the decarbonisation of steel production has probably attracted the largest amount of aid.  Recently, Sweden notified an individual measure to support investment in decarbonisation at SSAB, a steel manufacturer. The measure was approved by the Commission […]
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14. October 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Compensation for the Net Extra Costs of Public Service Obligations
State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered photos 72
Introduction On 3 September 2025, the General Court, in its judgment in case T‑784/22, Zásilkovna v Commission, provided useful guidance on the calculation of the compensation for the extra costs incurred by providers of Services of General Economic Interest [SGEI].[1] Zásilkovna sought the annulment of Commission decision 2023/232 concerning State aid SA.55208 implemented by the Czech Republic for Czech Post. […]
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7. October 2025  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Extra Aid to a Project that Has Already Started
State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered photos 70
Introduction State aid is not supposed to be granted to a project after work has already started because it lacks incentive effect. But when the project incurs unexpected costs, it is socially important so that it cannot be abandoned and without the aid it becomes commercially unviable, then the Commission may authorise additional aid. In March 2022, the Commission approved […]
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8. July 2021  |   Guest State Aid Blog by Alexander Rose

The UK’s New Subsidy Control Bill: Targeting a Faster, More Permissive Regime Than EU State Aid Rules
The long awaited Subsidy Control Bill has been published by the UK Government with bold promises that it will “create a new system for subsidies that can enable key domestic priorities, such as levelling up economic growth across the UK and driving our green industrial revolution“.  In this article we identify the main changes immediately emerging from the draft legislation, […]
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11. June 2020  |   Guest State Aid Blog by Erika Szyszczak

When State Aid Gets Political
State Aid Blogs - brexit 3870554 1920
We are happy to receive a guest comment on the EU – UK post-Brexit trade negotiations from Professor Emerita, Erika Szyszczak, who is a Fellow of UKTPO at the University of Sussex. This is a longer version of an earlier Blog published on the UKTPO website. Control over State aid is a stumbling block for the future of an EU […]
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14. May 2020  |   Guest State Aid Blog by Wout De Cock

Belgium and COVID-19: The European Commission Approves Several Belgian State Aid Measures
corona virus
We are happy to share with you an update on the Covid-19 measures that have been approved in Belgium. Our guest auhor Wout De Cock is a PhD candidate at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and part-time teaching assistant at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven.* Introduction In issue 1/2020 of the European State Aid Law Quarterly, we concluded that the European Commission […]
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17. April 2020  |   Guest State Aid Blog by Michail Kamperis

COVID-19 Measures Adopted and State Aid Measures (Hopefully) to Be Adopted: An Update from Cyprus
Corona Virus
We are happy to share with you an update on the Covid-19 measures that are or will be adopted in Cyprus. Our guest auhor Michail Kamperis is a lawyer and partner at the law firm of Ierotheou, Kamperis & Co. LLC Nicosia, Cyprus. * Sign up for our free news alert  Sign Up For Free   Cyprus is one of […]
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9. April 2020  |   Guest State Aid Blog by Lexxion Publisher

Follow Up Webinar with Phedon Nicolaides on ‚COVID-19 and State Aid Law‘ on 20 April
Woman sitting by the computer
The European Commission is working on quickly adapting the existing State aid legal framework to address the current Covid-19 pandemic. Join us on 20th April from the comfort and safety of your (home) office to get an insider update on the Covid-19 response by State aid experts from the European Commission and national governments. ✓ Join from wherever you are – […]
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9. April 2020  |   Guest State Aid Blog by Lexxion Publisher

Open Access Content Related to Covid-19: At a Glance
typewriter,
During these tough times, Lexxion Publisher wants to help to spread current news and updates on new regulations or support measures for combating the impact of the corona pandemic. Various contributions will be available as open access during the upcoming weeks. This post lists all contributions and will be updated on a rolling basis. Contributions related to State Aid & […]
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3. April 2020  |   Guest State Aid Blog by P. Kamil Rosiak

Covid-19 Support Package for Entrepreneurs: An Update from Poland
Corona Virus
We are happy to share with you an update on the Covid-19 support package that Poland is creating to support entrepeneurs fighting the impact of the corona pandemic. Our guest auhor P. Kamil Rosiak is Attorney-at-Law & Partner Associate at KPMG D.Dobkowski LP in Warsaw.* On 28 March 2020 the lower house of Polish parliament (Sejm) passed a bill (so […]
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1. April 2020  |   Guest State Aid Blog by Lexxion Publisher

Live Webinar: Covid-19 & State Aid Law in the UK Now
older woman sitting at the table, writting
Lexxion has created another new live webinar to keep you updated on current developments of Covid-19 and State aid law in the UK after Brexit. Leading State aid experts Jonathan Branton, George Peretz QC and Alexander Rose will work through the current EU State aid rules and answer your questions.   ✓ Join from wherever you are – high-quality content at […]
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25. March 2020  |   Guest State Aid Blog by Lexxion Publisher

Join our live webinar with Phedon Nicolaides on ‚COVID-19 and State Aid Law‘ on 2 April
hands typing on the laptop
Due to global developments and responding to various requests, Lexxion has created a live webinar to keep you updated on the latest news regarding the corona virus and State aid law. You can join from wherever you are and receive high-quality content at your (home) office.   In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, EU Member States are urgently rolling out […]
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1. January 2018  |   Guest State Aid Blog by Lexxion Publisher

Court’s Diary – January 2018
gavel
Find below the court’s diary for all State aid cases this month. Would you like to write a comment on one of them? Please don’t hesitate and get in touch with us ([email protected]), we are happy to publish your comment on the blog.   Tuesday 16/01/2018 Judgment in case T-747/15 – EDF v Commission (General Court – Third Chamber) Wednesday 17/01/2018 Judgment […]
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