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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16. March 2015  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Relief from Pension Contributions and Reduction of Taxes
State Aid Blogs - StateAidHub blogpost38 saleofbank
Compensation for structural disadvantages encumbering undertakings is still State aid. Compensation for structural disadvantages encumbering SGEI providers is not State aid only if it satisfies the Altmark criteria. Reductions of excise duties approved by the Council may still be subject to scrutiny by the Commission under State aid rules. Exception of fossil fuel from energy taxes when it is not […]
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10. March 2015  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Non-Economic Activities
State Aid Blogs - 05.12.Imputability of Aid State aidz
Health insurance which is based on the principle of social solidarity is not economic in nature. Solidarity means that citizens have a right to the service in question and the quality of the service they obtain is not linked to the price they pay, if any. Health services which are provided privately for remuneration are economic in nature. Services provided […]
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5. March 2015  |   Guest State Aid Blog by Gherardo Carullo

Procedures for examining abnormally low tenders as a State aid tool? A note on Case C-568/13 Data Medical Service
hospital
A look at the Court’s ruling of 18th December 2014 and the use of abnormally low tenders in public service contracts as indicators of illegal State subsidies. This short note examines Case C-568/13 Data Medical Service on the award of public service contracts, which is particularly interesting from a State aid perspective. While stressing that there are no exclusions whatsoever – at a […]
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4. March 2015  |   Guest State Aid Blog by Lexxion Publisher

Court’s Diary – March 2015
gavel, animal figures, euros
A look at the month ahead Got something to say about State Aid? You can get in touch with us at  Stateaidhub[at]lexxion.eu  Thursday 05/03/2015 Judgment in Case C-667/13 Banco Privado Português and Massa Insolvente do Banco Privado Português (Court of Justice – Second Chamber)   Friday 06/03/2015 Hearing in Joined Cases T-60/06 RENV II and T-62/06 RENV II Italy v Commission, Eurallumina v Commission (General Court – First Chamber, […]
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2. March 2015  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

A New but Dubious Concept of Advantage [1]
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When the Commission orders recovery of aid that is intended to be passed on to final consumers, it must first calculate the amount, if any, that has been retained by the direct recipients of the aid. If the calculation is too complex, the Commission can delegate that task to national authorities. Introduction   On 5 February 2015, the General Court ruled […]
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26. February 2015  |   Guest State Aid Blog by Lexxion Publisher

In Brief: T-135/12 and T-385/12 France v Commission and Orange v Commission
france telecom orange logo
The General Court confirmed that France granted State aid compatible with the internal market to France Télécom, in accordance with the conditions laid down by the Commission, and dismissed the actions.   The Press Release can be read here and the rulings (in French) here.Last Thursday 26th February the General Court gave its rulings in Cases T-135/12 and T-385/12 France v Commission and Orange v Commission. In […]
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24. February 2015  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Exclusive Rights
State Aid Blogs - m 19 2
The granting of exclusive rights may confer an advantage but does not in itself result in transfer of state resources. Private undertakings that hold exclusive rights are not utilising state resources by the mere fact that they operate under rights conferred by the state. Price regulation is a regulatory act which does not entail transfer of state resources. Introduction   […]
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18. February 2015  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Failure to Satisfy Ex Post the Altmark Criteria, but Compliance with the 2014 Aviation Guidelines
State Aid Blogs - StateAidHub blogpost2 2019 lexxion stateaid airports
Public service obligations must be entrusted by an official act and defined with sufficient precision. Imprecise definition of public service obligations makes it impossible to identify the costs which are caused by such obligations. Consequently, imprecise definition of public service obligations makes it impossible to grant compensation because subsidisation of non-eligible costs cannot be excluded. Compensation may not be granted […]
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16. February 2015  |   Guest State Aid Blog by Richard Craven

State aid to football clubs in Croatia?
football clubs in Croatia
GNK Dinamo Zagreb: Will the next act of the sports and State aid saga play out in the EU’s newest capital?     The spectre of EU State aid law has loomed over professional club football in Europe since the Commission’s initiation, in 2013, of in-depth investigations into five football clubs in the Netherlands (SA.33584) and seven clubs in Spain […]
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13. February 2015  |   Guest State Aid Blog by Lexxion Publisher

In brief: C-37/14 Commission v France
fruit and vegetables
On Thursday 12th February the CJEU passed down its ruling in C-37/14, finding that France did not take all necessary measures to recover aid illegally granted to the fruit and vegetable sector and thereby failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 288(4) TFEU. The full ruling is available here and the press release can be accessed here. The aid in question concerned ‘contingency plans’ […]
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5. July 2013  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

How to Use Economic Tools to Ensure the Proportionality of Aid (Commission Decision SA.34938 on a gas storage facility in Poland)
industry
Introduction Normally, economic analysis is used by the Commission to find out whether a measure confers an abnormal advantage to an undertaking. This would be the case, for example, when a public authority makes an investment that generates a return that falls below what the market would demand. The recipient undertaking derives an abnormal advantage [i.e. an advantage that would […]
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27. June 2013  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Public Support without State Aid
tablet with chart tabelle
Public measures that do not constitute state aid are as interesting as the measures that do provide aid. This posting examines two measures that have been found not to fall within the scope of Article 107(1) TFEU because they do not satisfy one or more of the four criteria laid down in that Article. Non-economic activity: Commission Decision SA.35529 on […]
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20. June 2013  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

PuState Resources and Payments between Undertakings
euro coins
Introduction A couple of years ago, the big issue in State aid law was the concept of selectivity. The judgments in the British Aggregates and Dutch NOx cases expanded, elaborated, and, some argued, convoluted the criteria for determining whether a measure was selective or not. This year, the big issue for sure is the concept of State resources. First came […]
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9. June 2013  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Is the Commission Abusing its Discretion, or Should Member States be Allowed to Waste their Own Money?
businessman with a mask
The European State Aid Law Institute is celebrating the eleventh anniversary of its annual conference. For the past decade a perennial issue in EStALI events but also in similar events organised by other institutions has been the complaint of national officials that the rules on state aid are too intrusive and that the European Commission attempts to exert too much […]
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8. June 2013  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Public Funding of Stadiums and Arenas
sports arena
Introduction After the judgments of the General Court and the Court of Justice on public funding of infrastructure in the now landmark case of Leipzig-Halle, the European Commission is scrutinising more closely than ever the construction and operation of stadiums and arenas. In March 2012, the Commission opened two in-depth investigations into public funding for multi-function arenas, one in Uppsala […]
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3. June 2013  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Exceptional Circumstances, Natural Disasters, Commercial Risk and Rights of Complainants
tornado
This posting examines several recent measures which do not have a single common theme. However, each measure has unusual elements which should be of interest to State aid professionals. Exceptional circumstances: Commission Decision 2013/197 on aid to Cantiere Navale De Poli (IT)[1] The measure in question concerned State aid that Italy intended to provide to shipyard Cantiere Navale De Poli […]
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26. May 2013  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

The Puzzle of Environmental Aid: Why Do Firms Make Environmental Investments?
windmills
Introduction Environmental aid is the second largest horizontal category of state aid, after regional aid. It accounts for about 24% of all aid to industry and services. Yet, one often hears from public officials that the current Environmental Aid Guidelines (EAG) do not provide sufficient incentives for environmental protection. The problem is that aid is calculated as a percentage not […]
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20. May 2013  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Restrictions on Sale of Land and Social Housing
hands holding house model
Introduction This posting reviews the judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union in two joined cases: Eric Libert, et al v Gouvernement Flamand, (C‑197/11) and All Projects & Developments NV and Others v Vlaamse Regering, (C‑203/11).[1] The judgment which was rendered on 8 May 2013 is important because it addresses several issues concerning public service obligations, their relationship with […]
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9. May 2013  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Taxes and Tax Reductions on Air Travel: Selectivity and Compatibility
airplanes on the runway
This posting examines an Irish and a German measure concerning reduction in passenger taxes. As to be expected, an important issue for both measures was whether the reduction was selective or not. The analysis of the Commission does not really break new ground. What is more instructive with these two cases is the range and ingenuity of the arguments advanced […]
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1. May 2013  |   State Aid Uncovered by Phedon Nicolaides

Fiscal Leveraging: Donations and State Aid for Culture and Sports
runners on the track
Introduction In this blog I examine primarily a Dutch measure that supports cultural institutions by providing tax incentives to individuals and corporations to make donations to those institutions. This is an unusual construction because the direct beneficiaries are different from the indirect beneficiaries which, however, are the main targets of the measure. This construction has been used rather extensively in […]
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