Europäisches Beihilfenrecht Blog

State Aid Uncovered Blog

In Lexxions Blog „State Aid Uncovered” veröffentlicht Prof. Phedon Nicolaides wöchentlich kritische Analysen zu den neuesten Urteilen und Entscheidungen zu staatlichen Beihilfen. Jeder Beitrag stellt die wichtigsten Punkte eines Gerichtsurteils oder einer EU-Kommissionsentscheidung vor, ordnet sie in den Kontext ähnlicher Rechtsprechung oder Praxis ein, bewertet die zugrundeliegende Argumentation und zeigt etwaige Ungereimtheiten oder Widersprüche auf.

In loser Folge werden auf diesem Blog auch Gastbeiträge von anderen Experten für staatliche Beihilfen veröffentlicht, welche die Inhalte der Blogbeiträge ergänzen.

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Professor at Maastricht University; Professor at University of Nicosia, and Academic Director at Lexxion Training

7. Mai 2019 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Land Development: The Case of Jaguar Land Rover Slovakia

State Aid Blogs - StateAidHub blogpost18 Landrover Jaguar Nitra Stateaid Infrastrsucture Transport Lexxion

Public funding of infrastructure which is not constructed for the specific needs of a company is not State aid. Introduction An article carried by the Financial Times on 1 May 2019 revealed that Jaguar Land Rover [JLR] decided to make again the iconic Land Rover Defender. The production of this legendary off-roader ended about 10 years ago because it […]

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30. April 2019 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

The Commission Must Explain its Decision

State Aid Blogs - StateAid Blogpost17 2019 Lexxion UPS DeutschePost Eu Commission State Aid

A Commission decision that affects the legal position of an undertaking is actionable before EU courts. The opening of the formal investigation procedure must lead the Member State concerned to suspend the aid measure and may result in a recovery ruling by a national court. The Commission must be consistent in its reasoning. If it cannot use certain information at […]

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23. April 2019 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

State Control: The Case of EEG 2012

State Aid Blogs - 5 most read articles 2019

There is crucial difference between control by the state over resources and attribution to the state of the aid granting decision. Introduction According to the latest edition of the State aid Scoreboard, in 2017 Member States granted a total of EUR 105 billion of State aid to manufacturing and services. Of that amount, 58% or EUR 61 billion supported […]

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16. April 2019 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Spanish Football Clubs Score against the Commission: a) Linked Advantages and Disadvantages Must be Assessed Together b) In Determining the Existence of an Advantage, the Commission Must Explain both what it Takes into Account and what it Ignores

State Aid Blogs - StateAidHub blogpost15 Soccer loans Lexxion Spain EU Commission

State measures which are linked and produce both positive and negative effects, must be considered together to determine whether they confer a net advantage to undertakings. Counter-guarantees must be taken into account to determine the existence of advantage even if they are provisional. Introduction Member States have in a number of cases tried to defend tax reductions or tax […]

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9. April 2019 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

The Boundary between State and Private Resources

State Aid Blogs - StateAidHub blogpost14 StateAid Lexxion Money Eu Commission Bank Financial

Discretion in the form of intervention can remove it from the control of the state. Introduction Suppose a thug puts a gun to your head and demands your wallet. Because you have sentimental photos in your wallet, you offer instead the keys to your car. You would rather lose the car than the wallet. Can the thug claim in […]

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3. April 2019 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

The Incentive Effect of Public Funding of Infrastructure in Tranches

State Aid Blogs - StateAidHub blogpost13 StateAid motorway greece E65 EU Comission lexxion

Public funding of functionally and commercially severable parts of an infrastructure project may have incentive effect even after construction is completed on some of the parts. A subsidy for the operation of a toll motorway may not constitute State aid. Introduction State aid granted to a project that has already started lacks incentive effects and, therefore, cannot be found […]

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26. März 2019 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

National Authorities Must Recover Aid they Grant Mistakenly

State Aid Blogs - StateAidHub blogpost12 StateAid food bread eu small

Assurances from granting authorities cannot guarantee the legality of State aid. Aid recipients must verify that the aid is granted correctly. Introduction The Commission must stop its misguided policy of not making public the answers it provides to Member States on questions of interpretation of the General Block Exemption Regulation [GBER]. This is one of the consequences of a […]

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19. März 2019 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Many Tax Rulings Do Not Make a Single Aid Scheme

State Aid Blogs - StateaidHub blogpost11 Lexxion 2019 Tax Commission EU judgement

The autonomy that Member States enjoy in the field of direct taxation must be exercised in compliance with EU State aid law. A State aid measure is considered to be a “scheme” when (a) no further implementing acts are necessary, (b) the granting authority has no discretion in how the measure is applied and (c) the measure defines the eligible […]

2 Kommentare

13. März 2019 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

How Can Incompatible State Aid Be Passed-on from one Company to another to Avoid Recovery?

State Aid Blogs - StateaidHub blogpost10 2019 commission judgement nvestment state aid lexxion

Introduction State aid that is incompatible with the internal market has to be paid back, unless the repayment would be contrary to a general principle of EU law. Last November the Court of Justice ruled in case C‑622/16 P, Scuola Elementare Maria Montessori v European Commission that “(79) the principle that ‘no one is obliged to do the impossible’ is among the […]

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5. März 2019 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

How Much May a Non-Economic Entity Charge without Becoming an Undertaking?

State Aid Blogs - StateaidHub blogpost9 2019 lexxion education stateaid financing commission 2

The price should not cover more than 50% of the costs. Introduction An entity that does not make profit can still be an undertaking. However, an entity that charges a fee for its services is not necessarily an undertaking. The EU Court of Justice has never defined how low such a fee must be in order for that entity to […]

2 Kommentare

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3. April 2018 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Advantage through Contracts

State Aid Blogs - ah life rd2jRzEum9g unsplash

A price below the regulated normal price confers an advantage. Competition is distorted even when the aid recipient does not expand its operations. Introduction An undertaking can obtain an advantage without receiving an outright grant. The advantage may be hidden in a contract for the supply of an essential input at reduced prices. This is the issue tackled by […]

4 Kommentare

27. März 2018 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Correct Pricing for the Use of Publicly Funded Infrastructure

State Aid Blogs - m 6

Publicly funded infrastructure must be made available to users at prices that correspond to its market value. Introduction When publicly-funded infrastructure is placed at the disposal of an undertaking, that undertaking must pay a market price, otherwise it derives an advantage in the meaning of Article 107(1) TFEU. But what is the market price? Is it the price […]

1 Kommentar

20. März 2018 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Private Creditor v Private Investor

State Aid Blogs - m 4

A private investor never agrees to an unprofitable transaction while a private creditor may agree to a loss in order to avoid a bigger loss from non-recovery of debt owed to it. A public authority acting as a private operator must disregard any losses it may incur from State aid it granted in the past. Introduction A question […]

1 Kommentar

13. März 2018 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

What Is and What Is not Export Aid

State Aid Blogs - 13.03. Trade StateAid deminimis

The prohibition of export aid prevents distortions in the internal market. Therefore, it cannot be considered as restricting intra-EU trade. Aid is classified as export aid only if it has a direct impact on exports. The incidental and indirect effect on exports of investment aid is not sufficient to categorise it as export aid. Introduction On 28 February 2018, […]

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6. März 2018 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

State Aid for R&D

State Aid Blogs - m 5

A large amount of State aid can still be compatible with the internal market if it meets all of the requirements of the RDI Framework. Introduction Since the coming into force of the GBER, only very few cases of R&D have been notified to the Commission. This means that it is not so obvious how the State aid […]

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27. Februar 2018 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Economic Activities in a System of Social Solidarity

State Aid Blogs - 27.02.18 Economic Activities HealthInsurance State Aid

Entities that pursue profit must be classified as undertakings. Introduction On 5 February 2018, the General Court annulled Commission decision 2015/248 concerning health insurance in Slovakia [see judgment in case T‑216/15, Dôvera zdravotná poist’ovňa et al v European Commission].[1] The Commission decision was reviewed here on 10 March 2015.(View article at http://stateaidhub.eu/blogs/stateaiduncovered/post/1707.)The Commission had concluded that the providers of health […]

5 Kommentare

20. Februar 2018 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

What Happens when Things Go Wrong

State Aid Blogs - 20.02.18 StateAid

Only EU institutions can provide assurances that aid is granted legally. The amount of State aid in a state guarantee given to a company in difficulty can be equal to the amount of the guaranteed loan. The simultaneity of public and private investments is not enough to ensure that the public investment is at market terms. They must also be […]

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13. Februar 2018 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Investment in Airport Infrastructure

State Aid Blogs - ashim d silva pGcqw1ARGyg unsplash

Public funding of infrastructure used for non-economic purposes does not constitute State aid. Public investment in infrastructure used for economic purposes does not constitute State aid if the investment can generate a return that is acceptable to a private investor. Introduction On 25 January 2018, the General Court ruled in case T-818/14, Brussels South Charleroi Airport v Commission.[1] Brussels […]

1 Kommentar

6. Februar 2018 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

How a Private Investor Behaves: EDF v Commission

State Aid Blogs - 17.10. imputability stateaid

A private investor carries out an assessment of the prospective profitability of a company before it invests in it. Ex post assessment is not sufficient. Evidence that the investment is likely to be profitable is not enough. The return must be high enough to satisfy a private investor in a similar situation (by compensating it for the risk it assumes). […]

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30. Januar 2018 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

The Puzzle of the State Acting as a Regulator

State Aid Blogs - joao silas UGQoo2nznz8 unsplash

When the state exercises its regulatory tasks, it does not have to demand fees and therefore it does not forgo potential state resources. Introduction A few weeks ago the Commission considered whether the regulatory actions of the state fell within the scope of Article 107(1) TFEU. In decision SA.42028 concerning aid to Yliopiston Apteekki Oy in Finland, the Commission […]

1 Kommentar

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