1. State Aid Modernisation after 3 years
Conference on State aid Law
Brno, 17 May 2017
Disclaimer: the views expressed are those of the speaker only and cannot be regarded as stating an official position of the European Commission
Graça da Costa
Senior Expert
State aid strategy
DG Competition

2. Index Introduction SAM: getting there SAM: first results
SAM: Looking forward

3. Introduction 2012-2014 –major State aid reform –" SAM " .
State aid control is the protection of the EU internal market against distortions created by Member States (Antitrust targets companies). State aid control  competition  growth.
–major State aid reform –" SAM " .
Overall objective: contribute to Europe 2020 growth strategy. Concretely:
Foster sustainable, smart and inclusive growth in a competitive internal market ("good aid”)
Focusing COM ex ante scrutiny on cases with the biggest impact on internal market
Strengthen MS cooperation for SA enforcement
Streamline the rules, provide for faster decisions (cut red tape)

4. SAM: getting there
Adoption of 10 guidelines based on common principles , 5 regulations and notices/communications to make State aid control instruments and procedures more efficient (GBER, NOA)
Enlarged block exemption regulation brings more aid under control and responsibility of Member States = less aid to be notified to the Commission for approval
Counterbalanced by new transparency and evaluation requirements and stronger scrutiny and monitoring by COM
Bilateral and Multilateral Partnerships to proactively guide Member States in conceiving well-designed schemes.

5. SAM: Objectives of common interest
Promote broadband rollout in line with objectives of
« Digital agenda for Europe»
Develop investment in infrastructure
Promote energy efficiency (market-based support for RES) /environmental protection beyond Union standards)
Support R&D&I where there are « market failures »
Facilitate access to finance by SMEs and « midcaps »
Improve growth potential and competitivness for airports/airlines
Support the develoment of disadvantaged regions
Rescue and restructuring aid for undertakings in difficulty only under stricter conditions …

6. Enlarged GBER
New aid categories, increased notification thresholds, higher aid amounts enabling MS to disburse aid more quickly:
Aid for broadband infrastructure
Social aid for transport residents of remote regions
Aid for culture and heritage conservation
Aid for local infrastructures
Aid for audio-visual works
Aid for sport and multifunctional recreational infrastructures
Aid to innovation clusters and aid to process and organisational innovation
Research infrastructures
Aid schemes to make good the damage caused by natural disasters
Aid for process or organizational infrastructure

7. Stronger safeguard mechanisms
Reinforced ex-post monitoring
New transparency requirements for individual aid measures above EUR
New evaluation requirements for schemes of annual value above EUR 150 million
Partnership (multilateral/bilateral) to ensure efficient controls at national level/ align SA policies with EU flagship initiatives

8. SAM – First results
Changes in governance of EU State aid policy, including :
Better allocation of resources
Simplification = less administrative burden
COM focusing scrutiny on most important cases
Better cooperation
More transparency
Preparing the ground for designing better State aid measures (evaluation)
Examples: support to audio-visual works (art. 54 GBER): 41 GBER schemes, few notifications/complaints
Broadband: 31 cases where Commission decisions have been adopted (only one opening of the investigation) ; European Network of Broadband Competence Offices (BCO's), including State aid as a focal point
RES electricity: effects of bidding process leading to significant savings

9. Scoreboard 2016 shows impact of modernisation
GBER uptake (%) and number of of notifications At EU level, around 90% of aid measures are submitted under the new General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER) and so could be disbursed more quickly. GBER up-take from the Czech Republic is above EU average.

10. Scoreboard 2016 shows impact of modernisation
Notified measures that are still subject to more careful scrutiny tend to cover bigger budgets and spending than in the past, in line with the Commission's approach to be 'big on big and small on small" things'

11. Scoreboard 2016 shows impact of modernisation
Average duration of procedures is stable, despite increased focus on more complex cases

12. Scoreboard 2016 shows impact of modernisation
Spending increasingly targets horizontal objectives of Community interest, such as, employment, environmental protection, R&D&I, risk capital and support to SMEs

13. GBER uptake - Most State aid fostering economic growth, jobs and other common interest objectives could therefore be directly implemented by Member States

14. Scoreboard 2016 shows impact of modernisation
At EU level, about 46% of total spending was attributed to state aid to environmental and energy savings. In 15 Member States, most of the State aid spending was used for that purpose, to help them meet in particular their renewable energy targets

15. Scoreboard 2016 shows impact of modernisation
Member States use State aid for very different policy objectives

16. Scoreboard 2016 shows impact of modernisation
TRANSPARENCY
New requirement to publish the name of the beneficiary and the amount of aid for each state aid award above €500,000
About 6000 aid awards have been already published by 21 Member States.

17. State aid evaluation 1
- Applies to selection of aid schemes (GBER >150 million annual budget + categories of notified schemes) - Evaluation plans approved by the Commission on the basis of common methodology - Evaluation reports at the end of schemes -> policy learning on direct and indirect impacts of aid - Until now: a) 13 Member States b) 35 aid schemes accounting for approx. EUR 40 bn in total annual budget c) majority of regional aid and R&D&I schemes 1 1 6 6 5 1 1 6 1 3 1 2

18. Multilateral and Bilateral partnerships
MS have a considerable role in the SAM context:
More responsibility in designing and implementing schemes (under GBER);Need to ensure efficient controls at national level
SAM Implementation Working Group
High Level Forum
Multilateral Partnership
Partnership
Structured dialogue (3 MS)
Taylor-made cooperation (9 MS)
Case-driven cooperation (Czech Republic)
"Bilateral Partnerships"

19. SAM: Looking forward Current phase: SAM implementation
Targeted review of GBER: extension to ports and airports (imminent adoption)
Next in the "SAM-horizon": evaluation
Next on the SAM agenda: High Level Forum

20. Thank you! Graça da Costa Senior Expert State aid strategy
DG Competition