The European Commission has published a Commission Staff Working Document summarizing the results of an evaluation of the State aid rules adopted as part of the State Aid Modernisation package. The evaluation concludes that, overall, the State aid control system and rules are fit for purpose. However, individual rules will need some adaptation, also in the light of the recent European Green Deal and the EU’s Industrial and Digital Strategies.
As part of the Commission’s ongoing review of competition rules to ensure they are fit for the changing market environment, the evaluation of the State aid rules was launched in January 2019. The assessment took the form of a “fitness check”, involving internal analyses by the Commission and public consultations as well as, in some cases, studies prepared by external consultants or targeted consultations of specific stakeholders. The exercise covered the following rules, which were adopted as part of the State Aid Modernisation:
- General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER)
- De minimis Regulation
- Guidelines on regional State aid
- Framework for State aid for research and development and innovation (RDI)
- Communication on important projects of common European interest (IPCEI)
- Guidelines on State aid to promote risk finance investments
- Guidelines on State aid to airports and airlines
- Guidelines on State aid for environmental protection and energy
- Guidelines on State aid for rescuing and restructuring
In addition, it also covered the Railways Guidelines from 2008 and the Short term export credit Communication from 2012. Those rules were not revised as part of the State Aid Modernisation, but an evaluation was relevant in the light of developments in EU law and the Commission’s case practice.
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