Germany acted legally when it exempted heavy industry from a green energy surcharge in 2012, the European Union’s top court said on Thursday, overturning a decision by the EU antitrust regulator and annulling EU orders to recover the aid.
The European Commission, which is responsible for competition policy, had ordered Germany in 2014 to recoup some of the multi-billion euro reductions on the green surcharge it granted in 2013 and 2014 to some 2,000 heavy energy users.
They include chemical giant BASF and steelmaker ThyssenKrupp.
The Commission’s decision was backed by the EU general court in a ruling in 2016. But the European Court of Justice on Thursday overturned that verdict, saying Brussels had not proved the exemptions offered were illegal state aid.
Full Content: Reuters
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