02014R0651 — EN — 10.07.2017 — 001.004 — 1
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►B COMMISSION
REGULATION
(EU)
No
651/2014
of 17 June 2014
declaring certain categories of aid compatible with the internal market in application of
Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty
(Text with EEA relevance)
(OJ L 187, 26.6.2014, p. 1)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
►M1 Commission
Regulation
(EU)
2017/1084
of
14
June
2017 L
156
1 20.6.2017
Corrected by:
►C1 Corrigendum,
OJ
L
26,
31.1.2018,
p.
53
(2017/1084)
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COMMISSION REGULATION (EU) No 651/2014
of 17 June 2014
declaring certain categories of aid compatible with the internal
market in application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty
(Text with EEA relevance)
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER I:
Common provisions
CHAPTER II:
Monitoring
CHAPTER III:
Specific provisions for different categories of aid
Section 1 —
Regional aid
Section 2 —
Aid to SMEs
Section 3 —
Aid for access to finance for SMEs
Section 4 —
Aid for research and development and innovation
Section 5 —
Training aid
Section 6 —
Aid for disadvantaged workers and for workers with
disabilities
Section 7 —
Aid for environmental protection
Section 8 —
Aid to make good the damage caused by certain
natural disasters
Section 9 —
Social aid for transport for residents of remote regions
Section 10 —
Aid for broadband infrastructures
Section 11 —
Aid for culture and heritage conservation
Section 12 —
Aid for sport and multifunctional recreational infra
structures
Section 13 —
Aid for local infrastructures
Section 14 —
Aid for regional airports
Section 15 —
Aid for ports
CHAPTER IV:
Final Provisions
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CHAPTER I
COMMON PROVISIONS
Article 1
Scope
1. This
Regulation
shall
apply
to
the
following
categories
of
aid:
(a) regional aid;
(b) aid to SMEs in the form of investment aid, operating aid and
SMEs' access to finance;
(c) aid for environmental protection;
(d) aid for research and development and innovation;
(e) training aid;
(f) recruitment and employment aid for disadvantaged workers and
workers with disabilities;
(g) aid to make good the damage caused by certain natural disasters;
(h) social aid for transport for residents of remote regions;
(i) aid
for
broadband infrastructures;
(j) aid
for
culture
and
heritage
conservation;
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(k) aid for sport and multifunctional recreational infrastructure;
(l) aid
for
local
infrastructures;
(m) aid for regional airports; and
(n) aid for ports.
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2. This
Regulation
shall
not
apply
to:
(a) schemes under Sections 1 (with the exception of Article 15), 2, 3, 4,
7 (with the exception of Article 44), and 10 of Chapter III of this
Regulation, if the average annual State aid budget exceeds EUR 150
million, from six months after their entry into force. The
Commission may decide that this Regulation shall continue to
apply for a longer period to any of these aid schemes after
having assessed the relevant evaluation plan notified by the
Member State to the Commission, within 20 working days from
the scheme's entry into force;
(b) any alterations of schemes referred to in Article 1(2)(a), other than
modifications which cannot affect the compatibility of the aid
scheme under this Regulation or cannot significantly affect the
content of the approved evaluation plan;
(c) aid to export-related activities towards third countries or Member
States, namely aid directly linked to the quantities exported, to the
establishment and operation of a distribution network or to other
current costs linked to the export activity;
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(d) aid contingent upon the use of domestic over imported goods.
3.
►M1 This Regulation shall not apply to:
(a) aid granted in the fishery and aquaculture sector, as covered by
Regulation (EU) No 1379/2013 of the European Parliament and
of the Council ( 1 ) with the exception of training aid, aid for
SMEs' access to finance, aid in the field of research and devel
opment, innovation aid for SMEs, aid for disadvantaged workers
and workers with disabilities, regional investment aid in outermost
regions and regional operating aid schemes;
(b) aid granted in the primary agricultural production sector, with the
exception of regional investment aid in outermost regions, regional
operating aid schemes, aid for consultancy in favour of SMEs, risk
finance aid, aid for research and development, innovation aid for
SMEs, environmental aid, training aid and aid for disadvantaged
workers and workers with disabilities;
(c) aid granted in the sector of processing and marketing of agricultural
products, in the following cases:
(i) where the amount of the aid is fixed on the basis of the price or
quantity of such products purchased from primary producers or
put on the market by the undertakings concerned;
(ii) where the aid is conditional on being partly or entirely passed
on to primary producers;
(d) aid to facilitate the closure of uncompetitive coal mines, as covered
by Council Decision 2010/787/EU ( 2 );
(e) the categories of regional aid referred to in Article 13. ◄
Where an undertaking is active in the excluded sectors as referred to in
points (a), (b) or (c) of the first subparagraph and in sectors which fall
within the scope of this Regulation, this Regulation applies to aid
granted in respect of the latter sectors or activities, provided that
Member States ensure by appropriate means, such as separation of
activities or distinction of costs, that the activities in the excluded
sectors do not benefit from the aid granted in accordance with this
Regulation.
( 1 ) Regulation (EU) No 1379/2013 of the European Parliament and of the
Council of 11 December 2013 on the common organisation of the markets
in fishery and aquaculture products, amending Council Regulations (EC) No
1184/2006 and (EC) No 1224/2009 and repealing Council Regulation (EC)
No 104/2000 (OJ L 354, 28.12.2013, p. 1).
( 2 ) Council Decision 2010/787/EU of 10 December 2010 on State aid to
facilitate the closure of uncompetitive coal mines (OJ L 336, 21.12.2010,
p. 24).
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4. This
Regulation
shall
not
apply
to:
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(a) aid schemes which do not explicitly exclude the payment of indi
vidual aid in favour of an undertaking which is subject to an
outstanding recovery order following a previous Commission
decision declaring an aid granted by the same Member State
illegal and incompatible with the internal market, with the
exception of aid schemes to make good the damage caused by
certain natural disasters;
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(b) ad hoc aid in favour of an undertaking as referred to in point (a);
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(c) aid to undertakings in difficulty, with the exception of aid schemes
to make good the damage caused by certain natural disasters, start-
up aid schemes and regional operating aid schemes, provided those
schemes do not treat undertakings in difficulty more favourably than
other undertakings.
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5. This
Regulation
shall
not
apply
to
State
aid
measures,
which
entail, by themselves, by the conditions attached to them or by their
financing method a non-severable violation of Union law, in particular:
(a) aid measures where the grant of aid is subject to the obligation for
the beneficiary to have its headquarters in the relevant Member
State or to be predominantly established in that Member State;
However, the requirement to have an establishment or branch in
the aid granting Member State at the moment of payment of the
aid is allowed.
(b) aid measures where the grant of aid is subject to the obligation for
the beneficiary to use nationally produced goods or national
services;
(c) aid measures restricting the possibility for the beneficiaries to
exploit the research, development and innovation results in other
Member States.
Article 2
Definitions
For the purposes of this Regulation the following definitions shall
apply:
(1) ‘aid’ means any measure fulfilling all the criteria laid down in
Article 107(1) of the Treaty;
(2) ‘small
and
medium-sized
enterprises’
or
‘SMEs’
means
under
takings fulfilling the criteria laid down in Annex I;
(3) ‘worker
with
disabilities’
means
any
person
who:
(a) is recognised as worker with disabilities under national law;
or
(b) has long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impair
ment(s) which, in interaction with various barriers, may
hinder their full and effective participation in a work envi
ronment on an equal basis with other workers;
(4) ‘disadvantaged
worker’
means
any
person
who:
(a) has not been in regular paid employment for the previous 6
months; or
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(b) is between 15 and 24 years of age; or
(c) has not attained an upper secondary educational or vocational
qualification (International Standard Classification of
Education 3) or is within two years after completing full-
time education and who has not previously obtained his or
her first regular paid employment; or
(d) is over the age of 50 years; or
(e) lives as a single adult with one or more dependents; or
(f) works in a sector or profession in a Member State where the
gender imbalance is at least 25 % higher than the average
gender imbalance across all economic sectors in that
Member State, and belongs to that underrepresented gender
group; or
(g) is a member of an ethnic minority within a Member State and
who requires development of his or her linguistic, vocational
training or work experience profile to enhance prospects of
gaining access to stable employment;
(5) ‘transport’
means
transport
of
passengers
by
aircraft,
maritime
transport, road, rail, or by inland waterway or freight transport
services for hire or reward;
(6) ‘transport costs’ means the costs of transport for hire or reward
actually paid by the beneficiaries per journey, comprising:
(a) freight charges, handling costs and temporary stocking costs,
in so far as these costs relate to the journey;
(b) insurance costs applied to the cargo;
(c) taxes, duties or levies applied to the cargo and, if applicable,
to the deadweight, both at point of origin and point of desti
nation; and
(d) safety and security control costs, surcharges for increased fuel
costs;
(7) ‘remote
regions’
means
outermost
regions,
Malta,
Cyprus,
Ceuta
and Melilla, islands which are part of the territory of a Member
State and sparsely populated areas;
(8) ‘marketing
of
agricultural
products’
means
holding
or
display
with a view to sale, offering for sale, delivery or any other
manner of placing on the market, except the first sale by a
primary producer to resellers or processors and any activity
preparing a product for such first sale; a sale by a primary
producer to final consumers shall be considered to be
marketing if it takes place in separate premises reserved for
that purpose;
(9) ‘primary
agricultural
production’
means
production
of
products
of
the soil and of stock farming, listed in Annex I to the Treaty,
without performing any further operation changing the nature of
such products;
(10) ‘processing
of
agricultural
products’
means
any
operation
on
an
agricultural product resulting in a product which is also an agri
cultural product, except on-farm activities necessary for preparing
an animal or plant product for the first sale;
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(11) ‘agricultural product’ means the products listed in Annex I to the
Treaty, except fishery and aquaculture products listed in Annex I
to Regulation (EU) No 1379/2013 of the European Parliament
and of the Council of 11 December 2013;
(12) ‘outermost regions’ means regions as defined in Article 349 of
the Treaty. In accordance with European Council Decision
2010/718/EU, from 1 January 2012, Saint-Barthélemy ceased to
be an outermost region. In accordance with European Council
Decision 2012/419/EU on 1 January 2014, Mayotte became an
outermost region;
(13) ‘coal’ means high-grade, medium-grade and low-grade category
A and B coal within the meaning of the international codification
system for coal established by the United Nations Economic
Commission for Europe and clarified in the Council decision of
10 December 2010 on State aid to facilitate the closure of uncom
petitive coal mines ( 1 );
(14) ‘individual
aid’
means:
(i) ad hoc aid; and
(ii) awards of aid to individual beneficiaries on the basis of an
aid scheme;
(15) ‘aid
scheme’
means
any
act
on
the
basis
of
which,
without
further
implementing measures being required, individual aid awards
may be made to undertakings defined within the act in a
general and abstract manner and any act on the basis of which
aid which is not linked to a specific project may be granted to
one or several undertakings for an indefinite period of time and/or
for an indefinite amount;
(16) ‘evaluation plan’ means a document containing at least the
following minimum elements: the objectives of the aid scheme
to be evaluated, the evaluation questions, the result indicators, the
envisaged methodology to conduct the evaluation, the data
collection requirements, the proposed timing of the evaluation
including the date of submission of the final evaluation report,
the description of the independent body conducting the evaluation
or the criteria that will be used for its selection and the modalities
for ensuring the publicity of the evaluation;
(17) ‘ad hoc aid’ means aid not granted on the basis of an aid scheme;
(18) ‘undertaking in difficulty’ means an undertaking in respect of
which at least one of the following circumstances occurs:
(a) In the case of a limited liability company (other than an SME
that has been in existence for less than three years or, for the
purposes of eligibility for risk finance aid, an SME within 7
years from its first commercial sale that qualifies for risk
finance investments following due diligence by the selected
financial intermediary), where more than half of its subscribed
share capital has disappeared as a result of accumulated losses.
This is the case when deduction of accumulated losses from
( 1 ) OJ L 336, 21.12.2010, p. 24.
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reserves (and all other elements generally considered as part of
the own funds of the company) leads to a negative cumulative
amount that exceeds half of the subscribed share capital. For the
purposes of this provision, ‘limited liability company’ refers in
particular to the types of company mentioned in Annex I of
Directive 2013/34/EU ( 1 ) and ‘share capital’ includes, where
relevant, any share premium.
(b) In the case of a company where at least some members have
unlimited liability for the debt of the company (other than an
SME that has been in existence for less than three years or,
for the purposes of eligibility for risk finance aid, an SME
within 7 years from its first commercial sale that qualifies for
risk finance investments following due diligence by the
selected financial intermediary), where more than half of its
capital as shown in the company accounts has disappeared as
a result of accumulated losses. For the purposes of this
provision, ‘a company where at least some members have
unlimited liability for the debt of the company’ refers in
particular to the types of company mentioned in Annex II
of Directive 2013/34/EU.
(c) Where the undertaking is subject to collective insolvency
proceedings or fulfils the criteria under its domestic law for
being placed in collective insolvency proceedings at the
request of its creditors.
(d) Where the undertaking has received rescue aid and has not
yet reimbursed the loan or terminated the guarantee, or has
received restructuring aid and is still subject to a restructuring
plan.
(e) In the case of an undertaking that is not an SME, where, for
the past two years:
(1) the undertaking's book debt to equity ratio has been
greater than 7,5 and
(2) the undertaking's EBITDA interest coverage ratio has
been below 1,0.
(19) ‘territorial spending obligations’: mean the obligations imposed
by the authority granting the aid on beneficiaries to spend a
minimum amount and/or conduct a minimum level of production
activity in a particular territory;
(20) ‘adjusted aid amount’ means the maximum permissible aid
amount for a large investment project, calculated according to
the following formula:
maximum aid amount = R × (A + 0,50 × B + 0 × C)
where: R is the maximum aid intensity applicable in the area
concerned established in an approved regional map and which
is in force on the date of granting the aid, excluding the increased
aid intensity for SMEs; A is the initial EUR 50 million of eligible
costs, B is the part of eligible costs between EUR 50 million and
EUR 100 million and C is the part of eligible costs above EUR
100 million
( 1 ) Directive 2013/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of
26 June 2013 on the annual financial statements, consolidated financial
statements and related reports of certain types of undertakings, amending
Directive 2006/43/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and
repealing Council Directives 78/660/EEC and 83/349/EEC.
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(21) ‘repayable
advance’
means
a
loan
for
a
project
which
is
paid
in
one or more instalments and the conditions for the reimbursement
of which depend on the outcome of the project;
(22) ‘gross grant equivalent’ means the amount of the aid if it had
been provided in the form of a grant to the beneficiary, before
any deduction of tax or other charge;
(23) ‘start of works’ means the earlier of either the start of
construction works relating to the investment, or the first
legally binding commitment to order equipment or any other
commitment that makes the investment irreversible. Buying
land and preparatory works such as obtaining permits and
conducting feasibility studies are not considered start of works.
For take-overs, ‘start of works’ means the moment of acquiring
the assets directly linked to the acquired establishment;
(24) ‘large enterprises’ means undertakings not fulfilling the criteria
laid down in Annex I;
(25) ‘fiscal successor scheme’ means a scheme in the form of tax
advantages which constitutes an amended version of a previously
existing scheme in the form of tax advantages and which replaces
it.
(26) ‘aid intensity’ means the gross aid amount expressed as a
percentage of the eligible costs, before any deduction of tax or
other charge;
(27) ‘assisted
areas’
means
areas
designated in
an approved regional
aid map for the period 1.7.2014 - 31.12.2020 in application of
Articles 107(3)(a) and (c) of the Treaty;
(28) ‘date of granting of the aid’ means the date when the legal right
to receive the aid is conferred on the beneficiary under the
applicable national legal regime;
(29) ‘tangible assets’ means assets consisting of land, buildings and
plant, machinery and equipment;
(30) ‘intangible assets’ means assets that do not have a physical or
financial embodiment such as patents, licences, know-how or
other intellectual property;
(31) ‘wage
cost’
means
the
total
amount
actually
payable
by
the
ben
eficiary of the aid in respect of the employment concerned,
comprising over a defined period of time the gross wage before
tax and compulsory contributions such as social security, child
care and parent care costs;
(32) ‘net increase in the number of employees’ means a net increase in
the number of employees in the establishment concerned
compared with the average over a given period in time, and
that any posts lost during that period must therefore be
deducted and that the number of persons employed full-time,
part-time and seasonal has to be considered with their annual
labour unit fractions;
(33) ‘dedicated
infrastructure’
means
infrastructure
that
is
built
for
ex-
ante identifiable undertaking(s) and tailored
to their needs.
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(34) ‘financial intermediary’ means any financial institution regardless
of its form and ownership, including fund-of-funds, private equity
investment funds, public investment funds, banks, micro-finance
institutions and guarantee societies;
(35) ‘journey’ means the movement of goods from the point of origin
to the point of destination, including any intermediary sections or
stages within or outside the Member State concerned, made using
one or more means of transport;
(36) ‘fair rate of return (FRR)’ means the expected rate of return
equivalent to a risk-adjusted discount rate which reflects the
level of risk of a project and the nature and level of capital the
private investors plan to invest;
(37) ‘total
financing’
means
the
overall
investment
amount
made
into
an eligible undertaking or project under Section 3 or under
Articles 16 or 39 of this Regulation to the exclusion of entirely
private investments provided on market terms and outside the
scope of the relevant State aid measure;
(38) ‘competitive bidding process’ means a non-discriminatory
bidding process that provides for the participation of a sufficient
number of undertakings and where the aid is granted on the basis
of either the initial bid submitted by the bidder or a clearing
price. In addition, the budget or volume related to the bidding
process is a binding constraint leading to a situation where not all
bidders can receive aid;
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(39) ‘operating profit’ means the difference between the discounted
revenues and the discounted operating costs over the economic
lifetime of the investment, where this difference is positive. The
operating costs include costs such as personnel costs, materials,
contracted services, communications, energy, maintenance, rent,
administration, but exclude depreciation charges and the costs of
financing if these have been covered by investment aid.
Discounting revenues and operating costs using an appropriate
discount rate allows a reasonable profit to be made.
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Definitions applying to regional aid
(40) Definitions
applying
to
aid
for
broadband
infrastructures
(Section
10) are applicable to the relevant regional aid provisions.
(41) ‘regional
investment
aid’
means
regional
aid
granted
for
an
initial
investment or an initial investment in favour of a new economic
activity;
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(42) ‘regional operating aid’ means aid to reduce an undertaking's
current expenditure. This includes cost categories such as
personnel costs, materials, contracted services, communications,
energy, maintenance, rent, administration, but excludes
depreciation charges and the costs of financing if these have
been included in the eligible costs when granting investment aid;
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(43) ‘steel
sector’
means
all
activities
related
to
the
production
of
one
or more of the following products:
(a) pig iron and ferro-alloys:
pig iron for steelmaking, foundry and other pig iron, spiege
leisen and high-carbon ferro-manganese, not including other
ferro-alloys;
(b) crude and semi-finished products of iron, ordinary steel or
special steel:
liquid steel whether or not cast into ingots, including ingots
for forging semi- finished products: blooms, billets and slabs;
sheet bars and tinplate bars; hot-rolled wide coils, with the
exception of production of liquid steel for castings from small
and medium-sized foundries;
(c) hot finished products of iron, ordinary steel or special steel:
rails, sleepers, fishplates, soleplates, joists, heavy sections of
80 mm and over, sheet piling, bars and sections of less than
80 mm and flats of less than 150 mm, wire rod, tube rounds
and squares, hot-rolled hoop and strip (including tube strip),
hot-rolled sheet (coated or uncoated), plates and sheets of 3
mm thickness and over, universal plates of 150 mm and
over, with the exception of wire and wire products, bright
bars and iron castings;
(d) cold finished products:
tinplate, terneplate, blackplate, galvanised sheets, other coated
sheets, cold-rolled sheets, electrical sheets and strip for
tinplate, cold-rolled plate, in coil and in strip;
(e) tubes:
all seamless steel tubes, welded steel tubes with a diameter of
over 406.4 mm;
(44) ‘synthetic
fibres
sector’
means:
(a) extrusion/texturisation of all generic types of fibre and yarn
based on polyester, polyamide, acrylic or polypropylene, irre
spective of their end-uses; or
(b) polymerisation (including polycondensation) where it is inte
grated with extrusion in terms of the machinery used; or
(c) any ancillary process linked to the contemporaneous instal
lation of extrusion/texturisation capacity by the prospective
beneficiary or by another company in the group to which it
belongs and which, in the specific business activity
concerned, is normally integrated with such capacity in
terms of the machinery used;
(45) ‘transport sector’ means the transport of passengers by aircraft,
maritime transport, road or rail and by inland waterway or freight
transport services for hire or reward; more specifically, the
‘transport sector’ means the following activities in terms of
NACE Rev. 2:
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(a) NACE 49: Land transport and transport via pipelines,
excluding NACE 49.32 Taxi operation, 49.42 Removal
services, 49.5 Transport via pipeline;
(b) NACE 50: Water transport;
(c) NACE 51: Air transport, excluding NACE 51.22 Space
transport.
(46) ‘scheme targeted at a limited number of specific sectors of
economic activity’ means a scheme which covers activities falling
within the scope of less than five classes (four-digit numerical
code) of the NACE Rev. 2 statistical classification.
(47) ‘tourism activity’ means the following activities in terms of
NACE Rev. 2:
(a) NACE 55:Accommodation;
(b) NACE 56: Food and beverage service activities;
(c) NACE 79: Travel agency, tour operator reservation service
and related activities;
(d) NACE 90: Creative, arts and entertainment activities;
(e) NACE 91: Libraries, archives, museums and other cultural
activities;
(f) NACE 93: Sports activities and amusement and recreation
activities;
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(48) ‘sparsely
populated
areas’
means
NUTS
2
regions
with
less
than
8 inhabitants per km2
or NUTS 3 regions with less than 12,5
inhabitants per km2
or areas which are recognized by the
Commission as such in an individual decision on a regional aid
map in force at the time the aid is granted;
(48a) ‘very sparsely populated areas’ means NUTS 2 regions with less
than 8 inhabitants per km2
or areas which are recognized by the
Commission as such in an individual decision on a regional aid
map in force at the time the aid is granted;
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(49) ‘initial
investment’
means:
(a) an investment in tangible and intangible assets related to the
setting-up of a new establishment, extension of the capacity
of an existing establishment, diversification of the output of
an establishment into products not previously produced in the
establishment or a fundamental change in the overall
production process of an existing establishment; or
(b) an acquisition of assets belonging to an establishment that has
closed or would have closed had it not been purchased, and
is bought by an investor unrelated to the seller and excludes
sole acquisition of the shares of an undertaking;
(50) ‘the
same
or
a
similar
activity’
means
an
activity
falling
under
the
same class (four-digit numerical code) of the NACE Rev. 2 stat
istical classification of economic activities as laid down in Regu
lation (EC) No 1893/2006 of the European Parliament and of the
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Council of 20 December 2006 establishing the statistical classifi
cation of economic activities NACE Revision 2 and amending
Council Regulation (EEC) No 3037/90 as well as certain EC
Regulations on specific statistical domains ( 1 );
(51) ‘initial investment in favour of new economic activity’ means:
(a) an investment in tangible and intangible assets related to the
setting up of a new establishment, or to the diversification of
the activity of an establishment, under the condition that the
new activity is not the same or a similar activity to the
activity previously performed in the establishment;
(b) the acquisition of the assets belonging to an establishment
that has closed or would have closed had it not been
purchased, and is bought by an investor unrelated to the
seller, under the condition that the new activity to be
performed using the acquired assets is not the same or a
similar activity to the activity performed in the establishment
prior to the acquisition;
(52) ‘large investment project’ means an initial investment with
eligible costs exceeding EUR 50 million, calculated at prices
and exchange rates on the date of granting the aid;
(53) ‘point of destination’ means the place where the goods are
unloaded;
(54) ‘point of origin’ means the place where the goods are loaded for
transport;
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(55) ‘areas eligible for operating aid’ means an outermost region
referred to in Article 349 of the Treaty, a sparsely populated
area or a very sparsely populated area;
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(56) ‘means
of
transport’
means
rail
transport,
road
freight
transport,
inland waterway transport, maritime transport, air transport, and
intermodal transport;
(57) ‘urban development fund’ (‘UDF’) means a specialised
investment vehicle set up for the purpose of investing in urban
development projects under an urban development aid measure.
UDFs are managed by an urban development fund manager;
(58) ‘urban development fund manager’ means a professional
management company with legal personality, selecting and
making investments in eligible urban development projects;
(59) ‘urban development project’ (‘UDP’) means an investment
project that has the potential to support the implementation of
interventions envisaged by an integrated approach to sustainable
urban development and contribute to achieving of the objectives
defined therein, including projects with an internal rate of return
which may not be sufficient to attract financing on a purely
commercial basis. An urban development project may be
organised as a separate block of finance within the legal
structures of the beneficiary private investor or as a separate
legal entity, e.g. a special purpose vehicle;
( 1 ) OJ L 393, 30.12.2006, p. 1.
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(60) ‘integrated sustainable urban development strategy’ means a
strategy officially proposed and certified by a relevant local
authority or public sector agency, defined for a specific urban
geographic area and period, that set out integrated actions to
tackle the economic, environmental, climate, demographic and
social challenges affecting urban areas;
(61) ‘in-kind contribution’ means the contribution of land or real
estate where the land or real estate forms part of the urban devel
opment project;
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(61a) ‘relocation’ means a transfer of the same or similar activity or
part thereof from an establishment in one contracting party to the
EEA Agreement (initial establishment) to the establishment in
which the aided investment takes place in another contracting
party to the EEA Agreement (aided establishment). There is a
transfer if the product or service in the initial and in the aided
establishments serves at least partly the same purposes and meets
the demands or needs of the same type of customers and jobs are
lost in the same or similar activity in one of the initial estab
lishments of the beneficiary in the EEA;
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Definitions for Aid to SMEs
(62) ‘employment directly created by an investment project’ means
employment concerning the activity to which the investment
relates, including employment created following an increase in
the utilisation rate of the capacity created by the investment;
(63) ‘organisational cooperation’ means the development of joint
business strategies or management structures, the provision of
common services or services to facilitate cooperation, coordinated
activities such as research or marketing, the support of networks
and clusters, the improvement of accessibility and communi
cation, the use of joint instruments to encourage entrepreneurship
and trade with SMEs;
(64) ‘advisory services linked to cooperation’ means consulting,
assistance and training for the exchange of knowledge and
experiences and for improvement of cooperation;
(65) ‘support services linked to cooperation’ means the provision of
office space, websites, data banks, libraries, market research,
handbooks, working and model documents;
Definitions for Aid for access to finance for SMEs
(66) ‘quasi-equity investment’ means a type of financing that ranks
between equity and debt, having a higher risk than senior debt
and a lower risk than common equity and whose return for the
holder is
predominantly based on the profits or losses of the
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underlying target undertaking and which are unsecured in the
event of default. Quasi-equity investments can be structured as
debt, unsecured and subordinated, including mezzanine debt, and
in some cases convertible into equity, or as preferred equity;
(67) ‘guarantee’ in the context of sections 1, 3 and 7 of the Regulation
means a written commitment to assume responsibility for all or
part of a third party's newly originated loan transactions such as
debt or lease instruments, as well as quasi-equity instruments.;
(68) ‘guarantee rate’ means the percentage of loss coverage by a
public investor of each and every transaction eligible under the
relevant State aid measure;
(69) ‘exit’ means the liquidation of holdings by a financial inter
mediary or investor, including trade sale, write-offs, repayment
of shares/loans, sale to another financial intermediary or another
investor, sale to a financial institution and sale by public offering,
including an initial public offering (IPO);
(70) ‘financial
endowment’
means
a
repayable
public
investment
made
to a financial intermediary for the purposes of making
investments under a risk finance measure, and where all the
proceeds shall be returned to the public investor;
(71) ‘risk finance investment’ means equity and quasi-equity invest
ments, loans including leases, guarantees, or a mix thereof to
eligible undertakings for the purposes of making new invest
ments;
(72) ‘independent private investor’ means a private investor who is not
a shareholder of the eligible undertaking in which it invests,
including business angels and financial institutions, irrespective
of their ownership, to the extent that they bear the full risk in
respect of their investment. Upon the creation of a new company,
private investors, including the founders, are considered to be
independent from that company;
(73) ‘natural
person’
for
the
purpose of
Articles
21 and 23 means a
person other than a legal entity who is not an undertaking for the
purposes of Article 107(1) of the Treaty;
(74) ‘equity investment’ means the provision of capital
to an under
taking, invested directly or indirectly in return for the ownership
of a corresponding share of that undertaking;
(75) ‘first commercial sale’ means the first sale by a company on a
product or service market, excluding limited sales to test the
market;
(76) ‘unlisted
SME’
means
an
SME
which
is
not
listed
on
the
official
list of a stock exchange, except for alternative trading platforms.
(77) ‘follow-on
investment’
means
additional
risk
finance
investment
in a company subsequent to one or more previous risk finance
investment rounds;
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(78) ‘replacement
capital’
means
the
purchase
of
existing
shares
in
a
company from an earlier investor or shareholder;
(79) ‘entrusted
entity’
means
the
European Investment
Bank and the
European Investment Fund, an international financial institution
in which a Member State is a shareholder, or a financial insti
tution established in a Member State aiming at the achievement
of public interest under the control of a public authority, a public
law body, or a private law body with a public service mission:
the entrusted entity can be selected or directly appointed in
accordance with the provisions of Directive 2004/18/EC on the
coordination of procedures for the award of public works
contracts, public supply contracts and public service contracts, ( 1 )
or any subsequent legislation replacing that Directive in full or in
part;
(80) ‘innovative
enterprise’
means
an
enterprise:
(a) that can demonstrate, by means of an evaluation carried out
by an external expert that it will in the foreseeable future
develop products, services or processes which are new or
substantially improved compared to the state of the art in
its industry, and which carry a risk of technological or
industrial failure, or
(b) the research and development costs of which represent at
least 10 % of its total operating costs in at least one of the
three years preceding the granting of the aid or, in the case of
a start-up enterprise without any financial history, in the audit
of its current fiscal period, as certified by an external auditor;
(81) ‘alternative trading platform’ means a multilateral trading facility
as defined in Article 4(1)(15) of Directive 2004/39/EC where the
majority of the financial instruments admitted to trading are
issued by SMEs;
(82) ‘loan’ means an agreement which obliges the lender to make
available to the borrower an agreed amount of money for an
agreed period of time and under which the borrower is obliged
to repay the amount within the agreed period. It may take the
form of a loan, or another funding instrument, including a lease,
which provides the lender with a predominant component of
minimum yield. The refinancing of existing loans shall not be
an eligible loan.
Definitions for Aid for research and development and inno
vation
(83) ‘research and knowledge-dissemination organisation’ means an
entity (such as universities or research institutes, technology
transfer agencies, innovation intermediaries, research-oriented
physical or virtual collaborative entities), irrespective of its
legal status (organised under public or private law) or way of
financing, whose primary goal is to independently conduct funda
mental research, industrial research or experimental development
or to widely disseminate the results of such activities by way of
teaching, publication or knowledge transfer. Where such entity
( 1 ) OJ L 134, 30.4.2004, p. 114.
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also pursues economic activities the financing, the costs and the
revenues of those economic activities must be accounted for
separately. Undertakings that can exert a decisive influence
upon such an entity, in the quality of, for example, shareholders
or members, may not enjoy preferential access to the results
generated by it;
(84) ‘fundamental research’ means experimental or theoretical work
undertaken primarily to acquire new knowledge of the underlying
foundations of phenomena and observable facts, without any
direct commercial application or use in view;
(85) ‘industrial
research’
means
the
planned
research
or
critical
inves
tigation aimed at the acquisition of new knowledge and skills for
developing new products, processes or services or for bringing
about a significant improvement in existing products, processes or
services. It comprises the creation of components parts of
complex systems, and may include the construction of prototypes
in a laboratory environment or in an environment with simulated
interfaces to existing systems as well as of pilot lines, when
necessary for the industrial research and notably for generic tech
nology validation;
(86) ‘experimental
development’
means
acquiring,
combining,
shaping
and using existing scientific, technological, business and other
relevant knowledge and skills with the aim of developing new
or improved products, processes or services. This may also
include, for example, activities aiming at the conceptual defi
nition, planning and documentation of new products, processes
or services;
Experimental development may comprise prototyping, demon
strating, piloting, testing and validation of new or improved
products, processes or services in environments representative
of real life operating conditions where the primary objective is
to make further technical improvements on products, processes or
services that are not substantially set. This may include the devel
opment of a commercially usable prototype or pilot which is
necessarily the final commercial product and which is too
expensive to produce for it to be used only for demonstration
and validation purposes.
Experimental development does not include routine or periodic
changes made to existing products, production lines, manufac
turing processes, services and other operations in progress, even
if those changes may represent improvements;
(87) ‘feasibility study’ means the evaluation and analysis of the
potential of a project, which aims at supporting the process of
decision-making by objectively and rationally uncovering its
strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats, as well as
identifying the resources required to carry it through and ulti
mately its prospects
for success;
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(88) ‘personnel
costs’
means
the
costs
of
researchers,
technicians
and
other supporting staff to the extent employed on the relevant
project or activity;
(89) ‘arm's length’ means that the conditions of the transaction
between the contracting parties do not differ from those which
would be stipulated between independent enterprises and contain
no element of collusion. Any transaction that results from an
open, transparent and non-discriminatory procedure is considered
as meeting the arm's length principle;
(90) ‘effective
collaboration’
means
collaboration
between
at
least
two
independent parties to exchange knowledge or technology, or to
achieve a common objective based on the division of labour
where the parties jointly define the scope of the collaborative
project, contribute to its implementation and share its risks, as
well as its results. One or several parties may bear the full costs
of the project and thus relieve other parties of its financial risks.
Contract research and provision of research services are not
considered forms of collaboration.
(91) ‘research infrastructure’ means facilities, resources and related
services that are used by the scientific community to conduct
research in their respective fields and covers scientific
equipment or sets of instruments, knowledge-based resources
such as collections, archives or structured scientific information,
enabling information and communication technology-based infra
structures such as grid, computing, software and communication,
or any other entity of a unique nature essential to conduct
research. Such infrastructures may be ‘single-sited’ or ‘dis
tributed’ (an organised network of resources) in accordance
with Article 2(a) of Council Regulation (EC) No 723/2009 of
25 June 2009 on the Community legal framework for a
European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC) ( 1 );
(92) ‘innovation clusters’ means structures or organised groups of
independent parties (such as innovative start-ups, small,
medium and large enterprises, as well as research and
knowledge dissemination organisations, non-for-profit organis
ations and other related economic actors) designed to stimulate
innovative activity through promotion, sharing of facilities and
exchange of knowledge and expertise and by contributing effec
tively to knowledge transfer, networking, information dissemi
nation and collaboration among the undertakings and other organ
isations in the cluster;
(93) ‘highly qualified personnel’ means staff having a tertiary
education degree and at least 5 years of relevant professional
experience which may also include doctoral training;
(94) ‘innovation
advisory
services’
means
consultancy,
assistance
and
training in the fields of knowledge transfer, acquisition, protection
and exploitation of intangible assets, use of standards and regu
lations embedding them;
( 1 ) OJ L 206, 8.8.2009, p. 1.
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(95) ‘innovation
support
services’
means
the
provision
of
office
space,
data banks, libraries, market research, laboratories, quality
labelling, testing and certification for the purpose of developing
more effective products, processes or services;
(96) ‘organisational innovation’ means the implementation of a new
organisational method in an undertaking's business practices,
workplace organisation or external relations, excluding changes
that are based on organisational methods already in use in the
undertaking, changes in management strategy, mergers and
acquisitions, ceasing to use a process, simple capital replacement
or extension, changes resulting purely from changes in factor
prices, customisation, localisation, regular, seasonal and other
cyclical changes and trading of new or significantly improved
products;
(97) ‘process innovation’ means the implementation of a new or
significantly improved production or delivery method (including
significant changes in techniques, equipment or software),
excluding minor changes or improvements, increases in
production or service capabilities through the addition of manu
facturing or logistical systems which are very similar to those
already in use, ceasing to use a process, simple capital replace
ment or extension, changes resulting purely from changes in
factor prices, customisation, localisation, regular, seasonal and
other cyclical changes and trading of new or significantly
improved products;
(98) ‘secondment’ means temporary employment of staff by a ben
eficiary with the right for the staff to return to the previous
employer;
Definitions for aid for disadvantaged workers and for
workers with disabilities
(99) ‘severely
disadvantaged
worker’
means
any
person
who:
(a) has not been in regular paid employment for at least 24
months; or
(b) has not been in regular paid employment for at least 12
months and belongs to one of the categories (b) to (g)
mentioned under the definition of ‘disadvantaged worker’.
(100) ‘sheltered employment’ means employment in an undertaking
where at least 30 % of workers are workers with disabilities;
Definitions applying to aid for environmental protection
(101) ‘environmental protection’ means any action designed to remedy
or prevent damage to physical surroundings or natural resources
by a beneficiary's own activities, to reduce risk of such damage
or to lead to a more efficient use of natural resources, including
energy-saving measures and the use of renewable sources of
energy;
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(102) ‘Union standard’ means:
(a) a mandatory Union standard setting the levels to be attained
in environmental terms by individual undertakings; or
(b) the obligation under Directive 2010/75/EU of the European
Parliament and of the Council ( 1 ) to use the best available
techniques (BAT) and ensure that emission levels of
pollutants are not higher than they would be when applying
BAT; for the cases where emission levels associated with the
BAT have been defined in implementing acts adopted under
Directive 2010/75/EU, those levels will be applicable for the
purpose of this Regulation; where those levels are expressed
as a range, the limit where the BAT is first achieved will be
applicable;
(103) ‘energy efficiency’ means an amount of saved energy determined
by measuring and/or estimating consumption before and after
implementation of an energy-efficiency improvement measure,
whilst ensuring normalisation for external conditions that affect
energy consumption;
(104) ‘energy efficiency project’ means an investment project that
increases the energy efficiency of a building;
(105) ‘energy efficiency fund (EEF)’ means a specialised investment
vehicle set up for the purpose of investing in energy efficiency
projects aimed at improving the energy efficiency of buildings in
both the domestic and non-domestic sectors. EEFs are managed
by an energy efficiency fund manager;
(106) ‘energy efficiency fund manager’ means a professional
management company with a legal personality, selecting and
making investments in eligible energy efficiency projects;
(107) ‘high-efficiency cogeneration’ means cogeneration which satisfies
the definition of high efficiency cogeneration as set out in
Article 2(34) of Directive 2012/27/EU of the European
Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on energy
efficiency, amending Directives 2009/125/EC and 2010/30/EU
and repealing Directives 2004/8/EC and 2006/32/EC ( 2 );
(108) ‘cogeneration’ or combined heat and power (CHP) means the
simultaneous generation in one process of thermal energy and
electrical and/or mechanical energy;
(109) ‘energy from renewable energy sources’ means energy produced
by plants using only renewable energy sources, as well as the
share in terms of calorific value of energy produced from
renewable energy sources in hybrid plants which also use
conventional energy sources. It includes renewable electricity
used for filling storage systems, but excludes electricity
produced as a result of storage systems;
(110) ‘renewable energy sources’ means the following renewable non-
fossil energy sources: wind, solar, aerothermal, geothermal,
hydrothermal and ocean energy, hydropower, biomass, landfill
gas, sewage treatment plant gas and biogases;
( 1 ) OJ L 24, 29.1.2008, p. 8.
( 2 ) OJ L 315, 14.11.2012, p. 1.
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(111) ‘biofuel’ means liquid or gaseous fuel for transport produced
from biomass;
(112) ‘sustainable biofuel’ means a biofuel fulfilling the sustainability
criteria set out in Article 17 of Directive 2009/28/EC;
(113) ‘food based biofuel’ means a biofuel produced from cereal and
other starch rich crops, sugars and oil crops as defined in the
Commission's Proposal for a Directive of the European
Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 98/70/EC
relating to the quality of petrol and diesel fuels and amending
Directive 2009/28/EC on the promotion of the use of energy from
renewable sources ( 1 );
(114) ‘new and innovative technology’ means a new and unproven
technology compared to the state of the art in the industry,
which carries a risk of technological or industrial failure and is
not an optimisation or scaling up of an existing technology;
(115) ‘balancing responsibilities’ means responsibility for imbalances
(deviations between generation, consumption and commercial
transactions) of a market participant or its chosen representative,
referred to as the ‘Balance Responsible Party’, within a given
period of time, referred to as the ‘Imbalance Settlement Period’;
(116) ‘standard balancing responsibilities’ means non-discriminatory
balancing responsibilities across technologies which do not
exempt any generator from those responsibilities;
(117) ‘biomass’ means the biodegradable fraction of products, waste
and residues from agriculture (including vegetal and animal
substances), forestry and related industries including fisheries
and aquaculture, as well as biogases and the biodegradable
fraction of industrial and municipal waste;
(118) ‘total levelized costs of producing energy’ is a calculation of the
cost of generating electricity at the point of connection to a load
or electricity grid. It includes the initial capital, discount rate, as
well as the costs of continuous operation, fuel, and maintenance;
(119) ‘environmental tax’ means a tax with a specific tax base that has
a clear negative effect on the environment or which seeks to tax
certain activities, goods or services so that the environmental
costs may be included in their price and/or so that producers
and consumers are oriented towards activities which better
respect the environment;
(120) ‘Union minimum tax level’ means the minimum level of taxation
provided for in the Union legislation; for energy products and
electricity it means the minimum level of taxation laid down in
Annex I to Council Directive 2003/96/EC of 27 October 2003
restructuring the Community framework for the taxation of
energy products and electricity ( 2 );
( 1 ) COM (2012) 595, 17.10.2012.
( 2 ) OJ L 283, 31.10.2003, p.
51.
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(121) ‘contaminated site’ means a site where there is a confirmed
presence, caused by man, of hazardous substances of such a
level that they pose a significant risk to human health or the
environment taking into account current and approved future
use of the land;
(122) ‘polluter pays principle’ or ‘PPP’ means that the costs of
measures to deal with pollution should be borne by the polluter
who causes the pollution;
(123) ‘pollution’ means the damage caused by a polluter directly or
indirectly damaging the environment, or by creating conditions
leading to such damage to physical surroundings or natural
resources;
(124) ‘energy efficient district heating and cooling’ means a district
heating and cooling system which satisfies the definition of
efficient district heating and cooling system set out in
Article 2(41) and (42) of Directive 2012/27/EU. The definition
includes the heating/cooling production plants and the network
(including related facilities) necessary to distribute the heat/
cooling from the production units to the customer premises;
(125) ‘polluter’ means someone who directly or indirectly damages the
environment or who creates conditions leading to such damage.
(126) ‘re-use’ means any operation by which products or components
that are not waste are used again for the same purpose for which
they were conceived;
(127) ‘preparing for re-use’ means checking, cleaning or repairing
recovery operations, by which products or components of products
that have become waste are prepared so that they can be re-used
without any other pre-processing;
(128) ‘recycling’ means any recovery operation by which waste
materials are reprocessed into products, materials or substances
whether for the original or other purposes. It includes the repro
cessing of organic material but does not include energy recovery
and the reprocessing into materials that are to be used as fuels or
for backfilling operations;
(129) ‘state of the art’ means a process in which the re-use of a waste
product to manufacture an end product is economically profitable
normal practice. Where appropriate, the concept of state of the art
must be interpreted from a Union technological and internal
market perspective;
(130) ‘energy infrastructure’ means any physical equipment or facility
which is located within the Union or linking the Union to one or
more third countries and falling under the following categories:
(a) concerning electricity:
(i) infrastructure
for
transmission,
as
defined
in
Article
2(3)
by Directive 2009/72/EC of 13 July 2009 concerning
common rules for internal market in electricity ( 1 );
( 1 ) OJ L 211, 14.8.2009, p. 55.
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(ii) infrastructure for distribution, as defined in Article 2(5)
by Directive 2009/72/EC;
(iii) electricity storage, defined as facilities used for storing
electricity on a permanent or temporary basis in above-
ground or underground infrastructure or geological sites,
provided they are directly connected to high-voltage
transmission lines designed for a voltage of 110 kV or
more;
(iv) any equipment or installation essential for the systems
defined in points (i) to (iii) to operate safely, securely
and efficiently, including protection, monitoring and
control systems at all voltage levels and substations; and
(v) smart grids, defined as any equipment, line, cable or
installation, both at transmission and low and medium
voltage distribution level, aiming at two-way digital
communication, real-time or close to real-time, inter
active and intelligent monitoring and management of
electricity generation, transmission, distribution and
consumption within an electricity network in view of
developing a network efficiently integrating the
behaviour and actions of all users connected to it —
generators, consumers and those that do both — in
order to ensure an economically efficient, sustainable
electricity system with low losses and high quality and
security of supply and safety;
(b) concerning gas:
(i) transmission
and
distribution
pipelines
for
the
transport
of natural gas and bio gas that form part of a network,
excluding high-pressure pipelines used for upstream
distribution of natural gas;
(ii) underground storage facilities connected to the high-
pressure gas pipelines mentioned in point (i);
(iii) reception, storage and regasification or decompression
facilities for liquefied natural gas (‘LNG’) or compressed
natural gas (‘CNG’); and
(iv) any equipment or installation essential for the system to
operate safely, securely and efficiently or to enable bi-
directional capacity, including compressor stations;
(c) concerning oil:
(i) pipelines
used
to
transport
crude
oil;
(ii) pumping stations and storage facilities necessary for the
operation of crude oil pipelines; and
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(iii) any equipment or installation essential for the system in
question to operate properly, securely and efficiently,
including protection, monitoring and control systems
and reverse-flow devices;
(d) concerning CO 2 : networks of pipelines, including associated
booster stations, for the transport of CO 2 to storage sites, with
the aim to inject the CO 2 in suitable underground geological
formations for permanent storage;
(131) ‘internal energy market legislation’ includes Directive
2009/72/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of
13 July 2009 concerning common rules for the internal market in
electricity, Directive 2009/73/EC of the European Parliament and
of the Council of 13 July 2009 concerning common rules for the
internal market in natural gas ( 1 ), Regulation (EC) No 713/2009
of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009
establishing an Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regu
lators ( 2 ); Regulation (EC) No 714/2009 of the European
Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 on conditions
for access to the network for cross-border exchanges ( 3 ) and
Regulation (EC) No 715/2009 of the European Parliament and
of the Council of 13 July 2009 on conditions for access to the
natural gas transmission networks ( 4 ) or any subsequent legis
lation replacing these acts in full or in part;
Definitions applying to social aid for transport for residents of
remote regions
(132) ‘normal residence’ means the place where a natural person lives
for at least 185 days, in each calendar year, because of personal
and occupational ties; in the case of a person whose occupational
ties are in a different place from his/her personal ties and who
lives in two or more Member States, the place of normal
residence is regarded as the place of his/her personal ties
provided that he/she returns there regularly; where a person is
living in a Member State in order to carry out a task of a set
duration, the place of residence is still regarded as being the place
of his/her personal ties, irrespective of whether he/she returns
there during the course of this activity; attendance at a university
or school in another Member State does not constitute a transfer
of normal residence; alternatively, ‘normal residence’ shall have
the meaning attributed to it in Member States' national law.
Definitions for aid for broadband infrastructures
(133) ‘basic broadband’‘Basic broadband networks’ means networks
with basic functionalities which are based on technology
platforms such as asymmetric digital subscriber lines (up to
ADSL2+ networks), non-enhanced cable (e.g. DOCSIS 2.0),
mobile networks of third generation (UMTS) and satellite
systems;
(134) ‘broadband-related civil engineering works’ means the civil
engineering works which are necessary for the deployment of a
broadband network, such as digging up a road in order to enable
the placement of (broadband) ducts.
( 1 ) OJ L 211, 14.8.2009, p. 94.
( 2 ) OJ L 211, 14.8.2009, p. 1.
( 3 ) OJ L 211, 14.8.2009, p. 15.
( 4 ) OJ L 211, 14.8.2009, p. 36.
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(135) ‘ducts’ means underground pipes or conduits used to house (fibre,
copper or coax) cables of a broadband network.
(136) ‘physical unbundling’ grants access to the end-consumer access
line and allows competitors' own transmission systems to directly
transmit over it.
(137) ‘passive broadband infrastructure’ means a broadband network
without any active component. It typically comprises civil engin
eering infrastructure, ducts and dark fibre and street cabinets.
(138) ‘next generation access (NGA) networks’ means advanced
networks which have at least the following characteristics: (a)
deliver services reliably at a very high speed per subscriber
through optical (or equivalent technology) backhaul sufficiently
close to user premises to guarantee the actual delivery of the very
high speed; (b) support a variety of advanced digital services
including converged all-IP services, and (c) have substantially
higher upload speeds (compared to basic broadband networks).
At the current stage of market and technological development,
NGA networks are: (a) fibre-based access networks (FTTx), (b)
advanced upgraded cable networks and (c) certain advanced
wireless access networks capable of delivering reliable high-
speeds per subscriber.
(139) ‘wholesale access’ means access which enables an operator to
utilise the facilities of another operator. The widest possible
access to be provided over the relevant network shall include,
on the basis of the current technological developments, at least
the following access products. For FTTH/FTTB networks: ducts
access, access to dark fibre, unbundled access to the local loop,
and bitstream access. For cable networks: duct access and bit-
stream access. For FTTC networks: duct access, sub-loop
unbundling and bit-stream access. For passive network infra
structure: duct access, access to dark fibre and/or unbundled
access to the local loop. For ADSL-based broadband networks:
unbundled access to the local loop, bit-stream access. For mobile
or wireless networks: bit-stream, sharing of physical masts and
access to the backhaul networks. For satellite platforms: bit-
stream access.
Definitions for aid for culture and heritage conservation
(140) ‘difficult audiovisual works’: means the works identified as such
by Member States on the basis of pre-defined criteria when
setting up schemes or granting the aid and may include films
whose sole original version is in a language of a Member State
with a limited territory, population or language area, short films,
films by first-time and second-time directors, documentaries, or
low budget or otherwise commercially difficult works.
(141) Development Assistance Committee (DAC) List of the OECD:
means all countries and territories that are eligible to receive
official development assistance and included in the list
compiled by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD);
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(142) ‘reasonable profit’ shall be determined with respect to the typical
profit for the sector concerned. In any event, a rate of return on
capital that does not exceed the relevant swap rate plus a
premium of 100 basis points will be considered to be reasonable.
Definitions for aid for sport and multifunctional recreational
infrastructures
(143) ‘professional sport’ means the practice of sport in the nature of
gainful employment or remunerated service, irrespective of
whether or not a formal labour contract has been established
between the professional sportsperson and the relevant sport
organisation, where the compensation exceeds the cost of partici
pation and constitutes a significant part of the income for the
sportsperson. Travel and accommodation expenses to participate
to the sport event shall not be considered as compensation for the
purposes of this Regulation.
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Definitions for Aid for regional airports
(144) ‘airport infrastructure’ means infrastructure and equipment for the
provision of airport services by the airport to airlines and the
various service providers, including runways, terminals, aprons,
taxiways, centralised ground handling infrastructure and any other
facilities that directly support the airport services, excluding infra
structure and equipment which is primarily necessary for
pursuing non-aeronautical activities;
(145) ‘airline’ means any airline with a valid operating licence issued
by a Member State or a Member of the Common European
Aviation Area pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 1008/2008 of
the European Parliament and of the Council ( 1 );
(146) ‘airport’ means an entity or group of entities performing the
economic activity of providing airport services to airlines;
(147) ‘airport services’ means services provided to airlines by an airport
or any of its subsidiaries, to ensure the handling of aircraft, from
landing to take-off, and of passengers and freight, so as to enable
airlines to provide air transport services, including the provision
of ground handling services and the provision of centralised
ground handling infrastructure;
(148) ‘average annual passenger traffic’ means a figure determined on
the basis of the inbound and outbound passenger traffic during
the two financial years preceding that in which the aid is granted;
(149) ‘centralised ground handling infrastructure’ means infrastructure
which is normally operated by the airport manager and put at the
disposal of the various providers of ground handling services
active at the airport in exchange for remuneration, excluding
equipment owned or operated by the providers of ground
handling services;
(150) ‘high-speed train’ means a train capable of reaching speeds of
over 200 km/h;
( 1 ) Regulation (EC) No 1008/2008 of the European Parliament and of the
Council of 24 September 2008 on common rules for the operation of air
services in the Community (OJ L 293, 31.10.2008, p. 3).
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(151) ‘ground handling services’ means services provided to airport
users at airports as described in the Annex to Council Directive
96/67/EC ( 1 );
(152) ‘non-aeronautical activities’ means commercial services to airlines
or other users of the airport, including ancillary services to
passengers, freight forwarders or other service providers, renting
out of offices and shops, car parking and hotels;
(153) ‘regional airport’ means an airport with average annual passenger
traffic of up to 3 million passengers;
Definitions for Aid for ports
(154) ‘port’ means an area of land and water made up of such infra
structure and equipment, so as to permit the reception of
waterborne vessels, their loading and unloading, the storage of
goods, the receipt and delivery of those goods and the embar
kation and disembarkation of passengers, crew and other persons
and any other infrastructure necessary for transport operators in
the port;
(155) ‘maritime port’ means a port for, principally, the reception of sea-
going vessels;
(156) ‘inland port’ means a port other than a maritime port, for the
reception of inland waterway vessels;
(157) ‘port infrastructure’ means infrastructure and facilities for the
provision of transport related port services, for example berths
used for the mooring of ships, quay walls, jetties and floating
pontoon ramps in tidal areas, internal basins, backfills and land
reclamation, alternative fuel infrastructure and infrastructure for
the collection of ship-generated waste and cargo residues;
(158) ‘port superstructure’ means surface arrangements (such as for
storage), fixed equipment (such as warehouses and terminal
buildings) as well as mobile equipment (such as cranes) located
in a port for the provision of transport related port services;
(159) ‘access infrastructure’ means any type of infrastructure necessary
to ensure access and entry from land or sea and river by users to
a port, or in a port, such as roads, rail tracks, channels and locks;
(160) ‘dredging’ means the removal of sediments from the bottom of
the waterway access to a port, or in a port;
(161) ‘alternative fuel infrastructure’ means a fixed, mobile or offshore
port infrastructure allowing a port to supply vessels with energy
sources such as electricity, hydrogen, biofuels as defined in point
(i) of Article 2 of Directive 2009/28/EC, synthetic and paraffinic
fuels, natural gas, including biomethane, in gaseous form (com
pressed natural gas (CNG)) and liquefied form (liquefied natural
( 1 ) Council Directive 96/67/EC of 15 October 1996 on access to the ground
handling market at Community airports (OJ
L 272, 25.10.1996, p. 36).
02014R0651 — EN — 10.07.2017 — 001.004 — 28
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gas (LNG)), and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) which serve, at
least partly, as a substitute for fossil oil sources in the energy
supply to transport and which have the potential to contribute to
its decarbonisation and enhance the environmental performance
of the transport sector;
(162) ‘vessels’ mean floating structures, whether self-propelled or not,
with one or more surface displacement hulls;
(163) ‘sea-going vessels’ mean vessels other than those which navigate
solely or mainly in inland waterways or in waters within, or
closely adjacent to, sheltered waters;
(164) ‘inland waterway vessels’ mean vessels intended solely or mainly
for navigation on inland waterways or in waters within, or closely
adjacent to, sheltered waters;
(165) ‘infrastructure for the collection of ship-generated waste and
cargo residues’ means fixed, floating or mobile port facilities
capable of receiving ship-generated waste or cargo residues as
defined in Directive 2000/59/EC of the European Parliament
and of the Council ( 1 ).
▼B
Article 3
Conditions for exemption
Aid schemes, individual aid granted under aid schemes and ad hoc aid
shall be compatible with the internal market within the meaning of
Article 107(2) or (3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the
notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty provided that
such aid fulfils all the conditions laid down in Chapter I of this Regu
lation, as well as the specific conditions for the relevant category of aid
laid down in Chapter III of this Regulation.
Article 4
Notification thresholds
1.
This Regulation shall not apply to aid which exceeds the following
thresholds:
(a) for regional investment aid: the ‘adjusted aid amount’ of aid, as
calculated in accordance with the mechanism defined in Article 2,
point 20 for an investment with eligible costs of EUR 100 million;
(b) for
regional
urban
development
aid,
EUR
20
million
as
laid
down
in Article 16(3);
(c) for
investment
aid
to
SMEs:
EUR
7,5
million
per
undertaking
per
investment project;
(d) for aid for consultancy in favour of SMEs: EUR 2 million per
undertaking, per project;
(e) for aid to SMEs for participation in fairs: EUR 2 million per
undertaking, per year;
(f) for aid to SMEs for cooperation costs incurred by participating in
European Territorial Cooperation projects: EUR 2 million per
undertaking, per project;
( 1 ) Directive 2000/59/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of
27 November 2000 on port reception facilities for ship-generated waste and
cargo residues (OJ L 332, 28.12.2000, p. 81).
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(g) for risk finance aid: EUR 15 million per eligible undertaking as
laid down in Article 21(9);
(h) for aid for start-ups: the amounts laid down per undertaking in
Article 22(3), (4) and (5);
(i) for aid for research and development:
(i) if
the
project
is
predominantly
fundamental
research:
EUR
40
million per undertaking, per project; that is the case where
more than half of the eligible costs of the project are incurred
through activities which fall within the category of funda
mental research;
(ii) if the project is predominantly industrial research: EUR 20
million per undertaking, per project; that is the case where
more than half of the eligible costs of the project are incurred
through activities which fall within the category of industrial
research or within the categories of industrial research and
fundamental research taken together;
(iii) if the project is predominantly experimental development:
EUR 15 million per undertaking, per project; that is the
case where more than half of the eligible costs of the
project are incurred through activities which fall within the
category of experimental development;
(iv) if the project is a Eureka project or is implemented by a Joint
Undertaking established on the basis of Article 185 or of
Article 187 of the Treaty, the amounts referred to in points
(i) to (iii) are doubled.
(v) if the aid for research and development projects is granted in
the form of repayable advances which, in the absence of an
accepted methodology to calculate their gross grant equiv
alent, are expressed as a percentage of the eligible costs and
the measure provides that in case of a successful outcome of
the project, as defined on the basis of a reasonable and
prudent hypothesis, the advances will be repaid with an
interest rate at least equal to the discount rate applicable at
the time of grant, the amounts referred to in points (i) to (iv)
are increased by 50 %;
(vi) aid for feasibility studies in preparation for research activities:
EUR 7,5 million per study;
(j) for investment aid for research infrastructures: EUR 20 million per
infrastructure;
(k) for aid for innovation clusters: EUR 7,5 million per cluster;
(l) innovation
aid
for
SMEs:
EUR
5
million
per
undertaking,
per
project;
(m) for aid for process and organisational innovation: EUR 7,5 million
per undertaking, per project;
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(n) for
training
aid:
EUR
2
million
per
training
project;
(o) for aid for the recruitment of disadvantaged workers: EUR 5
million per undertaking, per year;
(p) for aid for the employment of workers with disabilities in the form
of wage subsidies: EUR 10 million per undertaking, per year;
(q) for aid for compensating the additional costs of employing workers
with disabilities: EUR 10 million per undertaking, per year;
(r) for aid for compensating the costs of assistance provided to
disadvantaged workers: EUR 5 million per undertaking, per year;
(s) for investment aid for environmental protection, excluding
investment aid for the remediation of contaminated sites and aid
for the distribution network part of the energy efficient district
heating and cooling installation: EUR 15 million per undertaking
per investment project;
(t) for
investment
aid
for
energy
efficiency
projects:
EUR
10
million
as laid down in Article 39(5);
(u) for investment aid for remediation of contaminated sites: EUR 20
million per undertaking per investment project;
(v) for operating aid for the production of electricity from renewable
sources and operating aid for the promotion of energy from
renewable sources in small scale installations: EUR 15 million
per undertaking per project. When the aid is granted on the
basis of a competitive bidding process under Article 42: EUR
150 million per year taking into account the combined budget of
all schemes falling under Article 42;
(w) for investment aid for the district heating or cooling distribution
network: EUR 20 million per undertaking per investment project;
(x) for investment aid for
energy infrastructure:
EUR 50 million
per
undertaking, per investment project;
(y) for
aid for broadband infrastructures:
EUR 70 million
total costs
per project;
▼M1
(z) for investment aid for culture and heritage conservation: EUR 150
million per project; operating aid for culture and heritage conser
vation: EUR 75 million per undertaking per year;
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(aa) for aid schemes for audiovisual works: EUR 50 million per
scheme per year;
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(bb) for investment aid for sport and multifunctional recreational infra
structures: EUR 30 million or the total costs exceeding EUR 100
million per project; operating aid for sport infrastructure: EUR 2
million per infrastructure per year;
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(cc) for investment aid for local infrastructures: EUR 10 million or the
total costs exceeding EUR 20 million for the same infrastructure;
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(dd) for aid for regional airports: the aid intensities and aid amounts
laid down in Article 56a;
(ee) for aid for maritime ports: eligible costs of EUR 130 million per
project (or EUR 150 million per project in a maritime port
included in the work plan of a Core Network Corridor as
referred to in Article 47 of Regulation (EU) No 1315/2013 of
the European Parliament and of the Council ( 1 )); as regards
dredging a project is defined as all dredging carried out within
one calendar year; and
(ff) for aid for inland ports: eligible costs of EUR 40 million per
project (or EUR 50 million per project in an inland port
included in the work plan of a Core Network Corridor as
referred to in Article 47 of Regulation (EU) No 1315/2013); as
regards dredging a project is defined as all dredging carried out
within one calendar year.
▼B
2. The thresholds set out or referred to in paragraph 1 shall not be
circumvented by artificially splitting up the aid schemes or aid projects.
Article 5
Transparency of aid
1. This
Regulation
shall
apply
only
to
aid
in
respect
of
which
it
is
possible to calculate precisely the gross grant equivalent of the aid
ex
ante without any need to undertake a risk assessment (‘transparent aid’).
2. The
following
categories
of
aid
shall
be
considered
to
be
trans
parent:
(a) aid comprised in grants and interest rate subsidies;
(b) aid comprised in loans, where the gross grant equivalent has been
calculated on the basis of the reference rate prevailing at the time of
the grant;
(c) aid comprised in guarantees:
(i) where the gross grant equivalent has been calculated on the
basis of safe-harbour premiums laid down in a Commission
notice; or
(ii) where before the implementation of the measure, the
methodology to calculate the gross grant equivalent of the
guarantee has been accepted on the basis of the Commission
Notice on the application of Articles 87 and 88 of the EC
( 1 ) Regulation (EU) No 1315/2013 of the European Parliament and of the
Council of 11 December 2013 on Union guidelines for the development of
the trans-European transport network and repealing Decision No
661/2010/EU (OJ L 348, 20.12.2013, p. 1).
02014R0651 — EN — 10.07.2017 — 001.004 — 32
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Treaty to State aid in the form of guarantees ( 1 ), or any
successor notice, following notification of that methodology to
the Commission under any regulation adopted by the
Commission in the State aid area applicable at the time, and
the approved methodology explicitly addresses the type of
guarantee and the type of underlying transaction at stake in
the context of the application of this Regulation;
(d) aid in the form of tax advantages, where the measure provides for a
cap ensuring that the applicable threshold is not exceeded;
(e) aid for regional urban development if the conditions laid down in
Article 16 are fulfilled;
(f) aid comprised in risk finance measures if the conditions laid down
in Article 21 are fulfilled;
(g) aid for start-ups if the conditions laid down in Article 22 are
fulfilled;
(h) aid for energy efficiency projects if the conditions laid down in
Article 39 are fulfilled;
(i) aid in the form of premiums in addition to the market price if the
conditions laid down in Article 42 are fulfilled;
(j) aid in the form of repayable advances, if the total nominal amount
of the repayable advance does not exceed the thresholds applicable
under this Regulation or if, before implementation of the measure,
the methodology to calculate the gross grant equivalent of the
repayable advance has been accepted following its notification to
the Commission;
▼M1
(k) aid in the form of the sale or the lease of tangible assets below
market rates where the value is established either by an independent
expert evaluation prior to the transaction or by reference to a
publicly available, regularly updated and generally accepted
benchmark.
▼B
Article 6
Incentive effect
1. This
Regulation
shall
apply
only
to
aid
which
has
an
incentive
effect.
2. Aid
shall
be
considered
to
have
an
incentive
effect
if
the
benefici
ary has submitted a written application for the aid to the Member State
concerned before work on the project or activity starts. The application
for the aid shall contain at least the following information:
( 1 ) OJ C 155, 20.6.2008, p. 10.
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(a) undertaking's name and size;
(b) description of the project, including its start and end dates;
(c) location of the project;
(d) list of project costs;
(e) type of aid (grant, loan, guarantee, repayable advance, equity
injection or other) and amount of public funding needed for the
project;
3.
Ad hoc aid granted to large enterprises shall be considered to have
an incentive effect if, in addition to ensuring that the condition laid
down in paragraph 2 is fulfilled, the Member State has verified,
before granting the aid concerned, that documentation prepared by the
beneficiary establishes that the aid will result in one or more of the
following:
(a) in the case of regional investment aid: that a project is carried out,
which would not have been carried out in the area concerned or
would not have been sufficiently profitable for the beneficiary in the
area concerned in the absence of the aid.
(b) in all other cases, that there is:
— a material increase in the scope of the project/activity due to the
aid, or
— a material increase in the total amount spent by the beneficiary
on the project/activity due to the aid, or
— a material increase in the speed of completion of the project/
activity concerned;
4. By
way
of
derogation
from
paragraphs
2
and
3,
measures
in
the
form of tax advantages shall be deemed to have an incentive effect if
the following conditions are fulfilled:
(a) the measure establishes a right to aid in accordance with objective
criteria and without further exercise of discretion by the Member
State; and
(b) the measure has been adopted and is in force before work on the
aided project or activity has started, except in the case of fiscal
successor schemes, where the activity was already covered by the
previous schemes in the form of tax advantages.
5.
By way of derogation from paragraphs 2, 3 and 4, the following
categories of aid are not required to have or shall be deemed to have an
incentive effect:
▼M1
(a) regional operating aid and regional urban development aid, where
the relevant conditions laid down in Articles 15 and 16 are fulfilled,
▼B
(b) aid for access to finance for SMEs, if the relevant conditions laid
down in Articles 21 and 22 are fulfilled,
(c) aid for the recruitment of disadvantaged workers in the form of
wage subsidies and aid for the employment of workers with
disabilities in the form of wage subsidies, if the relevant conditions
laid down in Articles
32 and 33 respectively are fulfilled,
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(d) aid compensating for the additional costs of employing workers
with disabilities and aid for compensating the costs of assistance
provided to disadvantaged workers, where the relevant conditions
laid down in Articles 34 and 35 are fulfilled;
▼B
(e) aid in the form of reductions in environmental taxes under Directive
2003/96/EC, if the conditions laid down in Article 44 of this Regu
lation are fulfilled;
(f) aid to make good the damage caused by certain natural disasters, if
the conditions laid down in Article 50 are fulfilled;
(g) social aid for transport for residents of remote regions, if the
conditions laid down in Article 51 are fulfilled;
(h) aid for culture and heritage conservation, if the conditions laid down
in Article 53 are fulfilled.
Article 7
Aid intensity and eligible costs
1. For
the
purposes
of
calculating
aid
intensity
and
eligible
costs,
all
figures used shall be taken before any deduction of tax or other charge.
The eligible costs shall be supported by documentary evidence which
shall be clear, specific and contemporary.
▼M1
The amounts of eligible costs may be calculated in accordance with the
simplified cost options set out in Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 of the
European Parliament and of the Council ( 1 ), provided that the operation
is at least partly financed through a Union fund that allows the use of
those simplified cost options and that the category of costs is eligible
according to the relevant exemption provision.
▼B
2.
Where aid is granted in a form other than a grant, the aid amount
shall be the gross grant equivalent of the aid.
3.
►M1 Aid payable in the future, including aid payable in several
instalments, shall be discounted to its value at the moment it is
granted. ◄ The eligible costs shall be discounted to their value at the
moment the aid is granted. The interest rate to be used for discounting
purposes shall be the discount rate applicable at the moment the aid is
granted.
▼M1 __________
( 1 ) Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 of the European Parliament and of the
Council of 17 December 2013 laying down common provisions on the
European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the
Cohesion Fund, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development
and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and laying down general
provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European
Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund and the European Maritime and Fisheries
Fund and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 (OJ L 347,
20.12.2013, p. 320).
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5.
Where aid is granted in the form of repayable advances which, in
the absence of an accepted methodology to calculate their gross grant
equivalent, are expressed as a percentage of the eligible costs and the
measure provides that in case of a successful outcome of the project, as
defined on the basis of a reasonable and prudent hypothesis, the
advances will be repaid with an interest rate at least equal to the
discount rate applicable at the moment the aid is granted, the
maximum aid intensities laid down in Chapter III may be increased
by 10 percentage points.
6. Where
regional
aid
is
granted
in
the
form
of
repayable
advances,
the maximum aid intensities established in a regional aid map in force at
the moment the aid is granted may not be increased.
Article 8
Cumulation
1.
In determining whether the notification thresholds in Article 4 and
the maximum aid intensities in Chapter III are respected, the total
amount of State aid for the aided activity or project or undertaking
shall be taken into account.
2. Where
Union
funding
centrally
managed
by
the
institutions,
agencies, joint undertakings or other bodies of the Union that is not
directly or indirectly under the control of the Member State is combined
with State aid, only the latter shall be considered for determining
whether notification thresholds and maximum aid intensities or
maximum aid amounts are respected, provided that the total amount
of public funding granted in relation to the same eligible costs does
not exceed the most favourable funding rate laid down in the applicable
rules of Union law.
3. Aid
with
identifiable
eligible
costs
exempted
by
this
Regulation
may be cumulated with:
(a) any other State aid, as long as those measures concern different
identifiable eligible costs,
(b) any other State aid, in relation to the same eligible costs, partly or
fully overlapping, only if such cumulation does not result in
exceeding the highest aid intensity or aid amount applicable to
this aid under this Regulation.
4. Aid
without
identifiable
eligible
costs
exempted
under
Articles
21,
22 and 23 of this Regulation may be cumulated with any other State aid
with identifiable eligible costs. Aid without identifiable eligible costs
may be cumulated with any other State aid without identifiable eligible
costs, up to the highest relevant total financing threshold fixed in the
specific circumstances of each case by this or another block exemption
regulation or decision adopted by the Commission.
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5. State
aid
exempted
under
this
Regulation
shall
not
be
cumulated
with any de minimis aid in respect of the same eligible costs if such
cumulation would result in an aid intensity exceeding those laid down
in Chapter III of this Regulation.
6. By
way
of
derogation
from
paragraph
3(b),
aid
in
favour
of
workers with disabilities, as provided for in Articles 33 and 34 may
be cumulated with other aid exempted under this Regulation in relation
to the same eligible costs above the highest applicable threshold under
this Regulation, provided that such cumulation does not result in an aid
intensity exceeding 100 % of the relevant costs over any period for
which the workers concerned are employed.
▼M1
7. By
way
of
derogation
from
paragraphs
1
to
6,
in
determining
whether the ceilings for regional operating aid in outermost regions,
as set out in Article 15(4), are respected, only regional operating aid
in outermost regions implemented under this Regulation shall be taken
into account.
▼B
Article 9
Publication and information
1. The
Member
State
concerned
shall
ensure
the
publication
on
a
comprehensive State aid website, at national or regional level of:
(a) the summary information referred to in Article 11 in the stan
dardised format laid down in Annex II or a link providing access
to it;
(b) the full text of each aid measure, as referred to in Article 11 or a
link providing access to the full text;
(c) the information referred to in Annex III on each individual aid
award exceeding EUR 500 000.
As regards aid granted to European Territorial Cooperation projects, the
information referred to in this paragraph shall be placed on the website
of the Member State in which the Managing Authority concerned, as
defined in Article 21 of Regulation (EC) No 1299/2013 of the European
Parliament and of the Council, is located. Alternatively, the participating
Member States may also decide that each of them shall provide the
information relating to the aid measures within their territory on the
respective websites.
2. For schemes in the form of tax advantages, and for schemes
covered by Article 16 and 21 ( 1 ) the conditions set out in paragraph
1(c) of this Article shall be considered fulfilled if Member States
publish the required information on individual aid amounts in the
following ranges (in EUR million):
( 1 ) For schemes under Article 16 and 21 of the present Regulation, the
requirement to publish information on each individual award exceeding
EUR 500 000 can be waived with respect to SMEs which have not carried
out any commercial sale in any market.
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0,5-1;
1-2;
2-5;
5-10;
10-30; and
30 and more.
3. For
schemes
under
Article
51
of
this
Regulation,
the
publication
obligations laid down in this article shall not apply to final consumers.
4. The
information
referred
to
in
paragraph
1(c)
of
this
Article
shall
be organised and accessible in a standardised manner, as described in
Annex III, and shall allow for effective search and download functions.
The information referred to in paragraph 1 shall be published within 6
months from the date the aid was granted, or for aid in the form of tax
advantage, within 1 year from the date the tax declaration is due, and
shall be available for at least 10 years from the date on which the aid
was granted.
5. The
Commission
shall
publish
on
its
website:
(a) the links to the State aid websites referred to in paragraph 1 of this
Article;
(b) the summary information referred to in Article 11.
6. Member
States
shall
comply
with
the
provisions
of
this
Article
at
the latest within two years after the entry into force of this Regulation.
CHAPTER II
MONITORING
Article 10
Withdrawal of the benefit of the block exemption
Where a Member State grants aid allegedly exempted from the notifi
cation requirement under this Regulation without fulfilling the
conditions set out in Chapters I to III, the Commission may, after
having provided the Member State concerned with the possibility to
make its views known, adopt a decision stating that all or some of
the future aid measures adopted by the Member State concerned
which would otherwise fulfil the requirements of this Regulation, are
to be notified to the Commission in accordance with Article 108(3) of
the Treaty. The measures to be notified may be limited to the measures
granting certain types of aid or in favour of certain beneficiaries or aid
measures adopted by certain
authorities of the Member State concerned.
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Article 11
Reporting
Member States, or in the case of aid granted to European Territorial
Cooperation projects, alternatively the Member State in which the
Managing Authority, as defined in Article 21 of Regulation (EC) No
1299/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council, is located,
shall transmit to the Commission:
(a) via the Commission's electronic notification system, the summary
information about each aid measure exempted under this Regulation
in the standardised format laid down in Annex II, together with a
link providing access to the full text of the aid measure, including
its amendments, within 20 working days following its entry into
force;
(b) an annual report, as referred to in the Commission Regulation (EC)
No 794/2004 of 21 April 2004 implementing Council Regulation
(EC) No 659/1999 of 22 March 1999 laying down detailed rules for
the application of Article 93 of the EC Treaty ( 1 ) as amended, in
electronic form, on the application of this Regulation, containing the
information indicated in the Implementing Regulation, in respect of
each whole year or each part of the year during which this Regu
lation applies.
▼M1
Article 12
Monitoring
1. In order to enable the Commission to monitor the aid exempted
from notification by this Regulation, Member States, or alternatively, in
the case of aid granted to European Territorial Cooperation projects, the
Member State in which the Managing Authority is located, shall
maintain detailed records with the information and supporting documen
tation necessary to establish that all the conditions laid down in this
Regulation are fulfilled. Such records shall be kept for 10 years from the
date on which the
ad hoc aid was granted or the last aid was granted
under the scheme.
2. In the case of schemes under which fiscal aid is granted auto
matically, such as those based on tax declarations of the beneficiaries,
and where there is no
ex ante verification that all compatibility
conditions are met for each beneficiary, Member States shall regularly
verify, at least
ex post and on a sample basis, that all compatibility
conditions are met, and draw the necessary conclusions. Member
States shall maintain detailed records of the verifications for at least
10 years from the date of the controls.
3. The
Commission
may
request,
from
each
Member
State,
all
the
information and supporting documentation which the Commission
considers necessary to monitor the application of this Regulation,
including the information mentioned in paragraphs 1 and 2. The
Member State concerned shall provide the Commission with the
requested information and supporting documents within a period of
20 working days from receipt of the request or such longer period as
may be fixed in the request.
( 1 ) OJ L 140, 30.4.2004, p. 1.
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CHAPTER III
SPECIFIC PROVISIONS FOR DIFFERENT CATEGORIES OF AID
SECTION 1
Regional aid
S u b s e c t i o n A
R e g i o n a l i n v e s t m e n t a n d o p e r a t i n g a i d
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Article 13
Scope of regional aid
This Section shall not apply to:
(a) aid which favours activities in the steel sector, the coal sector, the
shipbuilding sector or the synthetic fibres sector;
(b) aid to the transport sector as well as the related infrastructure, and
aid for energy generation, distribution and infrastructure, except for
regional investment aid in outermost regions and regional operating
aid schemes;
(c) regional aid in the form of schemes which are targeted at a limited
number of specific sectors of economic activity; schemes aimed at
tourism activities, broadband infrastructures or processing and
marketing of agricultural products are not considered to be
targeted at specific sectors of economic activity;
(d) regional operating aid granted to undertakings whose principal
activities fall under Section K ‘Financial and insurance activities’
of the NACE Rev. 2 or to undertakings that perform intra-group
activities whose principal activities fall under classes 70.10
‘Activities of head offices’ or 70.22 ‘Business and other
management consultancy activities’ of NACE Rev. 2.
▼B
Article 14
Regional investment aid
1. Regional
investment
aid
measures
shall
be
compatible
with
the
internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty
and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down
in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2.
The aid shall be granted in assisted areas.
3. In
assisted
areas
fulfilling
the
conditions
of
Article
107(3)(a)
of
the Treaty, the aid may be granted for an initial investment regardless of
the size of the beneficiary. In assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty, the aid may be granted to SMEs for any
form of initial investment. Aid to large enterprises shall only be granted
for an initial investment in favour of new economic activity in the area
concerned.
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4. The
eligible
costs
shall
be
as
follows:
(a) investment costs in tangible and intangible assets;
(b) the estimated wage costs arising from job creation as a result of an
initial investment, calculated over a period of two years; or
(c) a combination of points (a) and (b) not exceeding the amount of (a)
or (b), whichever is higher.
5. The investment shall be maintained in the recipient area for at
least five years, or at least three years in the case of SMEs, after
completion of the investment. This shall not prevent the replacement
of plant or equipment that has become outdated or broken within this
period, provided that the economic activity is retained in the area
concerned for the relevant minimum period.
6. The assets acquired shall be new except for SMEs and for the
acquisition of an establishment. Costs related to the lease of tangible
assets may be taken into account under the following conditions:
(a) for land and buildings, the lease must continue for at least five years
after the expected date of completion of the investment project for
large undertakings or three years in the case of SMEs;
(b) for plant or machinery, the lease must take the form of financial
leasing and must contain an obligation for the beneficiary of the aid
to purchase the asset upon expiry of the term of the lease.
►M1 In the case of acquisition of the assets of an establishment within
the meaning of point 49 or point 51 of Article 2, only the costs of
buying the assets from third parties unrelated to the buyer shall be taken
into consideration. ◄ The transaction shall take place under market
conditions. If aid has already been granted for the acquisition of
assets prior to their purchase, the costs of those assets shall be
deducted from the eligible costs related to the acquisition of an estab
lishment. Where a member of the family of the original owner, or an
employee, takes over a small enterprise, the condition that the assets be
bought from third parties unrelated to the buyer shall be waived. The
acquisition of shares does not constitute initial investment.
7.
►M1 For aid granted to large undertakings for a fundamental
change in the production process, the eligible costs must exceed the
depreciation of the assets linked to the activity to be modernised in the
course of the preceding three fiscal years. ◄ For aid granted for a
diversification of an existing establishment, the eligible costs must
exceed by at least 200 % the book value of the assets that are reused,
as registered in the fiscal year preceding the start of works.
8. Intangible
assets
are
eligible
for
the
calculation
of
investment
costs
if they fulfil the following conditions:
(a) they must be used exclusively in the establishment receiving the
aid;
(b) they must be amortisable;
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(c) they must be purchased under market conditions from third parties
unrelated to the buyer; and
(d) they must be included in the assets of the undertaking receiving the
aid and must remain associated with the project for which the aid is
granted for at least five years or three years in the case of SMEs.
For large undertakings, costs of intangible assets are eligible only up to
a limit of 50 % of the total eligible investment costs for the initial
investment.
9. Where
eligible
costs
are
calculated
by
reference
to
the
estimated
wage costs as referred to in paragraph 4(b), the following conditions
shall be fulfilled:
(a) the investment project shall lead to a net increase in the number of
employees in the establishment concerned, compared with the
average over the previous 12 months, meaning that any job lost
shall be deducted from the apparent created number of jobs
during that period;
(b) each post shall be filled within three years of completion of works;
and
(c) each job created through the investment shall be maintained in the
area concerned for a period of at least five years from the date the
post was first filled, or three years in the case of SMEs.
10. Regional
aid
for
broadband
network
development
shall
fulfil
the
following conditions:
(a) aid shall be granted only in areas where there is no network of the
same category (either basic broadband or NGA) and where no such
network is likely to be developed on commercial terms within three
years from the decision to grant the aid; and
(b) the subsidised network operator must offer active and passive
wholesale access under fair and non-discriminatory conditions
including physical unbundling in the case of NGA networks; and
(c) aid shall be allocated on the basis of a competitive selection
process.
11. Regional
aid
for
research
infrastructures
shall
be
granted
only
if
the aid is made conditional on giving transparent and non-discriminatory
access to the aided infrastructure.
12. The
aid
intensity
in
gross
grant
equivalent
shall
not
exceed
the
maximum aid intensity established in the regional aid map which is in
force at the time the aid is granted in the area concerned. Where the aid
intensity is calculated on the basis of paragraph 4(c), the maximum aid
intensity shall not exceed the most favourable amount resulting from the
application of that intensity on the basis of investment costs or wage
costs. For large investment projects the aid amount shall not exceed the
adjusted aid amount calculated in accordance with the mechanism
defined in Article 2, point 20;
13. Any
initial
investment
started
by
the
same
beneficiary
(at
group
level) within a period of three years from the date of start of works on
another aided investment in the same level 3 region of the Nomen
clature of Territorial Units for Statistics shall be considered to be part
of a single investment project. Where such single investment project is a
large investment project, the total aid amount for the single investment
project shall not exceed the adjusted aid amount for large investment
projects.
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14. The
aid
beneficiary
must
provide
a
financial
contribution
of
at
least 25 % of the eligible costs, either through its own resources or by
external financing, in a form, which is free of any public support. In the
outermost regions an investment made by an SME may receive an aid
with a maximum aid intensity above 75 %, in such situations the
remainder shall be provided by way of a financial contribution from
the aid beneficiary.
15. For
an
initial
investment
linked
to
European
territorial
cooper
ation projects covered by Regulation (EU) No 1299/2013, the aid
intensity of the area in which the initial investment is located shall
apply to all beneficiaries participating in the project. If the initial
investment is located in two or more assisted areas, the maximum aid
intensity shall be the one applicable in the assisted area where the
highest amount of eligible costs is incurred. In assisted areas eligible
for aid under Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty, this provision shall apply
to large undertakings only if the initial investment concerns a new
economic activity.
▼M1
16. The
beneficiary
shall
confirm
that
it
has
not
carried
out
a
relo
cation to the establishment in which the initial investment for which aid
is requested is to take place, in the two years preceding the application
for aid and give a commitment that it will not do so up to a period of
two years after the initial investment for which aid is requested is
completed.
17.
In the fisheries and aquaculture sector, aid shall not be granted to
undertakings that have committed one or more of the infringements set
out in Article 10(1)(a) to (d) and Article 10(3) of Regulation (EU) No
508/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 1 ) and for
operations of Article 11 of that Regulation.
Article 15
Regional operating aid
1. Regional
operating
aid
schemes
in
outermost
regions,
sparsely
populated areas and very sparsely populated areas shall be compatible
with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the
Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down
in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. In sparsely populated areas, the regional operating aid schemes
shall compensate for the additional transport costs of goods which
have been produced in areas eligible for operating aid, as well as
additional transport costs of goods that are further processed in those
areas, under the following conditions:
(a) the aid is objectively quantifiable in advance on the basis of a fixed
sum or per tonne/kilometre ratio or any other relevant unit;
( 1 ) Regulation (EU) No 508/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council
of 15 May 2014 on the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and repealing
Council Regulations (EC) No 2328/2003, (EC) No 861/2006, (EC) No
1198/2006 and (EC) No 791/2007 and Regulation (EU) No 1255/2011 of
the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 149, 20.5.2014, p. 1).
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(b) the additional transport costs are calculated on the basis of the
journey of the goods inside the national border of the Member
State concerned using the means of transport which results in the
lowest costs for the beneficiary.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 100 % of the additional transport
costs as set out in this paragraph.
3. In very sparsely populated areas, the regional operating aid
schemes shall prevent or reduce depopulation under the following
conditions:
(a) the beneficiaries have their economic activity in the area concerned;
(b) the annual aid amount per beneficiary under all operating aid
schemes does not exceed 20 % of the annual labour costs
incurred by the beneficiary in the area concerned.
4.
►C1 In outermost regions, the operating aid schemes shall
compensate for the additional operating costs incurred in those
regions as a direct result of one or several of the permanent
handicaps referred to in Article 349 of the Treaty, where the bene
ficiaries have their economic activity in an outermost region provided
that the annual aid amount per beneficiary under all operating aid
schemes implemented under this Regulation does not exceed one of
the following percentages: ◄
(a) 35 % of the gross value added annually created by the beneficiary
in the outermost region concerned;
(b) 40 % of the annual labour costs incurred by the beneficiary in the
outermost region concerned;
(c) 30 % of the annual turnover of the beneficiary realised in the
outermost region concerned.
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S u b s e c t i o n B
U r b a n d e v e l o p m e n t a i d
Article 16
Regional urban development aid
1. Regional urban development aid shall be compatible with the
internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty
and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down
in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. Urban
development
projects
shall
fulfil
the
following
criteria:
(a) they are implemented via urban development funds in assisted
areas;
(b) they are co-financed by the European Structural and Investment
Funds;
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(c) they support the implementation of an ‘integrated sustainable urban
development strategy’;
3. The total investment in an urban development project under any
urban development aid measure shall not exceed EUR 20 million.
4.
The eligible costs shall be the overall costs of the urban develop
ment project to the extent that they comply with Articles 65 and 37 of
Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 of the European Parliament and of the
Council ( 1 ).
5. Aid
granted
by
an
urban
development
fund
to
the
eligible
urban
development projects may take the form of equity, quasi-equity, loans,
guarantees, or a mix thereof.
6. The urban development aid shall leverage additional investment
from private investors at the level of the urban development funds or the
urban development projects, so as to achieve an aggregate amount
reaching minimum 30 % of the total financing provided to an urban
development project.
7. Private
and
public
investors
may
provide
cash
or
an
in-kind
contribution or a combination of those for the implementation of an
urban development project. An in-kind contribution shall be taken
into account at its market value, as certified by an independent
qualified expert or duly authorised official body.
8. The urban development measures shall fulfil the following
conditions:
(a) urban development fund managers shall be selected through an
open, transparent and non-discriminatory call in accordance with
the applicable Union and national laws. In particular, there shall
be no discrimination between urban development fund managers
on the basis of their place of establishment or incorporation in
any Member State. Urban development fund managers may be
required to fulfil predefined criteria objectively justified by the
nature of the investments;
(b) the independent private investors shall be selected through an open,
transparent and non-discriminatory call in accordance with
applicable Union and national laws aimed at establishing the appro
priate risk-reward sharing arrangements whereby, for investments
other than guarantees, asymmetric profit-sharing shall be given pref
erence over downside protection. If the private investors are not
selected by such a call, the fair rate of return to the private
investors shall be established by an independent expert selected
via an open, transparent and non-discriminatory call;
(c) in the case of asymmetric loss-sharing between public and private
investors, the first loss assumed by the public investor shall be
capped at 25 % of the total investment;
( 1 ) Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 of the European Parliament and of the
Council of 17 December 2013 laying down common provisions on the
European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the
Cohesion Fund, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development
and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and laying down general
provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European
Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund and the European Maritime and Fisheries
Fund and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 (OJ L 347,
20.12.2013, p. 320).
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(d) in the case of guarantees to private investors in urban development
projects, the guarantee rate shall be limited to 80 % and total losses
assumed by a Member State shall be capped at 25 % of the
underlying guaranteed portfolio;
(e) the investors shall be allowed to be represented in the governance
bodies of the urban development fund, such as the supervisory
board or the advisory committee;
(f) the urban development fund shall be established according to the
applicable laws. The Member State shall provide for a due diligence
process in order to ensure a commercially sound investment strategy
for the purpose of implementing the urban development aid
measure.
9. Urban
development
funds
shall
be
managed
on
a
commercial
basis
and shall ensure profit-driven financing decisions. This is considered to
be the case when the managers of the urban development fund fulfill the
following conditions:
(a) the managers of urban development funds shall be obliged by law
or contract to act with the diligence of a professional manager in
good faith and avoiding conflicts of interest; best practices and
regulatory supervision shall apply;
(b) the remuneration of the managers of urban development funds shall
conform to market practices. This requirement is considered to be
met where a manager is selected through an open, transparent and
non-discriminatory call, based on objective criteria linked to
experience, expertise and operational and financial capacity;
(c) the managers of urban development funds shall receive a remuner
ation linked to performance, or shall share part of the investment
risks by co-investing own resources so as to ensure that their
interests are permanently aligned with the interests of the public
investors;
(d) the managers of urban development funds shall set out an
investment strategy, criteria and the proposed timing of investments
in urban development projects, establishing the
ex ante financial
viability and their expected impact on urban development;
(e) a clear and realistic exit strategy shall exist for each equity and
quasi-equity investment.
10. Where
an
urban
development
fund
provides
loans
or
guarantees
to urban development projects, the following conditions shall be
fulfilled:
(a) in the case of loans, the nominal amount of the loan is taken into
account in calculating the maximum investment amount for the
purposes of paragraph 3 of this Article;
(b) in the case of guarantees, the nominal amount of the underlying
loan is taken into account in calculating the maximum investment
amount
for the purposes of paragraph 3 of this Article.
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11. The Member State may assign the implementation of the urban
development aid measure to an entrusted entity.
SECTION 2
Aid to SMEs
Article 17
Investment aid to SMEs
1.
Investment aid to SMEs operating inside or outside the territory of
the Union shall be compatible with the internal market within the
meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from
the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided
that the conditions laid down in this Article and in Chapter I are
fulfilled.
2.
The eligible costs shall be either or both of the following:
(a) the costs of investment in tangible and intangible assets;
(b) the estimated wage costs of employment directly created by the
investment project, calculated over a period of two years.
3.
In order to be considered an eligible cost for the purposes of this
Article, an investment shall consist of the following:
(a) an investment in tangible and/or intangible assets relating to the
setting-up of a new establishment, the extension of an existing
establishment, diversification of the output of an establishment
into new additional products or a fundamental change in the
overall production process of an existing establishment; or
(b) the acquisition of the assets belonging to an establishment, where
the following conditions are fulfilled:
— the establishment has closed or would have closed had it not
been purchased;
— the assets are purchased from third parties unrelated to the
buyer;
— the transaction takes place under market conditions.
Where a member of the family of the original owner, or an employee,
takes over a small enterprise, the condition that the assets shall be
bought from third parties unrelated to the buyer shall be waived. The
sole acquisition of the shares of an undertaking shall not constitute
investment.
4. Intangible
assets
shall
fulfil
all
of
the
following
conditions:
(a) they shall be used exclusively in the establishment receiving the aid;
(b) they shall be regarded as amortizable assets;
(c) they shall be purchased under market conditions from third parties
unrelated to the buyer;
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(d) they shall be included in the assets of the undertaking for at least
three years;
5. Employment
directly
created
by
an
investment
project
shall
fulfil
the following conditions:
(a) it shall be created within three years of completion of the
investment;
(b) there shall be a net increase in the number of employees in the
establishment concerned, compared with the average over the
previous 12 months;
(c) it shall be maintained during a minimum period of three years from
the date the post was first filled.
6. The
aid
intensity
shall
not
exceed:
(a) 20 % of the eligible costs in the case of small enterprises;
(b) 10 % of the eligible costs in the case of medium-sized enterprises.
Article 18
Aid for consultancy in favour of SMEs
1.
Aid for consultancy in favour of SMEs shall be compatible with
the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty
and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down
in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 50 % of the eligible costs.
3. The eligible costs shall be the costs of consultancy services
provided by external consultants.
4. The
services
concerned
shall
not
be
a
continuous
or
periodic
activity nor relate to the undertaking's usual operating costs, such as
routine tax consultancy services, regular legal services or advertising.
Article 19
Aid to SMEs for participation in fairs
1. Aid
to
SMEs
for
participation
in
fairs
shall
be
compatible
with
the
internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and
shall be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of
the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in
Chapter I are fulfilled.
2.
The eligible costs shall be the costs incurred for renting, setting up
and running the stand for the participation of an undertaking in any
particular fair or exhibition.
3.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 50 % of the eligible costs.
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Article 20
Aid for cooperation costs incurred by SMEs participating in
European Territorial Cooperation projects
1. Aid
for
cooperation
costs
incurred
by
SMEs
participating
in
the
European Territorial Cooperation projects covered by Regulation (EC)
No 1299/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council shall be
compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3)
of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided the conditions laid down in this
Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. The
eligible
costs
shall
be
the
following:
(a) costs for organisational cooperation including the cost of staff and
offices to the extent that it is linked to the cooperation project;
(b) costs of advisory and support services linked to cooperation and
delivered by external consultants and service providers;
(c) travel expenses, costs of equipment and investment expenditure
directly related to the project and depreciation of tools and
equipment used directly for the project.
3. The services referred to in paragraph 2(b) shall not be a
continuous or periodic activity nor relate to the undertaking's usual
operating costs, such as routine tax consultancy services, regular legal
services or routine advertising.
4.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 50 % of the eligible costs.
SECTION 3
Aid for access to finance for SMEs
Article 21
Risk finance aid
1. Risk
finance
aid
schemes
in
favour
of
SMEs
shall
be
compatible
with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the
Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided the conditions laid down in
this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. At the level of financial intermediaries, risk finance aid to inde
pendent private investors may take one of the following forms:
(a) equity or quasi-equity, or financial endowment to provide risk
finance investments directly or indirectly to eligible undertakings;
(b) loans to provide risk finance investments directly or indirectly to
eligible undertakings;
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(c) guarantees to cover losses from risk finance investments directly or
indirectly to eligible undertakings.
3.
At the level of independent private investors, risk finance aid may
take the forms mentioned in paragraph 2 of this Article, or be in the
form of tax incentives to private investors who are natural persons
providing risk finance directly or indirectly to eligible undertakings.
4. At
the
level
of
eligible
undertakings,
risk
finance
aid
may
take
the
form of equity, quasi-equity investments, loans, guarantees, or a mix
thereof.
5. Eligible undertakings shall be undertakings which at the time of
the initial risk finance investment are unlisted SMEs and fulfil at least
one of the following conditions:
(a) they have not been operating in any market;
(b) they have been operating in any market for less than 7 years
following their first commercial sale;
(c) they require an initial risk finance investment which, based on a
business plan prepared in view of entering a new product or
geographical market, is higher than 50 % of their average annual
turnover in the preceding 5 years.
6. The
risk
finance
aid
may
also
cover
follow-on
investments
made
in eligible undertakings, including after the 7 year period mentioned in
paragraph 5(b), if the following cumulative conditions are fulfilled:
(a) the total amount of risk finance mentioned in paragraph 9 is not
exceeded;
(b) the possibility of follow-on investments was foreseen in the original
business plan;
(c) the undertaking receiving follow-on investments has not become
linked, within the meaning of Article 3(3) of Annex I with
another undertaking other than the financial intermediary or the
independent private investor providing risk finance under the
measure, unless the new entity fulfils the conditions of the SME
definition.
7. For
equity
and
quasi-equity
investments
in
eligible
undertakings,
a
risk finance measure may provide support for replacement capital only
if the latter is combined with new capital representing at least 50 % of
each investment round into the eligible undertakings.
8.
For equity and quasi-equity investments as referred to in paragraph
2(a), no more than 30 % of the financial intermediary's aggregate capital
contributions and uncalled committed capital may be used for liquidity
management purposes.
9. The
total
amount
of
risk
finance
referred
to
in
paragraph
4
shall
not exceed EUR 15 million per eligible undertaking under any risk
finance measure.
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10. For
risk
finance
measures
providing
equity,
quasi-equity
or
loan
investments to eligible undertakings, the risk finance measure shall
leverage additional finance from independent private investors at the
level of the financial intermediaries or the eligible undertakings, so as
to achieve an aggregate private participation rate reaching the following
minimum thresholds:
(a) 10 % of the risk finance provided to the eligible undertakings prior
to their first commercial sale on any market;
(b) 40 % of the risk finance provided to the eligible undertakings
referred to in paragraph 5(b) of this Article;
(c) 60 % of the risk finance for investment provided to eligible under
takings mentioned in paragraph 5(c) and for follow-on investments
in eligible undertakings after the 7-year period mentioned in
paragraph 5(b).
11.
Where a risk finance measure is implemented through a financial
intermediary targeting eligible undertakings at different development
stages as referred to in paragraph 10 and does not provide for private
capital participation at the level of the eligible undertakings the financial
intermediary shall achieve a private participation rate that represents at
least the weighted average based on the volume of the individual
investments in the underlying portfolio and resulting from the appli
cation of the minimum participation rates to such investments as
referred to in paragraph 10.
12. A
risk
finance
measure
shall
not
discriminate
between
financial
intermediaries on the basis of their place of establishment or incor
poration in any Member State. Financial intermediaries may be
required to fulfil predefined criteria objectively justified by the nature
of the investments.
13. A
risk
finance
measure
shall
fulfil
the
following
conditions:
(a) it shall be implemented via one or more financial intermediaries,
except for tax incentives to private investors in respect of their
direct investments into eligible undertakings;
(b) financial intermediaries, as well as investors or fund managers shall
be selected through an open, transparent and non-discriminatory call
which is made in accordance with applicable Union and national
laws and aimed at establishing appropriate risk-reward sharing
arrangements whereby, for investments other than guarantees, asym
metric profit sharing shall be given preference over downside
protection;
(c) in the case of asymmetric loss-sharing between public and private
investors, the first loss assumed by the public investor shall be
capped at 25 % of the total investment;
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(d) in the case of guarantees falling under point 2(c), the guarantee rate
shall be limited to 80 % and total losses assumed by a Member
State shall be capped at a maximum of 25 % of the underlying
guaranteed portfolio. Only guarantees covering expected losses of
the underlying guaranteed portfolio can be provided for free. If a
guarantee also comprises coverage of unexpected losses, the
financial intermediary shall pay, for the part of the guarantee
covering unexpected losses, a market-conform guarantee premium.
14. Risk
finance
measures
shall
ensure
profit-driven
financing
deci
sions. This is considered to be the case where all of the following
conditions are fulfilled:
(a) financial intermediaries shall be established according to the
applicable laws.
(b) the Member State, or the entity entrusted with the implementation
of the measure, shall provide for a due diligence process in order to
ensure a commercially sound investment strategy for the purpose of
implementing the risk finance measure, including an appropriate
risk diversification policy aimed at achieving economic viability
and efficient scale in terms of size and territorial scope of the
relevant portfolio of investments;
(c) risk finance provided to the eligible undertakings shall be based on
a viable business plan, containing details of product, sales and
profitability development, establishing
ex-ante financial viability;
(d) a clear and realistic exit strategy shall exist for each equity and
quasi-equity investment.
15. Financial
intermediaries
shall
be
managed
on
a
commercial
basis.
This requirement is considered to be fulfilled where the financial inter
mediary and, depending on the type of risk finance measure, the fund
manager, fulfil the following conditions:
(a) they shall be obliged by law or contract to act with the diligence of
a professional manager in good faith and avoiding conflicts of
interest; best practices and regulatory supervision shall apply;
(b) their remuneration shall conform to market practices. This
requirement is presumed to be met where the manager or the
financial intermediary is selected through an open, transparent and
non-discriminatory selection call, based on objective criteria linked
to experience, expertise and operational and financial capacity;
(c) they shall receive a remuneration linked to performance, or shall
share part of the investment risks by co-investing own resources so
as to ensure that their interests are permanently aligned with the
interests of the public investor;
(d) they shall set out an investment strategy, criteria and the proposed
timing of investments;
(e) investors shall be allowed to be represented in the governance
bodies of the investment fund, such as the supervisory board or
the advisory committee.
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16.
►M1 A risk finance measure providing guarantees or loans to
eligible undertakings or providing quasi-equity investments structured as
debt in eligible undertakings, shall fulfil the following conditions: ◄
(a) as a result of the measure, the financial intermediary shall undertake
investments that would not have been carried out or would have
been carried out in a restricted or different manner without the aid.
The financial intermediary shall be able to demonstrate that it
operates a mechanism that ensures that all the advantages are
passed on to the largest extent to the final beneficiaries in the
form of higher volumes of financing, riskier portfolios, lower
collateral requirements, lower guarantee premiums or lower
interest rates;
▼M1
(b) in the case of loans and quasi-equity investments structured as debt,
the nominal amount of the instrument is taken into account in
calculating the maximum investment amount for the purposes of
paragraph 9;
▼B
(c) in the case of guarantees, the nominal amount of the underlying
loan is taken into account in calculating the maximum investment
amount for the purposes of paragraph 9. The guarantee shall not
exceed 80 % of the underlying loan.
17. A
Member
State
may
assign
the
implementation
of
a
risk
finance
measure to an entrusted entity.
18. Risk
finance
aid
for
SMEs
that
do
not
fulfil
the
conditions
laid
down in paragraph 5 shall be compatible with the internal market within
the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from
the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided
that
(a) at the level of the SMEs, the aid fulfils the conditions laid down in
Regulation (EU) No 1407/2013; and
(b) all the conditions laid down in the present Article, with the
exception of those set out in paragraphs 5, 6, 9, 10, and 11, are
fulfilled; and
(c) for risk finance measures providing equity, quasi-equity or loan
investments to eligible undertakings, the measure shall leverage
additional financing from independent private investors at the
level of the financial intermediaries or the SMEs, so as to achieve
an aggregate private participation rate reaching at least 60 % of the
risk finance provided to the SMEs.
Article 22
Aid for start-ups
1. Start-up
aid
schemes
shall
be
compatible
with
the
internal
market
within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be
exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty, provided the conditions laid down in this Article and in
Chapter I are fulfilled.
▼M1
2. Eligible
undertakings
shall
be
any
unlisted
small
enterprise
up
to
five years following its registration, which fulfils the following
conditions:
(a) it has not taken over the activity of another enterprise;
(b) it has not yet distributed profits;
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(c) it has not been formed through a merger.
For eligible undertakings that are not subject to registration, the five
year eligibility period may be considered to start from the moment when
the enterprise either starts its economic activity or is liable to tax for its
economic activity.
By way of derogation from point (c) of the first subparagraph, enter
prises formed through a merger between undertakings eligible for aid
under this Article shall also be considered eligible undertakings up to
five years from the date of registration of the oldest enterprise partici
pating in the merger.
▼B
3.
Start-up aid shall take the form of:
(a) loans with interest rates which are not conform with market
conditions, with a duration of 10 years and up to a maximum
nominal amount of EUR 1 million, or EUR 1,5 million for under
takings established in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty, or EUR 2 million for undertakings
established in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(a) of the Treaty. For loans with a duration
comprised between 5 and 10 years the maximum amounts may
be adjusted by multiplying the amounts above by the ratio
between 10 years and the actual duration of the loan. For loans
with a duration of less than 5 years, the maximum amount shall
be the same as for loans with a duration of 5 years;
(b) guarantees with premiums which are not conform with market
conditions, with a duration of 10 years and up to maximum EUR
1,5 million of amount guaranteed, or EUR 2,25 million for under
takings established in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty, or EUR 3 million for undertakings
established in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(a) of the Treaty. For guarantees with a duration
comprised between 5 and 10 years the maximum amount guaran
teed amounts may be adjusted by multiplying the amounts above by
the ratio between 10 years and the actual duration of the guarantee.
For guarantees with a duration of less than 5 years, the maximum
amount guaranteed shall be the same as for guarantees with a
duration of 5 years. The guarantee shall not exceed 80 % of the
underlying loan.
(c) grants, including equity or quasi equity investment, interests rate
and guarantee premium reductions up to EUR 0,4 million gross
grant equivalent or EUR 0,6 million for undertakings established
in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of Article 107(3)(c) of the
Treaty, or EUR 0,8 million for undertakings established in assisted
areas fulfilling the conditions of Article 107(3)(a) of the Treaty.
4. A
beneficiary
can
receive
support
through
a
mix
of
the
aid
instruments referred to in paragraph 3 of this Article, provided that
the proportion of the amount granted through one aid instrument,
calculated on the basis of the maximum aid amount allowed for that
instrument, is taken into account in order to determine the residual
proportion of the maximum aid amount allowed for the other
instruments forming part of such a mixed instrument.
5. For
small
and
innovative
enterprises,
the
maximum
amounts
set
out in paragraph 3 may be doubled.
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Article 23
Aid to alternative trading platforms specialised in SMEs
1. Aid
in
favour
of
alternative
trading
platforms
specialised
in
SMEs
shall be compatible with the internal market within the meaning of
Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification
requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided the conditions laid
down in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2.
Where the platform operator is a small enterprise, the aid measure
may take the form of start-up aid to the platform operator, in which case
the conditions laid down in Article 22 shall apply.
The aid measure may take the form of tax incentives to independent
private investors that are natural persons in respect of their risk finance
investments made through an alternative trading platform into under
takings eligible under the conditions laid down in Article 21.
Article 24
Aid for scouting costs
1. Aid
for
scouting
costs
shall
be
compatible
with
the
internal
market
within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be
exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty, provided the conditions laid down in this Article and in
Chapter I are fulfilled.
2.
The eligible costs shall be the costs for initial screening and formal
due diligence undertaken by managers of financial intermediaries or
investors to identify eligible undertakings pursuant to Articles 21 and 22.
3.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 50 % of the eligible costs.
SECTION 4
Aid for research and development and innovation
Article 25
Aid for research and development projects
▼M1
1. Aid
for
research
and
development
projects,
including
projects
having received a Seal of Excellence quality label under the Horizon
2020 SME-instrument, shall be compatible with the internal market
within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be
exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in
Chapter I are fulfilled.
▼B
2. The
aided
part
of
the
research
and
development
project
shall
completely fall within one or more of the following categories:
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(a) fundamental research;
(b) industrial research;
(c) experimental development;
(d) feasibility studies.
3. The
eligible
costs
of
research
and
development
projects
shall
be
allocated to a specific category of research and development and shall
be the following:
(a) personnel costs: researchers, technicians and other supporting staff
to the extent employed on the project;
(b) costs of instruments and equipment to the extent and for the period
used for the project. Where such instruments and equipment are not
used for their full life for the project, only the depreciation costs
corresponding to the life of the project, as calculated on the basis of
generally accepted accounting principles are considered as eligible.
(c) Costs for of buildings and land, to the extent and for the duration
period used for the project. With regard to buildings, only the
depreciation costs corresponding to the life of the project, as
calculated on the basis of generally accepted accounting principles
are considered as eligible. For land, costs of commercial transfer or
actually incurred capital costs are eligible.
(d) costs of contractual research, knowledge and patents bought or
licensed from outside sources at arm's length conditions, as well
as costs of consultancy and equivalent services used exclusively
for the project;
(e) additional overheads and other operating expenses, including costs
of materials, supplies and similar products, incurred directly as a
result of the project;
4. The eligible costs for feasibility studies shall be the costs of the
study.
5. The
aid
intensity
for
each
beneficiary
shall
not
exceed:
(a) 100 % of the eligible costs for fundamental research;
(b) 50 % of the eligible costs for industrial research;
(c) 25 % of the eligible costs for experimental development;
(d) 50 % of the eligible costs for feasibility studies.
6. The
aid
intensities
for
industrial
research
and
experimental
devel
opment may be increased up to a maximum aid intensity of 80 % of the
eligible costs as follows:
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(a) by 10 percentage points for medium-sized enterprises and by 20
percentage points for small enterprises;
(b) by 15 percentage points if one of the following conditions is
fulfilled:
(i) the project involves effective collaboration:
— between undertakings among which at least one is an SME,
or is carried out in at least two Member States, or in a
Member State and in a Contracting Party of the EEA
Agreement, and no single undertaking bears more than
70 % of the eligible costs, or
— between an undertaking and one or more research and
knowledge-dissemination organisations, where the latter
bear at least 10 % of the eligible costs and have the right
to publish their own research results;
(ii) the results of the project are widely disseminated through
conferences, publication, open access repositories, or free or
open source software.
7. The
aid
intensities
for
feasibility
studies
may
be
increased
by
10
percentage points for medium-sized enterprises and by 20 percentage
points for small enterprises;
Article 26
Investment aid for research infrastructures
1.
Aid for the construction or upgrade of research infrastructures that
perform economic activities shall be compatible with the internal market
within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be
exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in
Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. Where
a
research
infrastructure
pursues
both
economic
and
non-
economic activities, the financing, costs and revenues of each type of
activity shall be accounted for separately on the basis of consistently
applied and objectively justifiable cost accounting principles.
3. The price charged for the operation or use of the infrastructure
shall correspond to a market price.
4. Access
to
the
infrastructure
shall
be
open
to
several
users
and
be
granted on a transparent and non-discriminatory basis. Undertakings
which have financed at least 10 % of the investment costs of the infra
structure may be granted preferential access under more favourable
conditions. In order to avoid overcompensation, such access shall be
proportional to the undertaking's contribution to the investment costs
and these conditions shall be made publicly available.
5.
The eligible costs shall be the investment costs in intangible and
tangible assets.
6.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 50 % of the eligible costs.
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7. Where
a
research
infrastructure
receives
public
funding
for
both
economic and non-economic activities, Member States shall put in place
a monitoring and claw-back mechanism in order to ensure that the
applicable aid intensity is not exceeded as a result of an increase in
the share of economic activities compared to the situation envisaged at
the time of awarding the aid.
Article 27
Aid for innovation clusters
1. Aid
for
innovation
clusters
shall
be
compatible
with
the
internal
market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be
exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in
Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. Aid
for
innovation
clusters
shall
be
granted
exclusively
to
the
legal entity operating the innovation cluster (cluster organisation).
3. Access
to
the
cluster's
premises,
facilities
and
activities
shall
be
open to several users and be granted on a transparent and non-discrimi
natory basis. Undertakings which have financed at least 10 % of the
investment costs of the innovation cluster may be granted preferential
access under more favourable conditions. In order to avoid overcom
pensation, such access shall be proportional to the undertaking's
contribution to the investment costs and these conditions shall be
made publicly available.
4. The fees charged for using the cluster's facilities and for partici
pating in the cluster's activities shall correspond to the market price or
reflect their costs.
5.
Investment aid may be granted for the construction or upgrade of
innovation clusters. The eligible costs shall be the investment costs in
intangible and tangible assets.
6. The aid intensity of investment aid for innovation clusters shall
not exceed 50 % of the eligible costs. The aid intensity may be
increased by 15 percentage points for innovation clusters located in
assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of Article 107(3)(a) of the
Treaty and by 5 percentage points for innovation clusters located in
assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty
7. Operating aid may be granted for the operation of innovation
clusters. It shall not exceed 10 years.
8. The
eligible
costs
of
operating
aid
for
innovation
clusters
shall
be
the personnel and administrative costs (including overhead costs)
relating to:
(a) animation of the cluster to facilitate collaboration, information
sharing and the provision or channelling of specialised and
customised business support services;
(b) marketing of the cluster to increase participation of new under
takings or organisations and to increase visibility;
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(c) management of the cluster's facilities; organisation of training
programmes, workshops and conferences to support knowledge
sharing and networking and transnational cooperation.
9. The aid intensity of operating aid shall not exceed 50 % of the
total eligible costs during the period over which the aid is granted.
Article 28
Innovation aid for SMEs
1. Innovation aid for SMEs shall be compatible with the internal
market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall
be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty, provided the conditions laid down in this Article and in Chapter
I are fulfilled:
2. The
eligible
costs
shall
be
the
following:
(a) costs for obtaining, validating and defending patents and other
intangible assets;
(b) costs for secondment of highly qualified personnel from a research
and knowledge-dissemination organization or a large enterprise,
working on research, development and innovation activities in a
newly created function within the beneficiary and not replacing
other personnel;
(c) costs for innovation advisory and support services;
3.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 50 % of the eligible costs.
4. In the particular case of aid for innovation advisory and support
services the aid intensity can be increased up to 100 % of the eligible
costs provided that the total amount of aid for innovation advisory and
support services does not exceed EUR 200 000 per undertaking within
any three year period.
Article 29
Aid for process and organisational innovation
1. Aid
for
process
and
organisational
innovation
shall
be
compatible
with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the
Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided the conditions laid down in
this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. Aid
to
large
undertakings
shall
only
be
compatible
if
they
effec
tively collaborate with SMEs in the aided activity and the collaborating
SMEs incur at least 30 % of the total eligible costs.
3. The
eligible
costs
shall
be
the
following:
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(a) personnel costs;
(b) costs of instruments, equipment, buildings and land to the extent
and for the period used for the project;
(c) costs of contractual research, knowledge and patents bought or
licensed from outside sources at arm's length conditions;
(d) additional overheads and other operating costs, including costs of
materials, supplies and similar products, incurred directly as a result
of the project.
4. The aid intensity shall not exceed 15 % of the eligible costs for
large undertakings and 50 % of the eligible costs for SMEs.
Article 30
Aid for research and development in the fishery and aquaculture
sector
1. Aid
for
research
and
development
in
the
fishery
and
aquaculture
sector shall be compatible with the internal market within the meaning
of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notifi
cation requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the
conditions laid down in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. The aided project shall be of interest to all undertakings in the
particular sector or sub-sector concerned.
3. Prior to the date of the start of the aided project the following
information shall be published on the internet:
(a) that the aided project will be carried out;
(b) the goals of the aided project;
(c) the approximate date for the publication of the results expected from
the aided project and its place of publication on the internet;
(d) a reference that the results of the aided project will be available to
all undertakings active in the particular sector or sub-sector
concerned at no cost.
4.
The results of the aided project shall be made available on internet
from the end date of the aided project or the date on which any
information concerning those results is given to members of any
particular organisation, whatever comes first. The results shall remain
available on internet for a period of at least 5 years starting from the end
date of the aided project.
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5. Aid
shall
be
granted
directly
to
the
research
and
knowledge-
dissemination organisation and shall not involve the direct granting of
non-research related aid to an undertaking producing, processing or
marketing fishery or aquaculture products.
6. The
eligible
costs
shall
be
those
provided
in
Article
25(3).
7.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 100 % of the eligible costs.
SECTION 5
Training aid
Article 31
Training aid
1. Training aid shall be compatible with the internal market within
the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from
the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided
that the conditions laid down in this Article and in Chapter I are
fulfilled.
2. Aid
shall
not
be
granted
for
training
which
undertakings
carry
out
to comply with national mandatory standards on training.
3. The
eligible
costs
shall
be
the
following:
(a) trainers' personnel costs, for the hours during which the trainers
participate in the training;
▼M1
(b) trainers' and trainees' operating costs directly relating to the training
project such as travel expenses, accommodation costs, materials and
supplies directly related to the project, depreciation of tools and
equipment, to the extent that they are used exclusively for the
training project;
▼B
(c) costs of advisory services linked to the training project;
(d) trainees' personnel costs and general indirect costs (administrative
costs, rent, overheads) for the hours during which the trainees
participate in the training.
4. The
aid
intensity
shall
not
exceed
50
%
of
the
eligible
costs.
It
may be increased, up to a maximum aid intensity of 70 % of the eligible
costs, as follows:
(a) by 10 percentage points if the training is given to workers with
disabilities or disadvantaged workers;
(b) by 10 percentage points if the aid is granted to medium-sized enter
prises and by 20 percentage points if the aid is granted to small
enterprises.
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5.
Where the aid is granted in the maritime transport sector, the aid
intensity may be increased to 100 % of the eligible costs provided that
the following conditions are met:
(a) the trainees are not active members of the crew but are super
numerary on board; and
(b) the training is carried out on board of ships entered in Union
registers.
SECTION 6
Aid for disadvantaged workers and for workers with disabilities
Article 32
Aid for the recruitment of disadvantaged workers in the form of
wage subsidies
1. Aid
schemes
for
the
recruitment
of
disadvantaged
workers
shall
be
compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3)
of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided the conditions laid down in this
Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2.
Eligible costs shall be the wage costs over a maximum period of
12 months following recruitment of a disadvantaged worker. Where the
worker concerned is a severely disadvantaged worker, eligible costs
shall be the wage costs over a maximum period of 24 months
following recruitment.
3.
Where the recruitment does not represent a net increase, compared
with the average over the previous 12 months, in the number of
employees in the undertaking concerned, the post or posts shall have
fallen vacant following voluntary departure, disability, retirement on
grounds of age, voluntary reduction of working time or lawful
dismissal for misconduct and not as a result of redundancy.
4. Except
in
the
case
of
lawful
dismissal
for
misconduct,
the
disadvantaged workers shall be entitled to continuous employment for
a minimum period consistent with the national legislation concerned or
any collective agreements governing employment contracts.
5. If
the
period
of
employment
is
shorter
than
12
months,
or
24
months in the case of severely disadvantaged workers, the aid shall
be reduced pro rata accordingly.
6.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 50 % of the eligible costs.
Article 33
Aid for the employment of workers with disabilities in the form of
wage subsidies
1. Aid
for
the
employment
of
workers
with
disabilities
shall
be
compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3)
of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided the conditions laid down in this
Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
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2.
Eligible costs shall be the wage costs over any given period during
which the worker with disabilities is employed.
3.
Where the recruitment does not represent a net increase, compared
with the average over the previous 12 months, in the number of
employees in the undertaking concerned, the post or posts shall have
fallen vacant following voluntary departure, disabilities, retirement on
grounds of age, voluntary reduction of working time or lawful dismissal
for misconduct and not as a result of redundancy.
4. Except
in
the
case
of
lawful
dismissal
for
misconduct,
the
workers
with disabilities shall be entitled to continuous employment for a
minimum period consistent with the national legislation concerned or
any collective agreements which are legally binding for the undertaking
and governing employment contracts.
5.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 75 % of the eligible costs.
Article 34
Aid for compensating the additional costs of employing workers
with disabilities
1. Aid
for
compensating
the
additional
costs
of
employing
workers
with disabilities shall be compatible with the internal market within the
meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the
notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided the
conditions laid down in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. The
eligible
costs
shall
be
the
following:
(a) costs of adapting the premises;
(b) costs of employing staff solely for time spent on the assistance of
the workers with disabilities and of training such staff to assist
workers with disabilities;
(c) costs of adapting or acquiring equipment, or acquiring and vali
dating software for use by workers with disabilities, including
adapted or assistive technology facilities, which are additional to
those which the beneficiary would have incurred had it employed
workers who are not workers with disabilities;
(d) costs directly linked to transport of workers with disabilities to the
working place and for work related activities;
(e) wage costs for the hours spent by a worker with disabilities on
rehabilitation;
(f) where the beneficiary provides sheltered employment, the costs of
constructing, installing or modernising the production units of the
undertaking concerned, and any costs of administration and
transport, provided that such costs result directly from the
employment of workers with disabilities.
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3.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 100 % of the eligible costs.
Article 35
Aid for compensating the costs of assistance provided to
disadvantaged workers
1. Aid
for
compensating
the
costs
of
assistance
provided
to
disadvantaged workers shall be compatible with the internal market
within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be
exempt from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty, provided the conditions laid down in this Article and in
Chapter I are fulfilled.
2.
The eligible costs shall be the costs of:
(a) employing staff solely for time spent on the assistance of the
disadvantaged workers over a maximum period of 12 months
following recruitment of a disadvantaged worker or over a
maximum period of 24 months following recruitment of a
severely disadvantaged worker;
(b) of training such staff to assist disadvantaged workers.
3. The
assistance
provided
shall
consist
of
measures
to
support
the
disadvantaged worker's autonomy and adaptation to the work
environment, in accompanying the worker in social and administrative
procedures, facilitation of communication with the entrepreneur and
managing conflicts.
4.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 50 % of the eligible costs.
SECTION 7
Aid for environmental protection
Article 36
Investment aid enabling undertakings to go beyond Union
standards for environmental protection or to increase the level of
environmental protection in the absence of Union standards
1. Investment
aid
enabling
undertakings
to
go
beyond
Union
standards for environmental protection or to increase the level of envi
ronmental protection in the absence of Union standards shall be
compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3)
of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in
this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. The
investment
shall
fulfil
one
of
the
following
conditions:
(a) it shall enable the beneficiary to increase the level of environmental
protection resulting from its activities by going beyond the
applicable Union standards, irrespective of the presence of
mandatory national standards that are more stringent than the
Union standards;
(b) it shall enable the beneficiary to increase the level of environmental
protection resulting from its activities in the absence of Union stan
dards.
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3. Aid shall not be granted where investments are undertaken to
ensure that undertakings comply with Union standards already
adopted and not yet in force.
4. By
way
of
derogation
from
paragraph
3,
aid
may
be
granted
for
(a) the acquisition of new transport vehicles for road, railway, inland
waterway and maritime transport complying with adopted Union
standards, provided that the acquisition occurs before those
standards enter into force and that, once mandatory, they do not
apply to vehicles already purchased before that date.
(b) retrofitting of existing transport vehicles for road, railway, inland
waterway and maritime transport, provided that the Union standards
were not yet in force at the date of entry into operation of those
vehicles and that, once mandatory, they do not apply retroactively
to those vehicles.
5.
The eligible costs shall be the extra investment costs necessary to
go beyond the applicable Union standards or to increase the level of
environmental protection in the absence of Union standards. They shall
be determined as follows:
(a) where the costs of investing in environmental protection can be
identified in the total investment cost as a separate investment,
this environmental protection-related cost shall constitute the
eligible costs;
(b) in all other cases, the costs of investing in environmental protection
are identified by reference to a similar, less environmentally friendly
investment that would have been credibly carried out without the
aid. The difference between the costs of both investments identifies
the environmental protection-related cost and constitutes the eligible
costs.
The costs not directly linked to the achievement of a higher level of
environmental protection shall not be eligible.
6.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 40 % of the eligible costs.
7. The
aid
intensity
may
be
increased
by
10
percentage
points
for
aid
granted to medium sized undertakings and by 20 percentage points for
aid granted to small undertakings.
8. The aid intensity may be increased by 15 percentage points for
investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(a) of the Treaty and by 5 percentage points for
investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty.
Article 37
Investment aid for early adaptation to future Union standards
1. Aid
encouraging
undertakings
to
comply
with
new
Union
standards which increase the level of environmental protection and are
not yet in force shall be compatible with the internal market within the
meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the
notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that
the conditions laid down in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
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2.
The Union standards shall have been adopted and the investment
shall be implemented and finalised at least one year before the date of
entry into force of the standard concerned.
3.
The eligible costs shall be the extra investment costs necessary to
go beyond the applicable Union standards. They shall be determined as
follows:
(a) where the costs of investing in environmental protection can be
identified in the total investment cost as a separate investment,
this environmental protection-related cost shall constitute the
eligible costs;
(b) in all other cases, the costs of investing in environmental protection
are identified by reference to a similar, less environmentally friendly
investment that would have been credibly carried out without the
aid. The difference between the costs of both investments identifies
the environmental protection-related cost and constitutes the eligible
costs.
The costs not directly linked to the achievement of a higher level of
environmental protection shall not be eligible.
4.
The aid intensity shall not exceed the following:
(a) 20 % of the eligible costs for small undertakings, 15 % of the
eligible costs for medium-sized undertakings and 10 % of the
eligible costs for large undertakings if the implementation and
finalisation of the investment take place more than three years
before the date of entry into force of the new Union standard;
(b) 15 % of the eligible costs for small undertakings, 10 % of the
eligible costs for medium-sized undertakings and 5 % of the
eligible costs for large undertakings if the implementation and
finalisation of the investment take place between one and three
years before the date of entry into force of the new Union standard.
5. The aid intensity may be increased by 15 percentage points for
investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(a) of the Treaty and by 5 percentage points for
investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty.
Article 38
Investment aid for energy efficiency measures
1. Investment
aid
enabling
undertakings
to
achieve
energy
efficiency
shall be compatible with the internal market within the meaning of
Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification
requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions
laid down in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. Aid
shall
not
be
granted
under
this
Article
where
improvements
are undertaken to ensure that undertakings comply with Union standards
already adopted, even if they are not yet in force.
3.
The eligible costs shall be the extra investment costs necessary to
achieve the higher level of energy efficiency. They shall be determined
as follows:
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(a) where the costs of investing in energy efficiency can be identified in
the total investment cost as a separate investment, this energy effi
ciency-related cost shall constitute the eligible costs;
(b) in all other cases, the costs of investing in energy efficiency are
identified by reference to a similar, less energy efficient investment
that would have been credibly carried out without the aid. The
difference between the costs of both investments identifies the
energy efficiency-related cost and constitutes the eligible costs.
The costs not directly linked to the achievement of a higher level of
energy efficiency shall not be eligible.
4.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 30 % of the eligible costs.
5. The
aid
intensity
may
be
increased
by
20
percentage
points
for
aid
granted to small undertakings and by 10 percentage points for aid
granted to medium-sized undertakings.
6. The aid intensity may be increased by 15 percentage points for
investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(a) of the Treaty and by 5 percentage points for
investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty.
Article 39
Investment aid for energy efficiency projects in buildings
1. Investment
aid
for
energy
efficiency
projects
in
buildings
shall
be
compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3)
of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in
this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. Eligible for aid under the present Article are energy efficiency
projects relating to buildings.
3. The eligible costs shall be the overall costs of the energy effi
ciency project.
4.
The aid shall be granted in the form of an endowment, equity, a
guarantee or loan to an energy efficiency fund or other financial inter
mediary, which shall fully pass it on to the final beneficiaries being the
building owners or tenants.
5. The aid granted by the energy efficiency fund or other financial
intermediary to the eligible energy efficiency projects may take the form
of loans or guarantees. The nominal value of the loan or the amount
guaranteed shall not exceed EUR 10 million per project at the level of
the final beneficiaries. The guarantee should not exceed 80 % of the
underlying loan.
6. The
repayment
by
the
building
owners
to
the
energy
efficiency
fund or other financial intermediary shall not be less than the nominal
value of the loan.
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7. The
energy
efficiency
aid
shall
leverage
additional
investment
from private investors reaching at minimum 30 % of the total
financing provided to an energy efficiency project. When the aid is
provided by an energy efficiency fund, the leverage of private
investment can be done at the level of the energy efficiency fund
and/or at the level of the energy efficiency projects, so as to achieve
an aggregate minimum 30 % of the total financing provided to an
energy efficiency project.
8.
Member States can set up energy efficiency funds and/or can use
financial intermediaries when providing energy efficiency aid. The
following conditions must then be fulfilled:
(a) Financial intermediary managers, as well as energy efficiency fund
managers shall be selected through an open, transparent and non-
discriminatory call in accordance with applicable Union and
national laws. In particular, there shall be no discrimination on
the basis of their place of establishment or incorporation in any
Member State. Financial intermediaries and energy efficiency fund
managers may be required to fulfil predefined criteria objectively
justified by the nature of the investments;
(b) The independent private investors shall be selected through an open,
transparent and non-discriminatory call in accordance with
applicable Union and national laws aimed at establishing the appro
priate risk-reward sharing arrangements whereby, for investments
other than guarantees, asymmetric profit-sharing shall be given pref
erence over downside protection. If the private investors are not
selected by such a call, the fair rate of return to the private
investors shall be established by an independent expert selected
via an open, transparent and non-discriminatory call;
(c) In the case of asymmetric loss-sharing between public and private
investors, the first loss assumed by the public investor shall be
capped at 25 % of the total investment;
(d) In the case of guarantees, the guarantee rate shall be limited to 80 %
and total losses assumed by a Member State shall be capped at
25 % of the underlying guaranteed portfolio. Only guarantees
covering the expected losses of the underlying guaranteed
portfolio can be provided for free. If a guarantee also comprises
coverage of unexpected losses, the financial intermediary shall pay,
for the part of the guarantee covering unexpected losses, a market-
conform guarantee premium;
(e) The investors shall be allowed to be represented in the governance
bodies of the energy efficiency fund or financial intermediary, such
as the supervisory board or the advisory committee;
(f) The energy efficiency fund or financial intermediary shall be estab
lished according to the applicable laws and the Member State shall
provide for a due diligence process in order to ensure a commer
cially sound investment strategy for the purpose of implementing
the energy efficiency aid measure.
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9. Financial
intermediaries,
including
energy
efficiency
funds
shall
be
managed on a commercial basis and shall ensure profit-driven financing
decisions. This is considered to be the case when the financial inter
mediary and, as the case may be, the managers of the energy efficiency
fund fulfil the following conditions:
(a) they are obliged by law or contract to act with the diligence of a
professional manager in good faith and avoiding conflicts of
interest; best practices and regulatory supervision shall apply;
(b) their remuneration conforms with market practices. This
requirement is considered to be met where the manager is
selected through an open, transparent and non-discriminatory call,
based on objective criteria linked to experience, expertise and oper
ational and financial capacity;
(c) they shall receive a remuneration linked to performance, or shall
share part of the investment risks by co-investing own resources so
as to ensure that their interests are permanently aligned with the
interests of the public investor;
(d) they shall set out an investment strategy, criteria and the proposed
timing of investments in energy efficiency projects, establishing the
ex-ante financial viability and their expected impact on energy effi
ciency.
(e) a clear and realistic exit strategy shall exist for the public funds
invested in the energy efficiency fund or granted to the financial
intermediary, allowing the market to finance energy efficiency
projects when the market is ready to do so.
10. Energy
efficiency
improvements
undertaken
to
ensure
that
the
beneficiary complies with Union standards which have already been
adopted shall not be exempted from the notification requirement
under this Article.
Article 40
Investment aid for high-efficiency cogeneration
1. Investment aid for high-efficiency cogeneration shall be
compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3)
of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in
this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. The
investment
aid
shall
be
granted
in
respect
of
newly
installed
or refurbished capacities only.
3. The
new
cogeneration
unit
shall
provide
overall
primary
energy
savings compared to separate production of heat and electricity as
provided for by Directive 2012/27/EU of the European Parliament
and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on energy efficiency,
amending Directives 2009/125/EC and 2010/30/EU and repealing
Directives 2004/8/EC and 2006/32/EC ( 1 ). The improvement of an
existing cogeneration unit or conversion of an existing power generation
unit into a cogeneration unit shall result in primary energy savings
compared to the original situation.
( 1 ) OJ L 315, 14.11.2012, p. 1.
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4. The
eligible
costs
shall
be
the
extra
investment
costs
for
the
equipment needed for the installation to operate as a high-efficiency
cogeneration installation, compared to conventional electricity or
heating installations of the same capacity or the extra investment cost
to upgrade to a higher efficiency when an existing installation already
meets the high-efficiency threshold.
5. The
aid
intensity
shall
not
exceed
45
%
of
the
eligible
costs.
The
aid intensity may be increased by 20 percentage points for aid granted
to small undertakings and by 10 percentage points for aid granted to
medium-sized undertakings.
6. The aid intensity may be increased by 15 percentage points for
investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(a) of the Treaty and by 5 percentage points for
investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty.
Article 41
Investment aid for the promotion of energy from renewable sources
1.
Investment aid for the promotion of energy from renewable energy
sources shall be compatible with the internal market within the meaning
of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notifi
cation requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the
conditions laid down in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. Investment aid for the production of biofuels shall be exempted
from the notification requirement only to the extent that the aided
investments are used for the production of sustainable biofuels other
than food-based biofuels. However, investment aid to convert existing
food-based biofuel plants into advanced biofuel plants shall be
exempted under this Article, provided that the food-based production
would be reduced commensurate to the new capacity.
3. Aid
shall
not
be
granted
for
biofuels
which
are
subject
to
a
supply
or blending obligation.
4. Aid
shall
not
be
granted
for
hydropower
installations
that
do
not
comply with Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament.
5. The
investment
aid
shall
be
granted
to
new
installations
only.
No
aid shall be granted or paid out after the installation started operations
and aid shall be independent from the output.
6.
The eligible costs shall be the extra investment costs necessary to
promote the production of energy from renewable sources. They shall
be determined as follows:
(a) where the costs of investing in the production of energy from
renewable sources can be identified in the total investment cost as
a separate investment, for instance as a readily identifiable add-on
component to a pre-existing facility, this renewable energy-related
cost shall
constitute the eligible costs;
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(b) where the costs of investing in the production of energy from
renewable sources can be identified by reference to a similar, less
environmentally friendly investment that would have been credibly
carried out without the aid, this difference between the costs of both
investments identifies the renewable energy-related cost and
constitutes the eligible costs;
(c) for certain small installations where a less environmentally friendly
investment cannot be established as plants of a limited size do not
exist, the total investment costs to achieve a higher level of envi
ronmental protection shall constitute the eligible costs.
The costs not directly linked to the achievement of a higher level of
environmental protection shall not be eligible.
7. The
aid
intensity
shall
not
exceed:
(a) 45 % of the eligible costs if the eligible costs are calculated on the
basis of point (6)(a) or point (6)(b);
(b) 30 % of the eligible cost if the eligible costs are calculated on the
basis of point point (6)(c).
8. The
aid
intensity
may
be
increased
by
20
percentage
points
for
aid
granted to small undertakings and by 10 percentage points for aid
granted to medium-sized undertakings.
9. The aid intensity may be increased by 15 percentage points for
investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(a) of the Treaty and by 5 percentage points for
investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty.
10. Where
aid
is
granted
in
a
competitive
bidding
process
on
the
basis of clear, transparent and non-discriminatory criteria, the aid
intensity may reach 100 % of the eligible costs. Such a bidding
process shall be non-discriminatory and provide for the participation
of all interested undertakings. The budget related to the bidding
process shall be a binding constraint in the sense that not all participants
can receive aid and the aid shall be granted on the basis of the initial
bid submitted by the bidder, therefore excluding subsequent negoti
ations.
Article 42
Operating aid for the promotion of electricity from renewable
sources
1. Operating
aid
for
the
promotion
of
electricity
from
renewable
energy sources shall be compatible with the internal market within the
meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the
notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that
the conditions laid down in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. Aid
shall
be
granted
in
a
competitive
bidding
process
on
the
basis
of clear, transparent and non-discriminatory criteria which shall be open
to all generators producing electricity from renewable energy sources on
a non-discriminatory basis.
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3. The
bidding
process
can
be
limited
to
specific
technologies
where
a process open to all generators would lead to a suboptimal result which
cannot be addressed in the process design in view of in particular:
(i) the longer-term potential of a given new and innovative tech
nology; or
(ii) the need to achieve diversification; or
(iii) network constraints and grid stability; or
(iv) system (integration) costs; or
(v) the need to avoid distortions on the raw material markets from
biomass support
Member States shall carry out a detailed assessment of the applicability
of such conditions and report it to the Commission according to the
modalities described in Article 11 (a).
4. Aid shall be granted to new and innovative renewable energy
technologies in a competitive bidding process open to at least one
such technology on the basis of clear, transparent and non-discrimi
natory criteria. Such aid shall not be granted for more than 5 % of
the planned new electricity capacity from renewable energy sources
per year in total.
5.
Aid shall be granted as a premium in addition to the market price
whereby the generators sell their electricity directly in the market.
6. Aid
beneficiaries
shall
be
subject
to
standard
balancing
responsi
bilities. Beneficiaries may outsource balancing responsibilities to other
undertakings on their behalf, such as aggregators.
7.
Aid shall not be granted when prices are negative.
8. Aid
may
be
granted
in
the
absence
of
a
competitive
bidding
process as described in paragraph 2 to installations with an installed
electricity capacity of less than 1 MW for the production of electricity
from all renewable sources except for wind energy, where aid may be
granted in the absence of a competitive bidding process as described in
paragraph 2 to installations with an installed electricity capacity of less
than 6 MW or to installations with less than 6 generation units. Without
prejudice to paragraph 9, when aid is granted in the absence of a
competitive bidding process, the conditions under paragraphs 5, 6 and
7 shall be respected. In addition, when aid is granted in the absence of a
competitive bidding process, the conditions under Article 43 paragraphs
5, 6 and 7 shall be applicable.
9. The conditions under paragraphs 5, 6 and 7 shall not apply to
operating aid granted to installations with an installed electricity
capacity of less than 500 kW for the production of electricity from
all renewable sources except for wind energy, where these conditions
shall not apply to operating aid granted to installations with an installed
electricity capacity of less than 3 MW or to installations with less than 3
generation units.
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10. For the purpose of calculating the above maximum capacities
referred to in paragraphs 8 and 9, installations with a common
connection point to the electricity grid shall be considered as one instal
lation.
11.
Aid shall only be granted until the plant generating the electricity
from renewable sources has been fully depreciated according to
generally accepted accounting principles. Any investment aid previously
received must be deducted from the operating aid.
Article 43
Operating aid for the promotion of energy from renewable sources
in small scale installations
1.
Operating aid for the promotion of energy from renewable energy
sources in small scale installations shall be compatible with the internal
market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be
exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in
Chapter I are fulfilled.
2.
Aid shall only be granted to installations with an installed capacity
of less than 500 kW for the production of energy from all renewable
sources except for wind energy, for which aid shall be granted to
installations with an installed capacity of less than 3 MW or with less
than 3 generation units and for biofuels, for which aid shall be granted
to installations with an installed capacity of less than 50
000
tonnes/year. For the purpose of calculating those maximum capac
ities, small scale installations with a common connection point to the
electricity grid shall be considered as one installation.
3. Aid
shall
only
be
granted
to
installations
producing
sustainable
biofuels other than food-based biofuels. However, operating aid to
plants producing food-based biofuels that have started operation
before 31 December 2013 and are not yet fully depreciated shall be
exempted under this Article but in any event no later than 2020.
4. Aid
shall
not
be
granted
for
biofuels
which
are
subject
to
a
supply
or blending obligation.
5.
The aid per unit of energy shall not exceed the difference between
the total levelized costs of producing energy from the renewable source
in question and the market price of the form of energy concerned. The
levelized costs shall be updated regularly and at least every year.
6. The
maximum
rate
of
return
used
in
the
levelized
cost
calculation
shall not exceed the relevant swap rate plus a premium of 100 basis
points. The relevant swap rate shall be the swap rate of the currency in
which the aid is granted for a maturity that reflects the depreciation
period of the installations supported.
7. Aid
shall
only
be
granted
until
the
installation
has
been
fully
depreciated according to generally accepted accounting principles.
Any investment aid granted to an installation shall be deducted from
the operating aid.
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Article 44
Aid in the form of reductions in environmental taxes under
Directive 2003/96/EC
1. Aid schemes in the form of reductions in environmental taxes
fulfilling the conditions of Council Directive 2003/96/EC of 27 October
2003 restructuring the Community framework for the taxation of energy
products and electricity ( 1 ) shall be compatible with the internal market
within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be
exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in
Chapter I are fulfilled.
2.
The beneficiaries of the tax reduction shall be selected on the basis
of transparent and objective criteria and shall pay at least the respective
minimum level of taxation set by Directive 2003/96/EC.
3. Aid schemes in the form of tax reductions shall be based on a
reduction of the applicable environmental tax rate or on the payment of
a fixed compensation amount or on a combination of these mechanisms.
4. Aid
shall
not
be
granted
for
biofuels
which
are
subject
to
a
supply
or blending obligation.
Article 45
Investment aid for remediation of contaminated sites
1. Investment
aid
to
undertakings
repairing
environmental
damage
by
remediating contaminated sites shall be compatible with the internal
market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall
be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in
Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. The
investment
shall
lead
to
the
repair
of
the
environmental
damage, including damage to the quality of the soil or of surface
water or groundwater.
3. Where the legal or physical person liable for the environmental
damage under the law applicable in each Member State without
prejudice to the Union rules in this matter — in particular Directive
2004/35/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 April
2004 on environmental liability with regard to the prevention and
remedying of environmental damage ( 2 ) as amended by Directive
2006/21/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of
15 March 2006 on the management of waste from extractive indus
tries ( 3 ), Directive 2009/31/EC of the European Parliament and of the
Council of 23 April 2009 on the geological storage of carbon dioxide
and amending Council Directive 85/337/EEC, European Parliament and
Council Directives 2000/60/EC, 2001/80/EC, 2004/35/EC, 2006/12/EC,
( 1 ) OJ L 283, 31.10.2003, p. 51.
( 2 ) OJ L 143, 30.4.2004, p. 56.
( 3 ) OJ L 102, 11.4.2006, p. 1.
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2008/1/EC and Regulation (EC) No 1013/2006 ( 1 ) and Directive
2013/30/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 June
2013 on safety of offshore oil and gas operations and amending Directive
2004/35/EC ( 2 ) — is identified, that person must finance the remediation
in accordance with the ‘polluter pays’ principle, and no State aid shall be
granted. Where the person liable under the applicable law is not identified
or cannot be made to bear the costs, the person responsible for the
remediation or decontamination work may receive State aid.
4. The eligible costs shall be the costs incurred for the remediation
work, less the increase in the value of the land. All expenditure incurred
by an undertaking in remediating its site, whether or not such expen
diture can be shown as a fixed asset on its balance sheet, may be
considered as eligible investment in the case of the remediation of
contaminated sites.
5. Evaluations of the increase in value of the land resulting from
remediation shall be carried out by an independent expert.
6.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 100 % of the eligible costs.
Article 46
Investment aid for energy efficient district heating and cooling
1. Investment
aid
for
the
installation
of
energy
efficient
district
heating and cooling system shall be compatible with the internal
market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall
be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in
Chapter I are fulfilled.
2.
The eligible costs for the production plant shall be the extra costs
needed for the construction, expansion and refurbishment of one or
more generation units to operate as an energy efficient district heating
and cooling system compared to a conventional production plant. The
investment shall be an integral part of the energy efficient district
heating and cooling system.
3. The
aid
intensity
for
the
production
plant
shall
not
exceed
45
%
of
the eligible costs. The aid intensity may be increased by 20 percentage
points for aid granted to small undertakings and by 10 percentage points
for aid granted to medium-sized undertakings.
4.
The aid intensity for the production plant may be increased by 15
percentage points for investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the
conditions of Article 107(3)(a) of the Treaty and by 5 percentage points
for investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty.
( 1 ) OJ L 140, 5.6.2009, p. 114.
( 2 ) OJ L 178, 28.6.2013, p.
66.
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5. The
eligible
costs
for
the
distribution
network
shall
be
the
investment costs.
6.
The aid amount for the distribution network shall not exceed the
difference between the eligible costs and the operating profit. The
operating profit shall be deducted from the eligible costs
ex ante or
through a claw-back mechanism.
Article 47
Investment aid for waste recycling and re-utilisation
1. Investment
aid
for
waste
recycling
and
re-utilisation
shall
be
compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3)
of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in
this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2.
The investment aid shall be granted for the recycling and re-util
isation of waste generated by other undertakings.
3. The
recycled
or
re-used
materials
treated
would
otherwise
be
disposed of, or be treated in a less environmentally friendly manner.
Aid to waste recovery operations other than recycling shall not be block
exempted under this Article.
4.
The aid shall not indirectly relieve the polluters from a burden that
should be borne by them under Union law, or from a burden that should
be considered a normal company cost.
5. The
investment
shall
not
merely
increase
demand
for
the
materials
to be recycled without increasing collection of those materials.
6.
The investment shall go beyond the state of the art.
7.
The eligible costs shall be the extra investment costs necessary to
realise an investment leading to better or more efficient recycling or re-
use activities compared to a conventional process of re-use and
recycling activities with the same capacity that would be constructed
in the absence the aid.
8. The
aid
intensity
shall
not
exceed
35
%
of
the
eligible
costs.
The
aid intensity may be increased by 20 percentage points for aid granted
to small undertakings and by 10 percentage points for aid granted to
medium-sized undertakings.
9. The aid intensity may be increased by 15 percentage points for
investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(a) of the Treaty and by 5 percentage points for
investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of
Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty.
10. Aid
for
investments
relating
to
the
recycling
and
re-utilisation
of
the beneficiary's own waste shall not be exempt from the notification
requirement under this
Article.
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Article 48
Investment aid for energy infrastructure
1. Investment aid for the construction or upgrade of energy infra
structure shall be compatible with the internal market within the
meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from
the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided
that the conditions laid down in this Article and in Chapter I are
fulfilled.
2. Aid
shall
be
granted
for
energy
infrastructure
located
in
assisted
areas.
3. The
energy
infrastructure
shall
be
subject
to
full
tariff
and
access
regulation according to internal energy market legislation.
4. The
eligible
costs
shall
be
the
investment
costs.
5. The
aid
amount
shall
not
exceed
the
difference
between
the
eligible costs and the operating profit of the investment. The
operating profit shall be deducted from the eligible costs
ex ante or
through a claw-back mechanism.
6.
Aid for investments in electricity and gas storage projects and oil
infrastructure shall not be exempt from the notification requirement
under this Article.
Article 49
Aid for environmental studies
1. Aid
for
studies,
including
energy
audits,
directly
linked
to
investments referred to in this Section shall be compatible with the
internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty
and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down
in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. The eligible costs shall be the costs of the studies referred to in
paragraph 1.
3.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 50 % of the eligible costs.
4. The aid intensity may be increased by 20 percentage points for
studies undertaken on behalf of small enterprises and by 10 percentage
points for studies undertaken on behalf of medium size enterprises.
5. Aid
shall
not
be
granted
to
large
undertakings
for
energy
audits
carried out under Article 8(4) of the Directive 2012/27/EU, unless the
energy audit is carried out in addition to the mandatory energy audit
under that Directive.
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SECTION 8
Aid to make good the damage caused by certain natural disasters
Article 50
Aid schemes to make good the damage caused by certain natural
disasters
1. Aid
schemes
to
make
good
the
damage
caused
by
earthquakes,
avalanches, landslides, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, volcanic eruptions
and wild fires of natural origin shall be compatible with the internal
market within the meaning of Article 107(2)(b) of the Treaty and shall
be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in
Chapter I are fulfilled.
2.
Aid shall be granted subject to the following conditions:
(a) the competent public authorities of a Member State have formally
recognised the character of the event as a natural disaster; and
(b) there is a direct causal link between the natural disaster and the
damages suffered by the affected undertaking.
3. Aid
schemes
related
to
a
specific
natural
disaster
shall
be
introduced within three years following the occurrence of the event.
Aid on the basis of such schemes shall be granted within four years
following the occurrence.
4. The
costs
arising
from
the
damage
incurred
as
a
direct
consequence of the natural disaster, as assessed by an independent
expert recognised by the competent national authority or by an
insurance undertaking shall be eligible costs. Such damage may
include material damage to assets such as buildings, equipment,
machinery or stocks and loss of income due to the full or partial
suspension of activity for a period not exceeding six months from the
occurrence of the disaster. The calculation of the material damage shall
be based on the repair cost or economic value of the affected asset
before the disaster. It shall not exceed the repair cost or the decrease
in fair market value caused by the disaster, that is to say the difference
between the property's value immediately before and immediately after
the occurrence of the disaster. Loss of income shall be calculated on the
basis of financial data of the affected undertaking (earnings before
interest and taxes (EBIT), depreciation and labour costs related only
to the establishment affected by the natural disaster) by comparing the
financial data for the six months after the occurrence of the disaster with
the average of three years chosen among the five years preceding the
occurrence of the disaster (by excluding the two years giving the best
and the worst financial result) and calculated for the same six months
period of the year. The damage shall be calculated at the level of the
individual beneficiary.
5. The aid and any other payments received to compensate for the
damage, including payments under insurance policies, shall not exceed
100 % of the eligible costs.
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SECTION 9
Social aid for transport for residents of remote regions
Article 51
Social aid for transport for residents of remote regions
1. Aid
for
air
and
maritime
passenger
transport
shall
be
compatible
with the internal market pursuant to Article 107(2)(a) of the Treaty and
shall be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of
the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in
Chapter I are fulfilled.
2.
The entire aid shall be for the benefit of final consumers who have
their normal residence in remote regions.
3. The
aid
shall
be
granted
for
passenger
transport
on
a
route
linking
an airport or port in a remote region with another airport or port within
the European Economic Area.
4.
The aid shall be granted without discrimination as to the identity
of the carrier or type of service and without limitation as to the precise
route to or from the remote region.
5. The
eligible
costs
shall
be
the
price
of
a
return
ticket
from
or
to
the remote region, including all taxes and charges invoiced by the
carrier to the consumer.
6.
The aid intensity shall not exceed 100 % of the eligible costs.
SECTION 10
Aid for broadband infrastructures
Article 52
Aid for broadband infrastructures
1. Investment
aid
for
broadband
network
development
shall
be
compatible with the internal market pursuant to Article 107(3) of the
Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down
in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. The
eligible
costs
shall
be
the
following:
(a) investment costs for the deployment of a passive broadband infra
structure;
(b) investment costs of broadband-related civil engineering works;
(c) investment costs for the deployment of basic broadband networks;
and
(d) investment costs for the deployment of next generation access
(NGA) networks.
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2a. As
an
alternative
to
establishing
the
eligible
costs
as
provided
for
in paragraph 2, the maximum amount of aid for a project may be
established on the basis of the competitive selection process as
required by paragraph 4.
▼B
3.
The investment shall be located in areas where there is no infra
structure of the same category (either basic broadband or NGA network)
and where no such infrastructure is likely to be developed on
commercial terms within three years from the moment of publication
of the planned aid measure, which shall also be verified through an
open public consultation.
4.
The aid shall be allocated on the basis of an open, transparent and
non-discriminatory competitive selection process respecting the principle
of technology neutrality.
5. The
network
operator
shall
offer
the
widest
possible
active
and
passive wholesale access, according to Article 2, point 139 of this
Regulation, under fair and non-discriminatory conditions, including
physical unbundling in the case of NGA networks. Such wholesale
access shall be granted for at least seven years and the right of
access to ducts or poles shall not be limited in time. In the case of
aid for the construction of ducts, the ducts shall be large enough to cater
for several cable networks and different network topologies.
6. The
wholesale
access
price
shall
be
based
on
the
pricing
principles
set by the national regulatory authority and on benchmarks that prevail
in other comparable, more competitive areas of the Member State or the
Union taking into account the aid received by the network operator. The
national regulatory authority shall be consulted on access conditions,
including pricing, and in the event of dispute between access seekers
and the subsidised infrastructure operator.
7. Member
States
shall
put
in
place
a
monitoring
and
claw-back
mechanism if the amount of aid granted to the project exceeds EUR
10 million.
SECTION 11
Aid for culture and heritage conservation
Article 53
Aid for culture and heritage conservation
1. Aid
for
culture
and
heritage
conservation
shall
be
compatible
with
the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty
and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided the conditions laid down in
this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. The
aid
shall
be
granted
for
the
following
cultural
purposes
and
activities:
▼M1
(a) museums, archives, libraries, artistic and cultural centres or spaces,
theatres, cinemas, opera houses, concert halls, other live
performance organisations, film heritage institutions and other
similar artistic and cultural infrastructures, organisations and insti
tutions;
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(b) tangible heritage including all forms of movable or immovable
cultural heritage and archaeological sites, monuments, historical
sites and buildings; natural heritage linked to cultural heritage or
if formally recognized as cultural or natural heritage by the
competent public authorities of a Member State;
(c) intangible heritage in any form, including folklorist customs and
crafts;
(d) art or cultural events and performances, festivals, exhibitions and
other similar cultural activities;
(e) cultural and artistic education activities as well as promotion of the
understanding of the importance of protection and promotion of the
diversity of cultural expressions through educational and greater
public awareness programs, including with the use of new tech
nologies;
(f) writing, editing, production, distribution, digitisation and publishing
of music and literature, including translations.
3.
The aid may take the form of:
(a) investment aid, including aid for the construction or upgrade of
culture infrastructure;
(b) operating aid.
4.
For investment aid, the eligible costs shall be the investment costs
in tangible and intangible assets, including:
(a) costs for the construction, upgrade, acquisition, conservation or
improvement of infrastructure, if at least 80 % of either the time
or the space capacity per year is used for cultural purposes;
(b) costs for the acquisition, including leasing, transfer of possession or
physical relocation of cultural heritage;
(c) costs for safeguarding, preservation, restoration and rehabilitation of
tangible and intangible cultural heritage, including extra costs for
storage under appropriate conditions, special tools, materials and
costs for documentation, research, digitalisation and publication;
(d) costs for improving the accessibility of cultural heritage to the
public, including costs for digitisation and other new technologies,
costs to improve accessibility for persons with special needs (in
particular, ramps and lifts for disabled persons, braille indications
and hands-on exhibits in museums) and for promoting cultural
diversity with respect to presentations, programmes and visitors;
(e) costs for cultural projects and activities, cooperation and exchange
programmes and grants including costs for selection procedures,
costs for promotion and costs incurred directly as a result of the
project;
5.
For operating aid, the eligible costs shall be the following:
(a) the cultural institution's or heritage site's costs linked to continuous
or periodic activities including exhibitions, performances and events
and similar cultural activities that occur in the ordinary course of
business;
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(b) costs of cultural and artistic education activities as well as
promotion of the understanding of the importance of protection
and promotion of the diversity of cultural expressions through
educational and greater public awareness programs, including with
the use of new technologies;
(c) costs of the improvement of public access to the cultural institution
or heritage sites and activities including costs of digitisation and of
use of new technologies as well as costs of improving accessibility
for persons with disabilities;
(d) operating costs directly relating to the cultural project or activity,
such as rent or lease of real estate and cultural venues, travel
expenses, materials and supplies directly related to the cultural
project or activity, architectural structures for exhibitions and
stage sets, loan, lease and depreciation of tools, software and
equipment, costs for access rights to copyright works and other
related intellectual property rights protected contents, costs for
promotion and costs incurred directly as a result of the project or
activity; depreciation charges and the costs of financing are only
eligible if they have not been covered by investment aid;
(e) costs for personnel working for the cultural institution or heritage
site or for a project;
(f) costs for advisory and support services provided by outside
consultants and service providers, incurred directly as a result of
the project.
6.
For investment aid, the aid amount shall not exceed the difference
between the eligible costs and the operating profit of the investment The
operating profit shall be deducted from the eligible costs
ex ante, on the
basis of reasonable projections, or through a claw-back mechanism. The
operator of the infrastructure is allowed to keep a reasonable profit over
the relevant period.
7. For
operating
aid,
the
aid
amount
shall
not
exceed
what
is
necessary to cover the operating losses and a reasonable profit over
the relevant period. This shall be ensured
ex ante, on the basis of
reasonable projections, or through a claw-back mechanism.
▼M1
8.
For aid not exceeding EUR 2 million, the maximum amount of aid
may be set at 80 % of eligible costs, as an alternative to application of
the method referred to in paragraphs 6 and 7.
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9.
►M1 For the activities defined in paragraph 2(f), the maximum
aid amount shall not exceed either the difference between the eligible
costs and the project's discounted revenues or 70 % of the eligible
costs. ◄ The revenues shall be deducted from the eligible costs
ex
ante or through a clawback mechanism. The eligible costs shall be
the costs for publishing of music and literature, including the authors'
fees (copyright costs), translators' fees, editors' fees, other editorial costs
(proofreading, correcting, reviewing), layout and pre-press costs and
printing or e-publication costs.
10.
Aid to press and magazines, whether they are published in print
or electronically, shall not be eligible under this Article.
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Article 54
Aid schemes for audiovisual works
1. Aid schemes to support the script-writing, development,
production, distribution and promotion of audiovisual works shall be
compatible with the internal market pursuant to Article 107(3) of the
Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided the conditions laid down in
this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. Aid
shall
support
a
cultural
product.
To
avoid
manifest
errors
in
the qualification of a product as cultural, each Member State shall
establish effective processes, such as selection of proposals by one or
more persons entrusted with the selection or verification against a prede
termined list of cultural criteria.
3. Aid
may
take
the
form
of:
(a) aid to the production of audiovisual works;
(b) pre-production aid; and
(c) distribution aid.
4. Where
a
Member
States
makes
the
aid
subject
to
territorial
spending obligations, aid schemes for the production of audiovisual
works may either:
(a) require that up to 160 % of the aid granted to the production of a
given audiovisual work is spent in the territory of the Member State
granting the aid; or
(b) calculate the aid granted to the production of a given audiovisual
work as a percentage of the expenditure on production activities in
the granting Member State, typically in case of aid schemes in the
form of tax incentives.
▼M1
In both cases, the maximum expenditure subject to territorial spending
obligations shall in no case exceed 80 % of the overall production
budget.
For projects to be eligible for aid, a Member State may also require a
minimum level of production activity in the territory concerned, but that
level shall not exceed 50 % of the overall production budget.
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5. The
eligible
costs
shall
be
the
following:
(a) for production aid: the overall costs of production of audiovisual
works including costs to improve accessibility for persons with
disabilities.
(b) for pre-production aid: the costs of script-writing and the develop
ment of audiovisual works.
(c) for distribution aid: the costs of distribution and promotion of
audiovisual works.
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6.
The aid intensity for the production of audiovisual works shall not
exceed 50 % of the eligible costs.
7. The
aid
intensity
may
be
increased
as
follows:
(a) to 60 % of the eligible costs for cross-border productions funded by
more than one Member State and involving producers from more
than one Member State;
(b) to 100 % of the eligible costs for difficult audiovisual works and co-
productions involving countries from the Development Assistance
Committee (DAC) List of the OECD.
8. The
aid
intensity
for
pre-production
shall
not
exceed
100
%
of
the
eligible costs. If the resulting script or project is made into an audio
visual work such as a film, the pre-production costs shall be incor
porated in the overall budget and taken into account when calculating
the aid intensity. The aid intensity for distribution shall be the same as
the aid intensity for production.
9. Aid
shall
not
be
reserved
for
specific
production
activities
or
individual parts of the production value chain. Aid for film studio infra
structures shall not be eligible under this Article.
10. Aid
shall
not
be
reserved
exclusively
for
nationals
and
bene
ficiaries shall not be required to have the status of undertaking estab
lished under national commercial law.
SECTION 12
Aid for sport and multifunctional recreational infrastructures
Article 55
Aid for sport and multifunctional recreational infrastructures
1. Aid
for
sport
and
multifunctional
recreational
infrastructures
shall
be compatible with the internal market within the meaning of
Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification
requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions
laid down in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. Sport infrastructure shall not be used exclusively by a single
professional sport user. Use of the sport infrastructure by other profes
sional or non-professional sport users shall annually account for at least
20 % of time capacity. If the infrastructure is used by several users
simultaneously, corresponding fractions of time capacity usage shall
be calculated.
3. Multifunctional recreational infrastructure shall consist of
recreational facilities with a multi-functional character offering, in
particular, cultural and recreational services with the exception of
leisure parks and hotel facilities.
4. Access
to
the
sport
or
multifunctional
recreational
infrastructures
shall be open to several users and be granted on a transparent and non-
discriminatory basis. Undertakings which have financed at least 30 % of
the investment costs of the infrastructure may be granted preferential
access under more favourable conditions, provided those conditions are
made publicly available.
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5.
If sport infrastructure is used by professional sport clubs, Member
States shall ensure that the pricing conditions for its use are made
publicly available.
6.
Any concession or other entrustment to a third party to construct,
upgrade and/or operate the sport or multifunctional recreational infra
structure shall be assigned on a open, transparent and non-discrimi
natory basis, having due regard to the applicable procurement rules.
7.
The aid may take the form of:
(a) investment aid, including aid for the construction or upgrade of
sport and multifunctional recreational infrastructure;
(b) operating aid for sport infrastructure;
8. For
investment
aid
for
sport
and
multifunctional
recreational
infra
structure the eligible costs shall be the investment costs in tangible and
intangible assets.
9.
For operating aid for sport infrastructure the eligible costs shall be
the operating costs of the provision of services by the infrastructure.
Those operating costs include costs such as personnel costs, materials,
contracted services, communications, energy, maintenance, rent, admin
istration, etc., but exclude depreciation charges and the costs of
financing if these have been covered by investment aid.
10. For
investment
aid
for
sport
and
multifunctional
recreational
infrastructure, the aid amount shall not exceed the difference between
the eligible costs and the operating profit of the investment. The
operating profit shall be deducted from the eligible costs
ex ante, on
the basis of reasonable projections, or through a claw-back mechanism.
11.
For operating aid for sport infrastructure, the aid amount shall not
exceed the operating losses over the relevant period. This shall be
ensured
ex ante, on the basis of reasonable projections, or through a
claw-back mechanism.
▼M1
12. For
aid
not
exceeding
EUR
2
million,
the
maximum
amount
of
aid may be set at 80 % of eligible costs, as an alternative to application
of the method referred to in paragraphs 10 and 11.
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SECTION 13
Aid for local infrastructures
Article 56
Investment aid for local infrastructures
1. Financing for the construction or upgrade of local infrastructures
which concerns infrastructure that contribute at a local level to
improving the business and consumer environment and modernising
and developing the industrial base shall be compatible with the
internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty
and shall be exempt from the notification requirement of Article 108(3)
of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and
in Chapter I are fulfilled.
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2. This
Article
shall
not
apply
to
aid
for
infrastructures
that
is
covered by other sections of Chapter III of this Regulation with the
exception of Section 1 — Regional aid. This Article shall also not apply
to airport infrastructure and port infrastructure.
3. The
infrastructure
shall
be
made
available
to
interested
users
on
an
open, transparent and non-discriminatory basis. The price charged for
the use or the sale of the infrastructure shall correspond to market price.
4.
Any concession or other entrustment to a third party to operate the
infrastructure shall be assigned on an open, transparent and non-
discriminatory basis, having due regard to the applicable procurement
rules.
5. The eligible costs shall be the investment costs in tangible and
intangible assets.
6. The
aid
amount
shall
not
exceed
the
difference
between
the
eligible costs and the operating profit of the investment. The
operating profit shall be deducted from the eligible costs
ex ante, on
the basis of reasonable projections, or through a claw-back mechanism.
7. Dedicated
infrastructure
shall
not
be
exempted
under
this
Article.
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SECTION 14
Aid for regional airports
Article 56a
Aid for regional airports
1.
Investment aid to an airport shall be compatible with the internal
market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be
exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in paragraphs 3 to 14
of this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
2. Operating aid to an airport shall be compatible with the internal
market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be
exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in paragraphs 3, 4, 10
and 15 to 18 of this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.
3. The
airport
shall
be
open
to
all
potential
users.
In
the
case
of
physical limitation of capacity, the allocation shall take place on the
basis of pertinent, objective, transparent and non-discriminatory criteria.
4.
The aid shall not be granted for the relocation of existing airports
or for the creation of a new passenger airport, including the conversion
of an existing airfield into a passenger airport.
5. The
investment
concerned
shall
not
exceed
what
is
necessary
to
accommodate the medium-term expected traffic on the basis of
reasonable traffic forecasts.
6. The investment aid shall not be granted to an airport located
within 100 kilometres or 60 minutes travelling time by car, bus, train
or high-speed train from an existing airport from which scheduled air
services, within the meaning of Article 2(16) of Regulation (EC) No
1008/2008, are operated.
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7. Paragraphs
5
and
6
shall
not
apply
to
airports
with
average
annual
passenger traffic of up to 200 000 passengers during the two financial
years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted if the
investment aid is not expected to result in the airport increasing its
average annual passenger traffic to above 200 000 passengers within
two financial years following the granting of the aid. Investment aid
granted to such airports shall comply either with paragraph 11 or with
paragraphs 13 and 14.
8.
Paragraph 6 shall not apply where the investment aid is granted to
an airport situated within 100 kilometres from existing airports from
which scheduled air services, within the meaning of Article 2(16) of
Regulation (EC) No 1008/2008, are operated, provided the route
between each of these other existing airports and the airport receiving
the aid necessarily involves either a total travelling time by maritime
transportation of at least 90 minutes or air transportation.
9. The
investment
aid
shall
not
be
granted
to
airports
with
average
annual passenger traffic of more than three million passengers during
the two financial years preceding the year in which aid is actually
granted. The investment aid shall not be expected to result in the
airport increasing its average annual traffic to above three million
passengers within two financial years following the granting of the aid.
10. The
aid
shall
not
be
granted
to
airports
with
average
annual
freight traffic of more than 200 000 tonnes during the two financial
years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted. The aid
shall not be expected to result in the airport increasing its average
annual freight traffic to above 200 000 tonnes within two financial
years following the granting of the aid.
11. The investment aid amount shall not exceed the difference
between the eligible costs and the operating profit of the investment.
The operating profit shall be deducted from the eligible costs
ex ante,
on the basis of reasonable projections, or through a claw-back mech
anism.
12.
The eligible costs shall be the costs relating to the investments in
airport infrastructure, including planning costs.
13. The
investment
aid
amount
shall
not
exceed:
(a) 50 % of eligible costs for airports with an average annual passenger
traffic of one to three million passengers during the two financial
years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted;
(b) 75 % of the eligible costs for airports with average annual passenger
traffic of up to one million passengers during the two financial
years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted.
14. The
maximum
aid
intensities
set
out
in
paragraph
13
may
be
increased by 20 percentage points for airports located in remote regions.
15. Operating
aid
shall
not
be
granted
to
airports
with
average
annual
passenger traffic of more than 200 000 passengers during the two
financial years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted.
16. The
amount
of
operating
aid
shall
not
exceed
what
is
necessary
to cover the operating losses and a reasonable profit over the relevant
period. The aid shall be granted either in the form of periodic
instalments fixed
ex ante, which shall not be increased during the
period for which the aid is granted, or in the form of amounts
defined
ex post based on the observed operating losses.
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17. Operating aid shall not be paid out in respect of any calendar
year during which the annual passenger traffic of the airport exceeds
200 000 passengers.
18. The
granting
of
the
operating
aid
shall
not
be
made
conditional
upon the conclusion of arrangements with specific airlines relating to
airport charges, marketing payments or other financial aspects of the
airlines' operations at the airport concerned.
SECTION 15
Aid for ports
Article 56b
Aid for maritime ports
1. Aid for maritime ports shall be compatible with the internal
market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall
be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in
Chapter I are fulfilled.
2.
The eligible costs shall be the costs, including planning costs, of:
(a) investments for the construction, replacement or upgrade of port
infrastructures;
(b) investments for the construction, replacement or upgrade of access
infrastructure;
(c) dredging.
3. Costs
relating
to
non-transport
related
activities,
including
industrial production facilities active in a port, offices or shops, as
well as for port superstructures shall not be eligible costs.
4. The
aid
amount
shall
not
exceed
the
difference
between
the
eligible costs and the operating profit of the investment or dredging.
The operating profit shall be deducted from the eligible costs
ex ante,
on the basis of reasonable projections, or through a claw-back mech
anism.
5. The aid intensity per investment referred to in point (a) of
paragraph 2 shall not exceed:
(a) 100 % of the eligible costs where total eligible costs of the project
are up to EUR 20 million;
(b) 80 % of the eligible costs where total eligible costs of the project
are above EUR 20 million and up to EUR 50 million;
(c) 60 % of the eligible costs where total eligible costs of the project
are above EUR 50 million and up to the amount laid down in point
(ee) of Article 4(1).
The aid intensity shall not exceed 100 % of the eligible costs
determined in point (b) of paragraph 2 and point (c) of paragraph 2
up to the amount laid down in point (ee) of Article 4(1).
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6. The
aid
intensities
laid
down
in
points
(b)
and
(c)
of
the
first
subparagraph of paragraph 5 may be increased by 10 percentage
points for investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions
of point (a) of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and by 5 percentage points
for investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of point
(c) of Article 107(3) of the Treaty.
7.
Any concession or other entrustment to a third party to construct,
upgrade, operate or rent aided port infrastructure shall be assigned on a
competitive, transparent, non-discriminatory and unconditional basis.
8. The
aided
port
infrastructure
shall
be
made
available
to
interested
users on an equal and non-discriminatory basis on market terms.
9.
For aid not exceeding EUR 5 million, the maximum amount of aid
may be set at 80 % of eligible costs, as an alternative to application of
the method referred to in paragraphs 4, 5 and 6.
Article 56c
Aid for inland ports
1. Aid
for
inland
ports
shall
be
compatible
with
the
internal
market
within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be
exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in
Chapter I are fulfilled.
2.
The eligible costs shall be the costs, including planning costs, of:
(a) investments for the construction, replacement or upgrade of port
infrastructures;
(b) investments for the construction, replacement or upgrade of access
infrastructure;
(c) dredging.
3. Costs
relating
to
non-transport
related
activities,
including
industrial production facilities active in a port, offices or shops, as
well as for port superstructures shall not be eligible costs.
4. The
aid
amount
shall
not
exceed
the
difference
between
the
eligible costs and the operating profit of the investment or dredging.
The operating profit shall be deducted from the eligible costs
ex ante,
on the basis of reasonable projections, or through a claw-back mech
anism.
5.
The maximum aid intensity shall not exceed 100 % of the eligible
costs up to the amount laid down in point (ff) of Article 4(1).
6.
Any concession or other entrustment to a third party to construct,
upgrade, operate or rent aided port infrastructure shall be assigned on a
competitive, transparent, non-discriminatory and unconditional basis.
7. The
aided
port
infrastructure
shall
be
made
available
to
interested
users on an equal and non-discriminatory basis on market terms.
8.
For aid not exceeding EUR 2 million, the maximum amount of aid
may be set at 80 % of eligible costs, as an alternative to application of
the method referred to in paragraphs 4 and 5.
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CHAPTER IV
FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 57
Repeal
Regulation (EC) No 800/2008 shall be repealed.
Article 58
Transitional provisions
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1. This
Regulation
shall
apply
to
individual
aid
granted
before
the
respective provisions of this Regulation have entered into force where
the aid fulfils all the conditions laid down in this Regulation, with the
exception of Article 9.
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2. Any aid not exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty by virtue of this Regulation or other regu
lations adopted pursuant to Article 1 of Regulation (EC) No 994/98
previously in force shall be assessed by the Commission in accordance
with the relevant frameworks, guidelines, communications and notices.
3. Any
individual
aid
granted
before
1
January
2015
by
virtue
of
any
regulation adopted pursuant to Article 1 of Regulation (EC) No 994/98
in force at the time of granting the aid shall be compatible with the
internal market and exempted from the notification requirement of
Article 108(3) of the Treaty with the exclusion of regional aid. Risk
capital aid schemes in favour of SMEs set up before 1 July 2014 and
exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty under Regulation (EC) No 800/2008, shall remain exempted
and compatible with the internal market until the termination of the
funding agreement, provided the commitment of the public funding
into the supported private equity investment fund, on the basis of
such agreement, was made before 1 January 2015 and the other
conditions for exemption remain fulfilled.
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3a.
Any individual aid granted between 1 July 2014 and 9 July 2017
in accordance with the provisions of this Regulation as applicable at the
time of granting the aid shall be compatible with the internal market and
exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the
Treaty. Any individual aid granted before 1 July 2014 in accordance
with the provisions of this Regulation, with the exception of Article 9,
as applicable either before or after 10 July 2017 shall be compatible
with the internal market and exempted from the notification requirement
of Article 108(3) of the Treaty.
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4. At the end of the period of validity of this Regulation, any aid
schemes exempted under this Regulation shall remain exempted during
an adjustment period of six months, with the exception of regional aid
schemes. The exemption of regional aid schemes shall expire on the
date of expiry of the approved regional aid maps. The exemption of risk
finance aid exempted pursuant to Article 21(2)(a) shall expire at the end
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of the period foreseen in the funding agreement, provided the
commitment of public funding to the supported private equity
investment fund was made on the basis of such agreement within 6
months from the end of the period of validity of this Regulation and all
other conditions for exemption remain fulfilled.
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5. If
this
Regulation
is
amended,
any
aid
scheme
exempted
under
this Regulation as applicable at the time of the entry into force of the
scheme shall remain exempted during an adjustment period of six
months.
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Article 59
This Regulation shall enter into force on 1 July 2014.
It shall apply until 31 December 2020.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in
all Member States.
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ANNEX I
SME DEFINITION
Article 1
Enterprise
An enterprise is considered to be any entity engaged in an economic activity,
irrespective of its legal form. This includes, in particular, self-employed persons
and family businesses engaged in craft or other activities, and partnerships or
associations regularly engaged in an economic activity.
Article 2
Staff headcount and financial thresholds determining enterprise categories
1. The
category
of
micro,
small
and
medium-sized
enterprises
(‘SMEs’)
is
made up of enterprises which employ fewer than 250 persons and which have
an annual turnover not exceeding EUR 50 million, and/or an annual balance
sheet total not exceeding EUR 43 million.
2. Within
the
SME
category,
a
small
enterprise
is
defined
as
an
enterprise
which employs fewer than 50 persons and whose annual turnover and/or annual
balance sheet total does not exceed EUR 10 million.
3. Within
the
SME
category,
a
micro-enterprise
is
defined
as
an
enterprise
which employs fewer than 10 persons and whose annual turnover and/or annual
balance sheet total does not exceed EUR 2 million.
Article 3
Types of enterprise taken into consideration in calculating staff numbers and
financial amounts
1. An ‘autonomous enterprise’ is any enterprise which is not classified as a
partner enterprise within the meaning of paragraph 2 or as a linked enterprise
within the meaning of paragraph 3.
2. ‘Partner enterprises’ are all enterprises which are not classified as linked
enterprises within the meaning of paragraph 3 and between which there is the
following relationship: an enterprise (upstream enterprise) holds, either solely or
jointly with one or more linked enterprises within the meaning of paragraph 3,
25 % or more of the capital or voting rights of another enterprise (downstream
enterprise).
However, an enterprise may be ranked as autonomous, and thus as not having
any partner enterprises, even if this 25 % threshold is reached or exceeded by the
following investors, provided that those investors are not linked, within the
meaning of paragraph 3, either individually or jointly to the enterprise in
question:
(a) public investment corporations, venture capital companies, individuals or
groups of individuals with a regular venture capital investment activity
who invest equity capital in unquoted businesses (business angels),
provided the total investment of those business angels in the same enterprise
is less than EUR 1 250 000;
(b) universities or non-profit research centres;
(c) institutional investors, including regional development funds;
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(d) autonomous local authorities with an annual budget of less than EUR 10
million and less than 5 000 inhabitants.
3. ‘Linked
enterprises’
are
enterprises
which
have
any
of
the
following
rela
tionships with each other:
(a) an enterprise has a majority of the shareholders' or members' voting rights in
another enterprise;
(b) an enterprise has the right to appoint or remove a majority of the members of
the administrative, management or supervisory body of another enterprise;
(c) an enterprise has the right to exercise a dominant influence over another
enterprise pursuant to a contract entered into with that enterprise or to a
provision in its memorandum or articles of association;
(d) an enterprise, which is a shareholder in or member of another enterprise,
controls alone, pursuant to an agreement with other shareholders in or
members of that enterprise, a majority of shareholders' or members' voting
rights in that enterprise.
There is a presumption that no dominant influence exists if the investors listed in
the second subparagraph of paragraph 2 are not involving themselves directly or
indirectly in the management of the enterprise in question, without prejudice to
their rights as shareholders.
Enterprises having any of the relationships described in the first subparagraph
through one or more other enterprises, or any one of the investors mentioned in
paragraph 2, are also considered to be linked.
Enterprises which have one or other of such relationships through a natural
person or group of natural persons acting jointly are also considered linked
enterprises if they engage in their activity or in part of their activity in the
same relevant market or in adjacent markets.
An ‘adjacent market’ is considered to be the market for a product or service
situated directly upstream or downstream of the relevant market.
4. Except in the cases set out in paragraph 2, second subparagraph, an
enterprise cannot be considered an SME if 25 % or more of the capital or
voting rights are directly or indirectly controlled, jointly or individually, by
one or more public bodies.
5.
Enterprises may make a declaration of status as an autonomous enterprise,
partner enterprise or linked enterprise, including the data regarding the thresholds
set out in Article 2. The declaration may be made even if the capital is spread in
such a way that it is not possible to determine exactly by whom it is held, in
which case the enterprise may declare in good faith that it can legitimately
presume that it is not owned as to 25 % or more by one enterprise or jointly
by enterprises linked to one another. Such declarations are made without
prejudice to the checks and investigations provided for by national or Union
rules.
Article 4
Data used for the staff headcount and the financial amounts and reference
period
1.
The data to apply to the headcount of staff and the financial amounts are
those relating to the latest approved accounting period and calculated on an
annual basis. They are taken into account from the date of closure of the
accounts. The amount selected for the turnover is calculated excluding value
added tax (VAT) and other indirect taxes.
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2.
Where, at the date of closure of the accounts, an enterprise finds that, on an
annual basis, it has exceeded or fallen below the headcount or financial
thresholds stated in Article 2, this will not result in the loss or acquisition of
the status of medium-sized, small or micro-enterprise unless those thresholds are
exceeded over two consecutive accounting periods.
3. In the case of newly-established enterprises whose accounts have not yet
been approved, the data to apply is to be derived from a bona fide estimate made
in the course of the financial year.
Article 5
Staff headcount
The headcount corresponds to the number of annual work units (AWU), i.e. the
number of persons who worked full-time within the enterprise in question or on
its behalf during the entire reference year under consideration. The work of
persons who have not worked the full year, the work of those who have
worked part-time, regardless of duration, and the work of seasonal workers are
counted as fractions of AWU. The staff consists of:
(a) employees;
(b) persons working for the enterprise being subordinated to it and deemed to be
employees under national law;
(c) owner-managers;
(d) partners engaging in a regular activity in the enterprise and benefiting from
financial advantages from the enterprise.
Apprentices or students engaged in vocational training with an apprenticeship or
vocational training contract are not included as staff. The duration of maternity or
parental leaves is not counted.
Article 6
Establishing the data of an enterprise
1.
In the case of an autonomous enterprise, the data, including the number of
staff, are determined exclusively on the basis of the accounts of that enterprise.
2. The
data,
including
the
headcount,
of
an
enterprise
having
partner
enter
prises or linked enterprises are determined on the basis of the accounts and other
data of the enterprise or, where they exist, the consolidated accounts of the
enterprise, or the consolidated accounts in which the enterprise is included
through consolidation.
To the data referred to in the first subparagraph are added the data of any partner
enterprise of the enterprise in question situated immediately upstream or down
stream from it. Aggregation is proportional to the percentage interest in the
capital or voting rights (whichever is greater). In the case of cross-holdings,
the greater percentage applies.
To the data referred to in the first and second subparagraph are added 100 % of
the data of any enterprise, which is linked directly or indirectly to the enterprise
in question, where the data were not already included through consolidation in
the accounts.
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3.
For the application of paragraph 2, the data of the partner enterprises of the
enterprise in question are derived from their accounts and their other data,
consolidated if they exist. To these are added 100 % of the data of enterprises
which are linked to these partner enterprises, unless their accounts data are
already included through consolidation.
For the application of the same paragraph 2, the data of the enterprises which are
linked to the enterprise in question are to be derived from their accounts and their
other data, consolidated if they exist. To these are added, pro rata, the data of any
possible partner enterprise of that linked enterprise, situated immediately
upstream or downstream from it, unless it has already been included in the
consolidated accounts with a percentage at least proportional to the percentage
identified under the second subparagraph of paragraph 2.
4. Where
in
the
consolidated
accounts
no
staff
data
appear
for
a
given
enter
prise, staff figures are calculated by aggregating proportionally the data from its
partner enterprises and by adding the data from the enterprises to which the
enterprise in question is linked.
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ANNEX II
INFORMATION REGARDING STATE AID EXEMPT UNDER THE CONDITIONS OF THIS REGULATION
PART I
to be provided through the established Commission IT application as laid down in Article 11
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PART II
to be provided through the established Commission IT application as laid
down in Article 11
Please indicate under which provision of the GBER the aid measure is imple
mented.
Maximum aid intensity in
Primary objective —
% or Maximum annual aid SME — bonuses in
Objectives (list)
General Objectives (list)
amount in national currency
%
(in full amounts)
Regional aid —
□ Scheme …
% …
%
investment aid ( 1 )
(Art. 14)
□ Ad hoc aid …
% …
%
Regional aid —
□ Transport costs of goods in eligible areas (Art. … % …
%
operating aid
15(2)(a))
(Art. 15)
□ Additional costs in outermost regions (Art. … % …
%
15(2)(b))
□ Regional urban development aid (Art. 16) ….
national
currency …
%
SME aid (Art. 17-18 □ Investment aid to SMEs (Art. 17) …
% …
%
- 19-20)
□ Aid for consultancy in favour of SMEs (Art. … % …
%
18)
□ Aid to SMEs for participation in fairs (Art. … % …
%
19)
□ Aid for cooperation costs incurred by SMEs … % …
%
participating in European Territorial Cooper
ation projects (Art. 20)
SME aid — SMEs'
□ Risk finance aid (Art. 21) …
national
currency …
%
access to finance
(Art. 21-22)
□ Aid for start-ups (Art. 22) …
national
currency …
%
□ SME aid — Aid to alternative trading platforms specialised in SMEs … %; in case the aid
… %
(Art. 23)
measure takes the
form of start-up aid:
… national currency
□ SME aid — Aid for scouting costs (Art. 24) …
% …
%
Aid for research,
Aid for research □ Fundamental research … % …
%
development and
and development (Art. 25(2)(a))
innovation (Arts. 25- projects (Art. 25)
30)
□ Industrial research (Art. … % …
%
25(2)(b))
□ Experimental develop … % …
%
ment (Art. 25(2)(c))
□ Feasibility studies (Art. … % …
%
25(2)(d))
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Maximum aid intensity in
Primary objective —
% or Maximum annual aid SME — bonuses in
Objectives (list)
General Objectives (list)
amount in national currency
%
(in full amounts)
□ Investment aid for research infrastructures … % …
%
(Art. 26)
□ Aid for innovation clusters (Art. 27) …
% …
%
□ Innovation aid for SMEs (Art. 28) …
% …
%
□ Aid for process and organisational innovation … % …
%
(Article 29)
□ Aid for research and development in the … % …
%
fishery and aquaculture sector (Art. 30)
□ Training aid (Art. 31) …
% …
%
Aid for
□ Aid for the recruitment of disadvantaged … % …
%
disadvantaged
workers in the form of wage subsidies
workers and workers
(Article 32)
with disabilities
(Arts. 32-35)
□ Aid for the employment of workers with … % …
%
disabilities in the form of wage subsidies
(Art. 33)
□ Aid for compensating the additional costs of … % …
%
employing workers with disabilities (Art. 34)
□ Aid for compensating the costs of assistance … % …
%
provided to disadvantaged workers (Art. 35)
Aid for Environ
□ Investment aid enabling undertakings to go … % …
%
mental protection
beyond Union standards for environmental
(Arts. 36-49)
protection or increase the level of environ
mental protection in the absence of Union
standards (Art. 36)
□ Investment aid for early adaptation to future … % …
%
Union standards (Art. 37)
□ Investment aid for energy efficiency measures … % …
%
(Art. 38)
□ Investment aid for energy efficiency projects … national currency …
%
in buildings (Art. 39)
□ Investment aid for high-efficiency cogen … % …
%
eration (Art. 40)
□ Investment aid for the promotion of energy … % …
%
from renewable sources (Art. 41)
□ Operating aid for the promotion of electricity … % …
%
from renewable sources (Art. 42)
□ Operating aid for the promotion of energy … % …
%
from renewable sources in small scale instal
lation (Art. 43)
□ Aid in the form of reductions in environmen … % …
%
tal taxes under Directive 2003/96/EC (Art. 44)
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Maximum aid intensity in
Primary objective —
% or Maximum annual aid SME — bonuses in
Objectives (list)
General Objectives (list)
amount in national currency
%
(in full amounts)
□ Investment aid for remediation of … % …
%
contaminated sites (Art. 45)
□ Investment aid for energy efficient district … % …
%
heating and cooling (Art. 46)
□ Investment aid for waste recycling and re-util … % …
%
isation (Art. 47)
□ Investment aid for energy infrastructure (Art. … % …
%
48)
□ Aid for environmental studies (Art. 49) …
% …
%
□ Aid schemes to Maximum aid intensity …
% …
%
make good the
damage caused
Type of natural disaster
□ earthquake
by certain
□ avalanche
natural disasters
□ landslide
(Art. 50)
□ flood
□ tornado
□ hurricane
□ volcanic eruption
□ wild fire
Date of occurrence of the natural disaster dd/mm/yyyy
to dd/mm/yyyy
□ Social aid for transport for residents of remote regions (Art. 51) …
% …
%
□ Aid for broadband infrastructures (Art. 52) …
national
currency …
%
□ Aid for culture and heritage conservation (Art. 53) …
% …
%
□ Aid schemes for audiovisual works (Art. 54)
… % …
%
□ Aid for sport and multifunctional recreational infrastructures (Art. 55) … % …
%
□ Investment aid for local infrastructures (Art. 56) …
% …
%
□ Aid for regional airports (Art. 56a) …
% …
%
□ Aid for maritime ports (Art. 56b) …
% …
%
□ Aid for inland ports (Art. 56c) …
% …
%
( 1 ) In the case of
ad hoc regional aid supplementing aid awarded under aid scheme(s), please indicate both the aid intensity granted
under the scheme and the intensity of the
ad hoc aid.
02014R0651 — EN — 10.07.2017 — 001.004 — 100
▼B
ANNEX III
Provisions for the publication of information as laid down in Article 9(1)
Member States shall organise their comprehensive State aid websites, on which
the information laid down in Article 9(1) is to be published, in such a way as to
allow easy access to the information. Information shall be published in a
spreadsheet data format, which allows data to be searched, extracted and easily
published on the internet, for instance in CSV or XML format. Access to the
website shall be allowed to any interested party without restrictions. No prior
user registration shall be required to access the website.
The following information on individual awards as laid down in Article 9(1)(c)
shall be published:
— Name of the beneficiary
— Beneficiary's identifier
— Type of enterprise (SME/large) at the time of granting
— Region in which the beneficiary is located, at NUTS level II ( 1 )
— Sector of activity at NACE group level ( 2 )
— Aid element, expressed as full amount in national currency ( 3 )
— Aid instrument ( 4 ) (Grant/Interest rate subsidy, Loan/Repayable advances/Re
imbursable grant, Guarantee, Tax advantage or tax exemption, Risk finance,
Other (please specify))
— Date of granting
— Objective of the aid
— Granting authority
— For schemes under Articles 16 and 21, name of the entrusted entity, and the
names of the selected financial intermediaries
— Reference of the aid measure. ( 5 )
( 1 ) NUTS — Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics. Typically, the region is
specified at level 2.
( 2 )
►M1 Regulation (EC) No 1893/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council of
20 December 2006 establishing the statistical classification of economic activities NACE
Revision 2 and amending Council Regulation (EEC) No 3037/90 as well as certain EC
Regulations on specific statistical domains (OJ L 393, 30.12.2006, p. 1). ◄
( 3 )
►M1 Gross grant equivalent, or for measures under Articles 16, 21, 22 or 39 of this
Regulation, the amount of the investment. ◄ For operating aid, the annual amount of aid
per beneficiary can be provided. For fiscal schemes and for schemes under Articles 16
(Regional urban development aid) and 21 (Risk finance aid), this amount can be
provided by the ranges set out in Article 9(2) of this Regulation.
( 4 ) If the aid is granted through multiple aid instruments, the aid amount shall be provided
by instrument.
( 5 ) As provided by the Commission under the electronic procedure referred to in Article 11
of this Regulation.