- Volume 17 (2018), Issue 1
- Vol. 17 (2018), No. 1
- >
- Pages 43 - 53
- pp. 43 - 53
Comparing the Incomparable
A Critical View of the Applicability of the Market Economy Investor Principle to Large Infrastructure Projects
The Market Economy Investor Principle (MEIP) is used to determine whether State intervention is an economically rational investment, carried out under normal market conditions, or whether it constitutes State aid within the meaning of Article 107(1) TFEU. It consists of testing whether a hypothetical, rational private investor would have used its resources in the same manner as the State did. The author is of the opinion that this principle is deficient in assessing large infrastructural projects, and therefore would like to propose its revision. The argument runs that these projects have unique features, making any investment comparison, not only theoretical but also unrealistic and fictitious.
Keywords: MEIP; Comparability; Large Infrastructure Projects; Investment Aid.