Tomáš Malatinec, Zuzana Palkechová, Zuzana Šutová

European State Aid Law Quarterly, Volume 22 (2023), Issue 3, Page 276 - 289

State aid, which encompasses regional investment aid, is a complex and multifaceted field, and it attracts experts from a number of disciplines, who seek to explore its intricate dynamics, regulatory frameworks, and impacts on market competition, innovation, and regional development. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of approved regional investment aid in Slovakia. The study draws on a unique dataset covering the period January 2018 to August 2023, sourced from the Ministry of Economy of the SR. During the monitored period, decisions or amendments to decision on regional investment aid in the amount of 213.317.603 € was issued in Slovakia. In the analysed sample, investment projects up to 50 mil. € predominate. The results indicate that during the observed period, the highest amount of regional investment aid was approved in Košice and Prešov regions (East Slovakia) which exhibit significant economic disparities compared to more prosperous areas within the country. From the comparison of various forms of regional investment aid, it is evident that in all eligible regions the highest amount was approved in the category of tax relief. The duration of the administrative procedure for approving regional investment applications decreased during the observed period. This paper also considers the pivotal role of evaluations of regional investment aid. Periodic evaluations serve as a barometer of policy performance and effectiveness. Keywords: investment incentives; regional investment aid; competition; regional disparities

Jorge Risueño

European State Aid Law Quarterly, Volume 22 (2023), Issue 3, Page 337 - 342

This case note concerns Região Autónoma da Madeira’s (RAM) action for annulment of the Commission decision relating the aid scheme SA.21259 (2018/C) implemented by Portugal in favour of the free trade zone of Madeira.1 The General Court’s judgment presents a unique opportunity to analyse some key State aid concepts, including procedural aspects, such as the admissibility of infra-State bodies; concepts relating to the notion of State aid, such as the selectivity criterion; and concepts relating to the phase of recovery of unlawful aid, including the principles of legitimate expectations, legal certainty and proportionality and the limitation period. This note also addresses the Court’s assessment of whether aid is new or existing.

Marianne Clayton, Maria Segura, Gaétan Roelants du Vivier

European State Aid Law Quarterly, Volume 21 (2022), Issue 2, Page 207 - 209

European State Aid Law Quarterly, Volume 21 (2022), Issue 1,

Daiga Lagzdiņa

European State Aid Law Quarterly, Volume 21 (2022), Issue 1, Page 99 - 105

Marianne Clayton, Maria Segura

European State Aid Law Quarterly, Volume 21 (2022), Issue 1, Page 107 - 109

Andreas Bartosch

European State Aid Law Quarterly, Volume 21 (2022), Issue 1, Page 1 - 2

Jacob Kornbeck

European State Aid Law Quarterly, Volume 20 (2021), Issue 1, Page 120 - 138

Five judgments handed down by the General Court (GC), in 2019-20, and by the Court of Justice, in 2021, have clarified aspects of three Commission State aid decisions regarding Spanish professional football clubs, through preferential tax rates applicable to non-profit organisations (Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Athletic Bilbao, Atletico Osasuna) and land transactions between municipal and regional authorities and private entities (Real Madrid) and financial guarantees offered by public authorities to private entities (Hércules CF, Valencia CF, Elche CF). Not only questions of substance were clarified but also procedural ones. Two GC rulings were appealed to the Court. The specificity of sport (Article 165 TFEU) does not appear to have been instrumental in shaping any of the judgments annotated.

Steven Verschuur, Cecilia Sbrolli

European State Aid Law Quarterly, Volume 20 (2021), Issue 1, Page 41 - 50

The European Green Deal is the prelude and the foundation of a daunting, but necessary, environmental-centric industrial revolution. EU legislation has obviously dealt with environmental policies in the past, but the European Green Deal is a far-reaching project that will require unprecedented investments. The transition envisioned in the European Green Deal will also require amendments to a wide variety of existing EU legislation and policies, including in the field of State aid. The guidelines on regional State aid (2014 Regional Guidelines), in force until the end of 2021, constitute the legal framework in force to assess Regional State aid. The European Commission has already published draft Guidelines to replace the 2014 Guidelines (Draft Regional Guidelines) to bring the text in line with the European Green Deal. This paper is the second of a series that will discuss the interplay between existing State aid rules and policy on the one hand and the European Green Deal on the other. The first article provided an introduction to the European Green Deal and its interaction with the guidelines for State aid for environmental protection and energy (EEAG). This second article will focus on the Just Transition Mechanism (JTM) and its interplay with the Draft Regional Guidelines. Keywords: European Green Deal; regional State aid; Just Transition; outermost territories; financing the transition

Juan Jorge Piernas López

European State Aid Law Quarterly, Volume 20 (2021), Issue 2, Page 313 - 314