State aid (existing aid)

Institution Definition

To secure the abolition or adaptation of old pre-accession aid that is incompatible with the internal market or to review aid schemes which were authorized in the past but which may no longer be compatible with the internal market under the conditions currently prevailing, the Commission must inform the Member State concerned, who can submit comments within one month. The Commission then examines these comments and - if necessary - proposes appropriate measures to bring the existing aid in line with EU State aid rules. If the Member State does not accept these measures, the Commission must then initiate the formal investigation procedure. © European Commission

Articles

Stéphane Rodrigues Droit matériel des aides d’État. Textes et commentaires, Olivier PEIFFERT and Sébastien THOMAS

February 2020

This section selects books on themes related to competition laws and economics. This compilation does not attempt to be exhaustive but rather a survey of themes important in the area. The survey usually covers publication over the last three months after publication of the latest issue of (...)

Cheik Galokho Qualification as State aid and compensation for business costs

February 2019

A measure can be classified as State aid only if it gives an advantage to an undertaking. The advantage will disappear when the measure is just a way to compensate some costs to which the undertaking has to face. But the distinction between costs that can be compensated without leading to the (...)

Ingrid Vandenborre, Margrethe Vestager Margrethe Vestager (European Commission): Reflections on the landmark cases

November 2018

The mandate of EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager is slowly reaching an end. Undoubtedly it has been remarkable by the number of large scale merger, antitrust and state aid cases that made the headlines across both sides of the Atlantic. In this interview, Commissioner Vestager (...)

Stéphane Rodrigues Les aides d’Etat de nature fiscale en droit de l’Union européenne, Ionna PAPADAMAKI

September 2018

Stéphane Rodrigues European State Aid Law – European Merger Control, Louis VOGEL

February 2018

Antonin Pitras The Art of Regulation. Competition in Europe – Wealth and Wariness, Christian KOENIG, Bernhard VON WENDLAND and Nora Bettina BRAUN

November 2017

Stéphane Rodrigues Droit européen des aides d’État, Michaël KARPENSCHIF

November 2017

Stéphane Rodrigues The Role of Competitors in the Enforcement of State Aid Law, Fernando PASTOR-MERCHANTE

September 2017

Athos Pappas State aid and the principle of economic continuity: The consistency of the notion and the effective protection of the competitors and the buyers

September 2017

This article examines the notion of economic continuity which, in the field of state aid, allows the Commission to determine that the obligation of recovery should be extended to the transferee of the initial beneficiary of the aid. To that end, the analysis of the question of procedure allows (...)

Joaquín Almunia State of the Union: The antitrust in Europe in 2013-2014 (New Frontiers of Antitrust, Paris, 21 February 2014)

May 2014

In his keynote speech delivered at the "New Frontiers of Antitrust 2014" conference in Paris, the 21th February 2014, Joaquín Almunia, Commissioner responsible for Competition Policy, reminds the importance of the Competition policy in the context of the « after » economic crisis. He describes in (...)

Caroline Medina The financing for public services in France 10 years after the Altmark case

February 2014

For the last ten years, quite often successfully, France has used the Altmark decision, which allows Member States to finance SGEIs without a prior notification to the European Commission, under certain conditions, in order to implement financing schemes for SGEIs compatible with European Stade (...)

Lena Sandberg-Morch Investments in renewable energy under the State Aid Guidelines on environmental protection

September 2013

This article describes the methodology and treatment of investments in renewable energy under the State Aid Guidelines on environmental protection. The Guidelines are currently under an on-going review and a revised version is scheduled for 2014. The current “extra cost” method, which serves to (...)

Andrea Lofaro, Bernard Amory, Jan Peter van der Veer, Laurent de Muyter Opening competition in protected sectors: Should new entrants be protected? (New Frontiers of Antitrust, Paris, 22 February 2013)

May 2013

This first roundtable of the conference “New frontiers of Antitrust”, Paris, 22th of February 2013, was dedicated to « Opening competition in protected sectors: Should new entrants be protected?». Bernard Amory and Laurent de Muyter, authors of the first contribution, provide some thoughts on the (...)

Martine Lombard Industrial policy and competition law

September 2012

Until recently the industrial policy’s effectiveness has been counteracted/prevented by the disregard of the European competition rules and the sedimentation of the aids procedures.  A regulation system is claimed for a long time but an organization with a coordination role such as the French (...)

Laurence Idot Competition law and environmental protection

September 2012

Unlike the position adopted by some specialists in environmental law, the author asserts that the Lisbon Treaty does not change the interplay between competition law and environmental law. Based on the latest developments, the article aims at showing that the control of enterprises by the (...)

Olivier d’Ormesson State Aids and warranties agreements : The Commission’s position

May 2012

In the event of the sale of a company, it is common practice for the seller and the buyer to execute a “Representations and Warranties Agreement”. If the company received State aid before the sale and if the Commission imposes at a later stage the reimbursement of this aid, which is later deemed (...)

Bernard van de Walle de Ghelcke Economic crisis, competition and competitiveness

May 2012

The profound financial and economic crisis that the European Union is currently going through, that neither internal market, competition regime, common policies, or Economic and Monetary Union rules could prevent, requires reflection on the EU pertinence of policies and means of action. The (...)

François Hollande, Nicolas Sarkozy French Presidential Election 2012: What competition policy for France and the EU?

May 2012

Questions for this double interview written by Concurrences editorial board and the "Bureau de l’Association Française d’Etude de la Concurrence" (AFEC). François HOLLANDE Socialist Candidate to the 2012 presidential elections Nicolas SARKOZY UMP Candidate to the 2012 presidential elections Are (...)

Joaquín Almunia Antitrust enforcement in the EU in 2011 (New Frontiers of Antitrust Conference - Paris, 11 Feb. 2011)

May 2011

Dans cet article, Joaquim Almunia, vice-président de la Commission européenne et responsable de la politique de concurrence, fait un bilan de sa première année en tant que commissaire de la concurrence et donne son point de vue sur les objectifs à tenir en 2011. Pour lui, il faut plus de concurrence (...)

Alain Ronzano, Christelle Adjémian, Umberto Berkani Competition journals: Jan. - March 2011

May 2011

1. General - Scope of application Portrait of the Authority as a young girl: the Competition Authority resulting from the LME Act, between success and a new start, T. DAHAN and C. LEMAIRE (RJEP, n° 683, Feb. 2011, p. 3) Who’s afraid of the control room? C. NOURISSAT (RLDA, Feb. 2011, 57, (...)

Laurence Idot The role of competition authorities in European energy policy

May 2011

This text is the written version of a presentation limited to the competition policy made at the Paris colloquium of November 2010 on the "Energy Policy of the European Union". The purpose of the article is to study the action of the Commission and NCA, including the opening to competition in (...)

Joaquín Almunia Belgian Competition Day - Competition Policy: State of Play and Future Outlook (Brussels, October 21th 2010)

February 2011

In this contribution, Vice-President Almunia addresses the issue of private enforcement and gives a brief survey of the first nine months in office. With regard to private enforcement, he announces a new round of public consultation in respect of collective redress. He confirms that his goal is (...)

Joaquín Almunia EU Competition policy in 2010 and ahead (Conference New Frontiers of Antitrust - Paris, 15 February 2010)

May 2010

EU competition policy in 2010 and beyond Joaquín Almunia Vice-President of the European Commission in charge of Competition Policy I am very pleased to be with you today in Paris for this first annual conference of the ReviewConcurrences, which coincides with my first days as European (...)

Alberto Heimler, Carl Baudenbacher, Frank Bremer Lisbon Conference - Panel III - Competition Policy in times of crisis: which enforcement practices best fit the principles? (15 January 2010)

May 2010

Cet article présente certaines différences entre les USA et l’Union européenne en matière de politique de la concurrence dans le contexte de la crise économique. L’économie américaine, plus libérale que l’économie européenne, semble bénéficier d’une plus grande facilité à saisir les opportunités du marché. (...)

Lowri Evans, Nicolas Charbit Lowri Evans (New State aid Deputy Director General): "Delivering the State Aid Reform"

December 2006

Interview conducted by Nicolas Charbit, Editor in chief, Concurrences, Paris, New York. Could you let us know about your personal background? Taking into account your antitrust background, would you consider that the same analysis should be conducted in the State aid field? What about the (...)

Events

Edouard Sarrazin, Laurence Idot, Simon Genevaz Restructuring undertakings in difficulty and competition — Merger & State Aid

8 November 2016

Lunchtalk organized by Concurrences Review in partnership with DLA Piper.

David Desforges, Elisabeth Flüry-Hérard, Emmanuel Bénéfice, Jean-Yves Ollier, Jérôme Philippe, Vincent Rious Energy security, competition and environment: is there any consistency?

15 September 2016

Law & Economics Workshop organized by Concurrences Review in partnership with Microeconomix, Observatoire Énergies d’Entreprises and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.

Bertrand Jéhanno, Olivier Sautel, Penelope Papandropoulos, Stéphane Hautbourg State aid and economic analysis Towards an effect based approach?

11 May 2016

Law & Economics Workshop organized by Concurrences Review in partnership with Gide Loyrette Nouel and Microeconomix.

Daniel Gutmann, Frédéric Teper, Olivier Fréget Competitive Neutrality: when taxation meets competition law

22 March 2016

Law & Economics Workshop organized by Concurrences Review in partnership with Fréget — Tasso de Panafieu and Arsene Taxand.

Frank P. Maier-Rigaud, Geoffrey Mamdani, Jacques Derenne, Nicola Pesaresi The new restructuring state aid guidelines- an economic and legal assessment

4 November 2014

Law & Economics Workshop organized by Concurrences in partnership with Hogan Lovells and NERA

Frank P. Maier-Rigaud, Jacques Derenne, Nicola Pesaresi The new Restructuring State Aid Guidelines

13 October 2014

Nicola Pesaresi
Geoffrey Mamdani
Jacques Derenne
Frank Maier-Rigaud

Christof Schoser, David Spector, Jacques Derenne, Laurent Eymard State Aid Modernisation: What to expect from environmental and energy aid guidelines?

3 December 2013

Law & Economics workshop organized by Concurrences in partnership with Hogan Lovells and MAPP.

Christof Schoser, David Spector, Jacques Derenne, Laurent Eymard State Aid Modernisation: What to expect from environmental and energy aid guidelines?

15 November 2013

Christof Schoser
Jacques Derenne
David Spector

Kai Struckmann, Lena Sandberg-Morch, Vincent Verouden State Aid, Energy and the Environment

12 December 2012

Law & Economics Workshop organized by Concurrences in partnership with White & Case and CompetitionRx.

Kai Struckmann, Lena Sandberg-Morch, Vincent Verouden State Aid, Energy and the Environment

11 November 2012

Kai Struckmann
Tom Hoehn

A B C D E F G H I J L M N O P R S T U V

A

Absolute territorial protection • Abuse of dominant position • Abuse of economic dependence • Access to essential facility • Access to information • Access to the file • Agency agreement • Agent • Agreement (notion) • Amicus curiae • Ancillary restraints • Annulment • Anticompetitive objet or effect • Anticompetitive practices • Applicable law • Arbitration

B

Barriers to entry • Bid rigging • Black cause • Block exemption (Regulation) • Boycott • Brand competition • Burden of proof • Business secrets • Buyer power

C

Cartel • Clearance phase I (merger) • Clearance phase II (merger) • Collecting society • Collective dominance • Collective redress (class action) • Comity • Competence • Competition policy • Competition policy • Complaint • Compliance programme • Compulsory license • Concerted practices • Concession • Concurrent jurisdiction • Consumers protection • Consumers’ associations • Control (change) • Control (notion) • Cooperation Agreement • Cooperation between competition authorities • Coordinated effects • Copyright • Corporate group • Corruption • Cost-based access • Criminal sanctions • Cross subsidisation

D

Damages • Dawn raids • De minimis notice • Direct effect • Discriminatory practices • Distribution agreement • Dominance (notion)

E

ECHR • Economic analysis • Economic efficiency • Economies of scale • Effect on trade between Member States • Effective judicial protection • Environmental protection • Essential facility • European Competition Network (ECN) • Excess prices • Exchanges of information • Exclusive distribution • Exclusive purchasing • Exclusive right (Art. 106 TFEU) • Exclusivity clause • Exhaustion • Extra-territoriality

F

Failing firm defence • Fidelity rebates • Fine • Fine mitigating • Foreign direct investment (FDI) • Franchising • FRAND

G

Geographic market • Group purchasing organization • Gun jumping

H

Hard core restrictions • Horizontal agreement

I

Individual exemption • Intellectual property right • Interim measures • International competition network (ICN) • Investigations / inquiries

J

Joint control • Joint venture • Judicial review

L

Legal privilege • Leniency • Licensing • Limitation period • Low prices

M

Mandatary (distribution) • Margin squeeze • Market economy investor • Market power • Market share • Media pluralism • Merger (notion) • Merger (prohibition) • Merger (withdrawal) • Minority shareholdings • Misinformation • Misinformation

N

Ne bis in idem • Network effect • Non-competition clause • Notification • Nullity

O

Oligopoly

R

Referral (merger) • Refusal to deal • Regulated prices • Relevant market • Remedies (antitrust) • Request for information • Resale price maintenance (RPM) • Resale-below-cost • Right against self-incrimination • Rights of defence • Rule of reason

S

Sector inquiry • Selective distribution • Services of general economic interest • Single branding • Sole control • Spill-over effects • Standard-Essential Patent (SEP) • State action defense • State aid (compatibility) • State aid (existing aid) • State aid (notification) • State aid (notion) • State aid (recovery) • State aid (tax ruling) • State aid (unlawful aid) • State measure • Sudden break of established business relationships

T

Test SIEC (merger) • Test SLC (merger) • Transfer of technology • Transfer pricing • Trustee (mergers) • Turnover threshold (merger) • Two-sided market • Tying or tied selling

U

Undertaking (notion) • Unfair competition • Universal service • Upstream market

V

Vertical agreement • Vertical restraints (or restrictions)