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Member State Interests in EU State Aid Law and Policy

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Abstract

This chapter investigates the role of the national interest in the context of EU State aid law and policy. Its aim is to identify, analyse and evaluate the interaction between national industrial policy preferences and the policies that EU State aid law allows Member States to pursue through State intervention. In doing so, it seeks to address the following key questions: to what extent are national preferences subsumed in the notion of “common interest”? What scope does State aid law allow for the pursuit of industrial policy at EU and at national level? Does State aid policy promote a certain kind of industrial policy?

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Notes

  1. 1.

    For a thorough dismissal of the first claim, see Biondi and Tarrant (2017).

  2. 2.

    Judgment of 22 December 2008, British Aggregates v Commission, C-487/06 P, EU:C:2008:757, paragraph 111.

  3. 3.

    Judgment of 24 July 2003, Altmark Trans and Regierungspräsidium Magdeburg, C-280/00, EU:C:2003:415.

  4. 4.

    SA.33984 (12/N) Green Investment Bank, [2012] OJ C370/02.

  5. 5.

    Inter alia, Judgment of 17 March 1993, Sloman Neptun v Bodo Ziesemer, C-72/91 and C-73/91, EU:C:1993:97; Judgment of 30 November 1993, Kirsammer-Hack, C-189/91, EU:C:1993:907; Judgment of 7 May 1998, Viscido et al., C-52/97, C-53/97 and C-54/97, EU:C:1998:209.

  6. 6.

    Judgment of 13 March 2001, PreussenElektra, C-379/98, EU:C:2001:160.

  7. 7.

    Judgment of 19 December 2013, Association Vent De Colère! and Others, C-262/12, EU:C:2013:851.

  8. 8.

    Judgment of 10 May 2016, Germany v Commission, T-47/15, EU:T:2016:281.

  9. 9.

    For a comprehensive treatment of this principle and the various tests that emanate from it, see Cyndecka (2016).

  10. 10.

    Judgment of 11 September 2012, Corsica Ferries, T-565/08, EU:T:2012:415, paragraphs 79–84.

  11. 11.

    Judgment of 6 September 2006, Portugal v Commission, C-88/03, EU:C:2006:511.

  12. 12.

    Judgment of 8 November 2001, Adria-Wien Pipeline, C-143/99, EU:C:2001:598.

  13. 13.

    Proposal for appropriate measures under Article 93(1) of the EC Treaty concerning Irish corporation tax, [1998] OJ C395/09.

  14. 14.

    Commission Decision (EU) 2016/2326 of 21 October 2015 on State aid SA.38375 (2014/C ex 2014/NN) which Luxembourg granted to Fiat, [2016] OJ L 351/1.

  15. 15.

    Commission Decision (EU) 2017/502 of 21 October 2015 on State aid SA.38374 (2014/C ex 2014/NN) implemented by the Netherlands to Starbucks, [2017] OJ L 83/38.

  16. 16.

    Commission Decision (EU) 2017/1283 on State aid SA.38373 (2014/C) (ex 2014/NN) (ex 2014/CP) implemented by Ireland to Apple, [2017] OJ L 187/1.

  17. 17.

    Commission Decision of 4.10.2017 on State aid SA.38944 (2014/C) (ex 2014/NN) implemented by Luxembourg to Amazon, C(2017) 6740 final.

  18. 18.

    Judgment of 17 September 1980, Philip Morris, 730/79, EU:C:1980:209, paragraph 14.

  19. 19.

    Judgment of 24 February 1987, Deufil v Commission, 310/85, EU:C:1987:96, paragraph 18; Judgment of 29 April 2004, Italy v Commission, C-372/97, EU:C:2004:234, paragraph 83.

  20. 20.

    Judgment of 7 June 2001, Agrana Zucker v Commission, T-187/99, EU:T:2001:149, paragraph 56.

  21. 21.

    Judgment of 30 September 2016, Tadej Kotnik and Others v Slovenia, C-526/14, EU:C:2016:570, paragraph 40.

  22. 22.

    Ibid. paragraph 41.

  23. 23.

    Commission Regulation (EU) 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, [2014] OJ L187/1.

  24. 24.

    Commission Regulation (EC) No 800/2008 of 6 August 2008 declaring certain categories of aid compatible with the common market in application of Articles 87 and 88 of the Treaty, [2008] OJ L 214/3.

  25. 25.

    Commission Decision (EU) 2015/658 of 8 October 2014 on the aid measure SA.34947 (2013/C) (ex 2013/N) which the United Kingdom is planning to implement for support to the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station, [2014] OJ L109/44. The decision has been (unsuccessfully) impugned by Austria in Case T-356/15 Austria v Commission EU:T:2018:439.

  26. 26.

    See the argument made in Sanchez-Graells’ Chapter in this volume regarding EU procurement law.

  27. 27.

    The decision has been challenged by Austria.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Newcastle University, Law School, Newcastle, UK

    Francesco de Cecco

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  1. Francesco de Cecco
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Correspondence to Francesco de Cecco .

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  1. Center for Social Sciences, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest, Hungary

    Marton Varju

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de Cecco, F. (2019). Member State Interests in EU State Aid Law and Policy. In: Varju, M. (eds) Between Compliance and Particularism. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05782-4_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05782-4_6

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