Latest news with #stateaid
Bloomberg
04-08-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Germany Gets EU Nod for Over Half of Its Planned Gas Plants
Germany has received the go-ahead from the European Union for more than half of its planned gas-plant expansion, and remains in 'advanced talks' regarding the rest, economy minister Katherina Reiche said. Berlin was able to negotiate state aid approval for 'significantly more' than half of the 20 gigawatts of planned capacity, Reiche said during a trip to the eastern city of Spremberg on Monday. She added that the first tender is due to come around the end of this year.
Irish Times
05-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Public funds for commercial broadcasters in limbo over EU state aid concerns
Some €6 million set aside in last year's budget for commercial broadcasters to fund news and current affairs broadcasting is yet to be disbursed due to issues with European Union rules governing state aid to private businesses. Coimisiún na Meán was to distribute the funds, which were to be split between Virgin Media Television , Ireland's only commercial television broadcaster, and the commercial radio stations operating in the State, this year. However, officials at the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport told Minister Patrick O'Donovan in March that there were 'some state aid issues arising' that the department is 'seeking to resolve'. The remarks are contained in the minutes of a meeting between the Fine Gael TD and representatives from Virgin Media Television on March 6th. The document was released to The Irish Times as part of a freedom of information request. READ MORE In a briefing note prepared for the minister in advance of the meeting, officials separately raised concerns about the application of state aid rules to disbursements from the Government's planned media fund. [ Virgin Media received 'nothing' after requesting €30m from State Opens in new window ] The fund, which will replace the existing Broadcasting Fund, is a component of the Broadcasting Amendment Bill, which is currently at the committee stage in the Dáil. Through various Coimisiún na Meán initiatives, the new scheme will provide funding to all media outlets regardless of platform, to support the production, distribution and archiving of public service media output. Officials told the minister that once the new fund is created, Coimisiún na Meán will still be required to get 'clearance or exemption' from EU state aid rules to distribute the money. This is 'challenging', the minister was told. In response to questions this week, a spokeswoman for the department said all Coimisiún na Meán schemes are designed to comply with the state aid exemption framework. Under the EU rules, funds can only be used to 'incentivise new activity' while the 'subsidisation of existing costs or activities' is prohibited, the spokeswoman said. This condition will also be attached to disbursements from the converted media fund to be established by the Broadcasting Bill and was criticised as being too restrictive by Virgin Media Television managing director Áine Ní Chaoindealbháin in an Oireachtas committee last month. Concerning the €6 million due to be distributed to commercial broadcasters this year, the spokeswoman for the department said the matter 'remains under consideration', and 'it is the intention that funds will be disbursed by Coimisiún na Meán before year end'. In a letter to Mr O'Donovan in late March, Tony Hanway, chief executive of Virgin Media Ireland, reiterated the company's request for €30 million to fund its public service broadcasting. The commercial broadcaster has argued it is entitled to the funds to ensure it can compete with RTÉ, given that the State broadcaster receives €200 million in annual Government funding, along with 'annual multimillion-euro taxpayer-funded top-ups', as Ms Ní Chaoindealbháin told the Oireachtas committee in June. The former Sky News and UTV Ireland executive said at the time that Virgin Media Television had received 'nothing' from the Government despite its requests against a backdrop of rising costs. Ms Ní Chaoindealbháin said that the broadcaster had been forced to make 'some difficult decisions' last year, including cutting the Tonight Show from four to two nights a week, due to 'the commercial situation that we were in'.
Reuters
25-06-2025
- Business
- Reuters
EU eases state aid rules to boost green projects, cut carbon footprint
BRUSSELS, June 25 (Reuters) - Businesses will find it easier to get state aid for projects aimed at cutting their carbon emissions and to switch to green projects while heavy industries will benefit from temporary power price relief under looser rules announced by the European Commission on Wednesday. The new state aid rules, valid until December 2030, are part of the Commission's goal to revitalise Europe's industries with its Clean Industrial Deal to help them better compete with U.S. and Chinese rivals and also encourage them to stay put in Europe. The new rules will make it easier for pension funds, insurers and other private investors to co-invest in green projects. However, industry association Eurometaux said more needs to be done to help European businesses and the new legislation did little to simplify the current regulatory landscape. Under the new rules, state support can be direct grants, tax advantages including tax credits and accelerated depreciation, subsidised interest rates on new loans or guarantees on new loans. The amount of state aid can be up to 200 million euros ($232 million) or based on the funding gap or as a result of a competitive bidding process. Beneficiaries are projects to roll out renewable energy and low carbon fuels, investment aid schemes, direct price support schemes and capacity mechanisms. Heavy industries such as chemicals or cement makers applying for temporary electricity price relief will have to invest in decarbonisation. "The new framework simplifies and speeds up support for decarbonisation, but it goes further: it recognises the state as a strategic investor in our future," Commission Vice-President Teresa Ribera said in a statement. "It's a tool to drive climate ambition, strengthen Europe's resilience, and ensure our industry remains globally competitive," she said. Eurometaux Director General James Watson said, "the Clean Industrial Deal State Aid Framework fails to live up to the Commission's political promises of 'prosperity and competitiveness'." "While we welcome the investment support for critical raw material production, it is crucial to ensure that all enabling conditions are in place to support a strong and sustainable metals sector in Europe," he added. ($1 = 0.8624 euros)
Reuters
24-06-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Heavy industries to get power price relief under new EU state aid rules, draft document shows
BRUSSELS, June 24 (Reuters) - Energy intensive industries will receive temporary electricity price relief under new EU state aid rules due to be announced on Wednesday, a European Commission draft showed. "Until the decarbonisation of the Union's electricity system fully translates into lower electricity prices, industries within the Union will continue to face higher costs compared to competitors in jurisdictions with less ambitious climate policies," the draft seen by Reuters said. Companies can benefit from electricity price relief for up to 3 years but not beyond Dec. 31, 2030. The relief will not cover more than half of the yearly average wholesale price and not more than 50% of the company's annual electricity consumption, the document showed.
Yahoo
23-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Germany's top-up benefit system encourages low wages, says lawmaker
Germany's benefits system is encouraging low wages, a hard-left lawmaker has said, as official figures revealed that more than 800,000 German workers are reliant on top-up payments from the state. A government response to a parliamentary question by Cem Ince, from The Left party, seen by dpa, showed that 826,000 workers receive top-up payments because their income is insufficient. The payments cost the German state around €7 billion ($8 billion) per year. Ince said "it cannot be that hundreds of thousands have to rely on state aid despite working." "In this way, we are supporting low wages and maintaining the exploitation of labourers, instead of investing in care and nursery places, which would offer many people a way out of the trap of part-time employment," he added. After the introduction of the legal minimum wage in 2015 - at €8.50 per hour - the number of workers relying on top-up benefits sank from 1.2 million to 796,000 in 2023. However, the number has risen again for the first time since 2015. The new German government under Chancellor Friedrich Merz has agreed to target a €15 minimum wage by 2026.
