Judgment;Information — ECLI:EU:C:2024:635
Date: 2024-07-29
Language of the case: English
Court formation: Fourth Chamber
Subject matter: State aids;Competition
Procedure: Action for annulment;Appeal - unfounded
Origin: Austria;Ireland

Judgment of the Court (Fourth Chamber) of 29 July 2024 – Ryanair and Laudamotion v Commission (Case C‑591/21 P) (1) ( Appeal – State aid – Article 107(2)(b) TFEU – Austrian air transport market – Aid granted by the Republic of Austria to an airline amid the COVID-19 pandemic – Subordinated loan to Austrian Airlines AG – Decision by the European Commission not to raise objections – Aid to make good the damage suffered by a single undertaking – Principles of proportionality and of non-discrimination – Freedom of establishment and freedom to provide services ) 1. Aid granted by a Member State – Prohibition – Derogations – Aid compatible with the internal market – Aid to make good the damage caused by natural disasters or exceptional occurrences – Subordinated loan convertible into a grant in favour of an airline in order to compensate that airline in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic – Included – Measure that does not benefit all the airlines which suffered damage – Irrelevant (Art. 107(2)(b) TFEU) (see paragraphs 42-54) 2. Aid granted by a Member State – Prohibition – Derogations – Aid compatible with the internal market – Aid to make good the damage caused by natural disasters or exceptional occurrences – Subordinated loan convertible into a grant in favour of an airline in order to compensate that airline in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic – Aid compatible with the internal market pursuant to Article 107(2)(b) TFEU – Assessment of the aid having regard to the freedom to provide services and freedom of establishment – Conditions (Arts 49, 56 and 107(2)(b) TFEU) (see paragraphs 98-103) 3. Aid granted by a Member State – Prohibition – Derogations – Aid compatible with the internal market – Aid to make good the damage caused by natural disasters or exceptional occurrences – Subordinated loan convertible into a grant in favour of an airline in order to compensate that airline in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic – Aid compatible with the internal market pursuant to Article 107(2)(b) TFEU – Assessment of compatibility with the principle of non-discrimination – Criteria – Objective of the aid – Need for the aid – Proportionality of the aid (Art. 107(2)(b) TFEU) (see paragraphs 70-76) 4. EU law – Principles – Equal treatment – Discrimination on grounds of nationality – Prohibition under Article 18 TFEU – Subsidiary in nature to the specific rules on non-discrimination laid down in the FEU Treaty – Article 107(2) and (3) TFEU laying down such specific rules (Arts 18 and 107(2) and (3) TFEU) (see paragraphs 77-80) 5. Aid granted by a Member State – Prohibition – Derogations – Aid compatible with the internal market – Aid to make good the damage caused by natural disasters or exceptional occurrences – Subordinated loan convertible into a grant in favour of an airline in order to compensate that airline in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic – Assessment in the light of Article 107(2)(b) TFEU – Criteria – Proportionality of the aid – Assessment of the damage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic to the undertaking in receipt of the aid (Art. 107(2)(b) TFEU) (see paragraphs 23-25, 126-128) 6. Aid granted by a Member State – Prohibition – Derogations – Aid compatible with the internal market – Aid to make good the damage caused by natural disasters or exceptional occurrences – Subordinated loan convertible into a grant in favour of an airline in order to compensate that airline in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic – Assessment in the light of Article 107(2)(b) TFEU – Criteria – Proportionality of the aid – Calculation of the amount of the aid – Cumulation of the aid intended to compensate the beneficiary in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic with other measures not covering the same eligible costs – Whether permissible (Art. 107(2)(b) and 3(b) TFEU) (see paragraphs 137-141) 7. Aid granted by a Member State – Prohibition – Derogations – Aid compatible with the internal market – Aid to make good the damage caused by natural disasters or exceptional occurrences – Subordinated loan convertible into a grant in favour of an airline in order to compensate that airline in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic – Assessment in the light of Article 107(2)(b) TFEU – Commission decision finding the aid to be compatible with the internal market without initiating the formal investigation procedure – Infringement of the procedural rights of the interested parties – Conditions – Interested parties having to demonstrate the existence of doubts as to the compatibility of the aid with the internal market (Art. 107(2)(b) TFEU) (see paragraphs 153-160) 8. Aid granted by a Member State – Commission decision not to raise objections to an aid scheme or an aid measure – Obligation to state reasons – Scope (Arts 107(2)(b) and 296 TFEU) (see paragraphs 166-173) Operative part The Court: 1. Dismisses the appeal; 2. Orders Ryanair DAC and Laudamotion GmbH to bear their own costs and to pay those incurred by the European Commission; 3. Orders the Federal Republic of Germany, the Republic of Austria and Austrian Airlines AG to bear their own costs. 1 OJ C 462, 15.11.2021.