Information communicated by Member States regarding State aid granted under Commission Regulation (EC) No 70/2001 of 12 January 2001 on the application of Articles 87 and 88 of the EC Treaty to State aid to small and medium-sized enterprises

(2002/C 112/03)

(Text with EEA relevance)

Aid No: XS/44/2001

Member State: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland

Region: Scotland

Title of aid scheme or name of the company receiving an individual aid: Support for new investment by SMEs

Legal basis: Section 171 of Local Government (Scotland) Act 1994

Annual expenditure planned under the scheme or overall amount of individual aid granted to the company: Estimated at GBP 5 million per annum across all Scottish Local Authorities. Aid given under this scheme will not usually exceed guarantees of up to GBP 500000 granted in accordance with Commission notice (2000/C 71/07) on State aid in the form of guarantees, loans of up to GBP 500000 and grants of up to GBP 250000 for individual projects, however in exceptional cirumstances these levels may be exceeded.

Maximum aid intensity: Aid would be granted to beneficiaries in gross terms. It would be calculated individually as a function of the circumstances of the development and recalculated in net grant equivalent (nge) terms as appropriate in order to check that they do not exceed the following maximum nge or nge and gross level combinations. Proposed aid levels would then be corrected if necessary to conform with the maximum aid intensities specified below (see Regulation (EC) No 70/2001):

Maximum investment aid intensities

>TABLE>

Notes:

1. These are maximum levels equal to maximum nge and SME supplements as per the assisted-areas map approved in July 2000 for the UK. Actual levels of aid offered are set at the minimum level necessary to enable the project to proceed with a viable three-year business plan.

2. nge would be calculated for control pruposes by computer for each project using the procedues in the annex to the Guidelines on national regional aid (OJ C 74, 10.3.1998).

3. These ceilings will be replaced by the specific limits for certain sectors when special EU rules are in force. At the commencement of this scheme, these sectors were agriculture, aquaculture, fisheries, etc., shipbuilding, coal, steel, synthetic fibres, motor vehicles and transport.

A condition of aid under this scheme is that the investment will be maintained in the recipient region in Scotland for at least five years.

The ceilings in the table above apply to intensity of the aid calculated either as a percentage of the investment's eligible costs or as a percentage of the wage costs of employment created by the carrying out of an investment, or a combination thereof, provided that the aid does not exceed the most favourable amount resulting from the application of either calculation.

MAXIMUM SCALE OF PROJECT AND AID

Aid will not normally exceed guarantees of GBP 500000, loans of up to GBP 500000 or grants of up to GBP 250000. However, in exceptional circumstances, these levels may be exceeded. In all cases, individual awards under this scheme will become ineligible for aid if either of the following limits applies to the project proposal:

1. the total eligible cost of the project is at least EUR 25000000 and:

- in areas which do not qualify for regional aid under the current UK national-assisted-areas map, the gross aid intensity is at least 50 % of the ceilings laid down in Article 4(2) of Regulation (EC) No 70/2001, Annex 1;

- in areas which qualify for regional aid, the net aid intensity is at least 50 % of the net aid ceiling as determined in the UK national-assisted-areas map; or

2. the total gross aid amount is at least EUR 15000000.

Date of implementation: 1 July 2001.

Duration of scheme or individual aid award: Until 31 December 2006.

Objective of aid: To secure new investments by SMEs within Scotland through provision of the minimum necessary assistance under this scheme.

Economic sector(s) concerned: Coalmining: No

All manufacturing: No

Steel: No

Shipbuilding: No

Synthetic fibres: No

Motor vehicles: No

Other manufacturing: Yes

All services: Yes

This scheme does not apply to:

1. activities linked to the production, processing or marketing of products listed in Annex 1 to the Treaty. This means that aid cannot be provided to agriculture, aquaculture and fisheries;

2. aid to export-related activities, namely aid directly linked to the quantities exported, to the establishment and operation of a distribution network or to other current expenditure linked to the export activity;

3. aid contingent upon the use of domestic goods rather than imported goods

Name and address of the granting authority: Aberdeen City Council

Aberdeenshire Council

Angus Council

Argyll and Bute Council

Clackmannanshire Council

Comhairle Nan Eilean Siar

Dumfries and Galloway Council

Dundee City Council

East Ayrshire Council

East Dunbartonshire Council

East Lothian Council

East Renfrewshire Council

The City of Edinburgh Council

Falkirk Council

Fife Council

Glasgow City Council

The Highland Council

Inverclyde Council

Midlothian Council

The Moray Council

North Ayrshire Council

North Lanarkshire Council

Orkney Islands Council

Perth and Kinross Council

Renfrewshire Council

Scottish Borders Council

Shetland Islands Council

South Ayrshire Council

South Lanarkshire Council

Stirling Council

West Dunbartonshire Council

West Lothian Council

Council contact - In the first instance refer to: Stan Ure

Business Development Manager

Dundee City Council 3 City Square Dundee DD1 3BA United Kingdom ( tel. 013 82 43 49 08 )

Other information: This scheme will be applied in accordance with Commission Regulation (EC) No 70/2001 of 12 January 2001 on the application of Articles 87 and 88 of the EC Treaty to State aid to small and medium-sized enterprises.