WRITTEN QUESTION No. 4016/97 by Gerhard HAGER to the Commission. Award of subsidies for natural gas pipe laying
Date: 1997-12-11
Institutions: European Parliament, HAGER
Subjects: Austria, economic support, energy supply, gas pipeline, natural gas

C 174/160

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

8. 6. 98

The  Commission  has  proposed (2)  on  a  number  of  occasions  that  these  temporary  derogations  be  abolished.
Except for the adoption of the Eighteenth Directive (89/465/EEC) of 18 July 1989 on the harmonisation of the
laws  of  the  Member  States  relating  to  turnover  taxes  ›  Abolition  of  certain  derogations  provided  for  in
Article  28(3)  of  the  Sixth  Directive  (77/388/EEC) (3),  which  abolished  a  number  of  those  derogations,  the
Council has failed to reach unanimous agreement on their total abolition.

It was for that reason that the Commission clearly indicated in its work programme for the introduction of a
common system of VAT (4) that it intended to re-examine all the options and derogations authorised under the
current arrangements with a view to ensuring that the tax is applied uniformly.

(1)  OJ L 145, 13.6.1977.
(2)  OJ C 205, 13.8.1992.
(3)  OJ L 226, 3.8.1989.
(4)  COM(96) 328 final.

(98/C 174/238)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-4016/97

by Gerhard Hager (NI) to the Commission

(11 December 1997)

Subject: Award of subsidies for natural gas pipe laying

As a means of ensuring natural gas supplies, a number of local authorities in Austria are awarding unconditional
subsidies  not  subject  to  any  repayment  conditions  to  Energie-Versorgung  Niedero¤sterreich  AG  (EVN).  The
subsidies are payable partly by the kilometrage of pipeline laid, partly as a lump-sum (e.g. ATS 9 535 000 paid by
Haag  municipal  authority  for  16.9km  of  gas  pipe  laying),  and,  under  the  contracts  currently  concluded,  are
conditional neither on supplies at reduced prices to the local authority itself or to householders. It is also left to
EVN(cid:146)s discretion to determine whether, and in what local-authority districts, it will provide a natural gas supply
facility in future.

The local authorities also undertake, again for no financial return, to issue authorizations for laying pipelines and
constructing related facilities on all sites for which they are now or subsequently will be responsible, and to make
the sites required for the necessary engineering works available at Charge. Lastly, the local authorities undertake
for  the  duration  of  the  agreement  neither  to  produce  or  distribute  gas  themselves,  nor  to  authorize  others  to
construct a gas-pipeline network or other facilities necessary for gas production or distribution on sites located
on their property.

1. What is the Commission(cid:146)s view of the legal status of agreements concluded on the above terms?

Does the Commission intend to take any action against the award of the above subsidies › in particular

2.
vis-a‘-vis other energy sources › on the basis of competition law?

Answer given by Mr Van Miert on behalf of the Commission

(13 January 1998)

On the basis of the available information, the Commission is not yet in a position to decide whether subsidies
from  some  Austrian  municipalities  to  the  energy  company  Energie-Versorgung  Niedero¤sterreich  (EVN)  are
compatible with the competition rules laid down in Article 92 and 93 of the EC Treaty.

The Commission will immediately ask the Austrian authorities for a detailed information and investigate the
agreements entered into.

If  the  Commission  has  doubts  on  the  compatibility  of  the  agreements  with  the  Community  law,  it  will
immediately initiate the procedure provided for in Article 93(2) of the EC Treaty.