WRITTEN QUESTION E-2733/03 by Hiltrud Breyer (Verts/ALE) to the Commission. Subsidies to the Georgsmarienhütte steelworks.
Date: 2003-09-11
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Lower Saxony, State aid, aid to industry, control of State aid, industrial plot, iron and steel industry, price of land, rail network, redemption

20.3.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 70 E/133

With regard to the disposal of hazardous waste, it should be noted that the Commission has brought a case
before the Court (Case C-163/03) since it considers that Greece has failed to fulfil its obligations under
Articles 2(1) and 6(1) of Directive 91/689/EEC. In the Commission’s opinion, Greece has not taken the
measures necessary to ensure that hazardous waste is recorded and identified in the region of Thriassio
Pedio where it is discharged, and has not drawn up plans for the management of hazardous waste for that
region.

In addition, in its judgment of 5 June 2003 (4), the Court declared that ‘by failing to draw up, within the
prescribed period, summaries of inventories of equipment with PCB volumes of more than 5 dm3, plans
for the decontamination and/or disposal of inventoried equipment and the PCBs contained therein, and
outlines for the collection and subsequent disposal of equipment that is not subject to inventory,
in
accordance with Articles 4(1) and 11 of Council Directive 96/59/EE of 16 September 1996 on the disposal
of polychlorinated biphenyls and polychlorinated terphenyls (PCBs and PCTs), the Hellenic Republic has
failed to fulfil its obligations under that directive.’

3.
Facilities for the disposal of hazardous waste by incineration, chemical treatment or landfilling are
listed in Annex I.9 to Council Directive 85/337/EEC of 27 June 1985 on the assessment of the effects of
certain public and private projects on the environment, as amended by Council Directive 97/11/EC of
3 March 1997. Pursuant to Article 4(1) of the directive, the projects listed in Annex I have to be subjected
to an environmental impact assessment. The Commission does not have information at its disposal to
conclude that the Community legislation in question was not complied with in the case of the project to
establish a toxic waste processing plant
the Honourable Member has information
demonstrating the existence of an infringement of Directive 85/337/EEE, he is requested to communicate
it to the Commission.

in Larimna.

If

(1) Letter of 6 December 2002 from the Ministry of the Environment, Regional Planning and Public Works.
(2) COM(2003) 250 final.
(3)
(4)

Judgment of 13 June 2002, Commission v Hellenic Republic, Case C-33/01, ECR p. 5447.
Judgment of 5 June 2003, Commission v Hellenic Republic, Case C-83/02, not yet published.

(2004/C 70 E/135)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2733/03

by Hiltrud Breyer (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(11 September 2003)

Subject: Subsidies to the Georgsmarienhütte steelworks

steelworks

the NOZ further

(Georgsmarienhütte GmbH)

On 1 March 2003, the Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung (NOZ) reported an exchange of land between the
Georgsmarienhütte
town of Georgsmarienhütte.
On 23 April 2003,
the Land of Lower Saxony was providing
EUR 1,9 million towards the transaction. This payment is related to a purchase of land by the town of
Georgsmarienhütte from the steelworks around ten years ago at the vastly inflated price of around
DEM 15 million. The EU had already contested part of the payments made by Lower Saxony to the
steelworks around ten years ago of around DEM 80 million. Moreover, repeated sales between the
steelworks and local authorities raise the suspicion of illegal subsidies.

reported that

and the

To what extent is the reported payment by Lower Saxony of EUR 1,9 million compatible with EU

1.
rules?

2. Was the Commission notified of the payment made by the Government of Lower Saxony?

How much of the payments made by Lower Saxony to the Georgsmarienhütte steelworks, which the

3.
EU contested, has been paid back, and when?

C 70 E/134

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

20.3.2004

To what extent are the repeated sales between the steelworks and local authorities since 1990 of the
4.
‘Hüttenbahn’ railway line used by the steelworks, including, most recently, its sale to the Verkehrsgesells-
chaft Landkreis Osnabrück (Osnabrück Rural District Travel Company), compatible with EU law?

Answer given by Mr Monti on behalf of the Commission

(21 October 2003)

From the information contained in the written question it is not possible to see, for which purpose
1.
the Land made the payment of EUR 1,9 million and if
this payment granted an advantage to
Georgsmarienhütte steel works. An assessment, whether this payment is in line with the Union provisions,
is therefore not possible at this point in time. The Commission will request information from Germany as
concerns the exchange of land and the payment of EUR 1,9 by the Land of Lower Saxony.

2.

The payment by the Government of the Land was not notified to the Commission.

As already laid down in the answer to the written question E-0057/01 of the Honourable Member (1),
3.
in January 2000 the Federal Government submitted information to the Commission, from which it
followed, that Georgsmarienhütte steel works had repaid State aid amounting to DEM 46 million including
interest to the land of Lower Saxony.

In addition, as also explained in this answer, on 8 May 2000 the Federal Government submitted
information to the Commission, that the sale of the land ‘Westerkamp’ had been annulled.

The Georgsmarienhütte Holding GmbH has therefore repaid all State aid that had been assessed as
incompatible to the Land of Lower Saxony.

4.
According to the Federal Government, the sale of the ‘Hüttenbahn’ by the Klöckner Werke (1978)
and the repurchase by Georgsmarienhütte steel works (1996) did not result in a significant profit for
Georgsmarienhütte steel works. The Commission therefore, on the basis of the information available, does
not consider that State aid was granted in this context.

The Commission does not possess any information about a further sale of
the ‘Hüttenbahn’ by
Georgsmarienhütte steelwork to Verkehrsgesellschaft Landkreis Osnabrück (Osnabrück rural district
company). The Commission will request further information on this sale from Germany.

(1) OJ C 235 E, 21.8.2001.

(2004/C 70 E/136)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-2734/03

by Glyn Ford (PSE) to the Commission

(11 September 2003)

Subject: Encryption of EU communications

In light of the report on echelon that recommended the Commission encrypt its communications, can the
Commission inform us of the progress made in ensuring the encryption of its communications especially
for overseas offices?

Answer given by Mr Kinnock on behalf of the Commission

(4 November 2003)

The Commission has taken all necessary steps to ensure that the security features of its communications
are developed in order to deal with the risks properly identified by the report on Echelon.