natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
Kommissionen mener derfor, at dens afgørelse om Small and Medium Enterprises Venture Capital and Loan Fund dækker samtlige investeringer, der foreslås som led i Invest Northern Ireland Venture 2003-ordningen, fra 250000 GBP (367000 EUR) til 510000 GBP (750000 EUR) for hver enkelt investeringsrate.
The Commission therefore considers that its decision on the Small and Medium Enterprises Venture Capital and Loan Fund covers all those investments proposed under the Invest Northern Ireland Venture 2003 scheme ranging from GBP 250000 (EUR 367000) to GBP 510000 (EUR 750000) per single investment tranche.
I overensstemmelse med bestemmelserne i meddelelsen nødvendiggør risikokapitalinvesteringer fra 510000 GBP (750000 EUR) til 1,5 mio. GBP (2,2 mio. EUR) somled i Invest Northern Ireland Venture 2003, at Det Forenede Kongerige fremlægger yderligere beviser for markedssvigt.
In line with the provisions of the Communication, risk capital investments proposed under the Invest Northern Ireland Venture 2003 scheme ranging from GBP 510000 (EUR 750000) to GBP 1,5 million (EUR 2,2 million) would necessitate the provision of evidence of market failure by the United Kingdom.
Med henblik på at påvise, at der foreligger et markedssvigt, henviste Det Forenede Kongerige til en række særlige forhold ved markedet for risikokapital i Nordirland, hvilket understreges af en undersøgelse [7].
In order to demonstrate the existence of market failure, the United Kingdom referred to several distinctive particularities of the venture capital market in Northern Ireland as underlined by a study [7].
Der blev fremlagt følgende hovedargumenter:
The main arguments brought forward were:
Der mangler risikovillig kapital til SMV i Nordirland i størrelsesordenen 250000 GBP (367000 EUR) til 1,5 mio. GBP (2,2 mio. EUR).
there is a gap in the provision of venture capital for SMEs in Northern Ireland in the deal size range of GBP 250000 (EUR 367000) to GBP 1,5 million (EUR 2,2 million);
Selv om der også kan konstateres markedssvigt i andre regionale økonomier, er fænomenet mere udtalt i Nordirland af følgende grunde:
whilst such a market failure also exists in other regional economies, it is more pronounced in Northern Ireland for the following reasons:
Markedet for risikokapital i Nordirland sakker flere år efter resten af Det Forenede Kongerige, hvad angår samlede investeringer, antal aftaler, antal fonde og ekspertise inden for fondsforvaltning.
the venture capital market in Northern Ireland lags many years behind the rest of the United Kingdom in terms of total investment, number of deals, number of funds and availability of fund management skills;
Det nordirske markeds størrelse, regionens fysiske adskillelse fra resten af Det Forenede Kongerige, og den civile uros langvarige indflydelse har alt sammen medført, at der i den private sektor ikke er nogen risikokapitalfonde fra resten af Det Forenede Kongerige, som enten befinder sig eller investerer i Nordirland.
the size of the Northern Ireland market, the fact that it is physically separated from the rest of the United Kingdom, and the long lasting impact of civil unrest in Northern Ireland have resulted in an absence of any wholly private sector venture capital funds, either locally based or investing in Northern Ireland SMEs from mainland United Kingdom;
Derudover er det svært at tiltrække erfarne fondsbestyrere til Nordirland.
in addition, it is difficult to attract experienced fund managers to Northern Ireland.
Ved brev af 26. november 2003 meddelte Kommissionen Det Forenede Kongerige, at den havde besluttet at indlede proceduren efter EF-traktatens artikel 88, stk. 2, over for Invest Northern Ireland Venture 2003-ordningen.
By letter dated 26 November 2003, the Commission informed the United Kingdom of its decision to initiate the procedure laid down in Article 88(2) of the EC Treaty in respect of the Invest Northern Ireland Venture 2003 scheme.
I sit brev udtrykte Kommissionen sin tvivl om, hvorvidt Det Forenede Kongeriges argumenter for, at der forelå et markedssvigt, i tilstrækkelig grad kunne retfærdiggøre en bevilling af risikokapitalinvesteringsrater, der i betydeligt omfang overskred de eksisterende maksimumsbeløb i henhold til meddelelsen om områder, der er støtteberettigede efter EF-traktatens artikel 87, stk. 3, litra c).
In its letter, the Commission stated that it had doubts as to whether the arguments presented by the United Kingdom in support of the existence of market failure could sufficiently justify the granting of risk capital investment tranches considerably exceeding the maximum amounts foreseen by the Communication for areas qualifying for assistance pursuant to Article 87(3)(c) of the EC Treaty.
Kommissionen forklarede derefter, at den mente, at der var behov for en grundigere analyse af sagen.
The Commission went on to explain that it considered a more thorough analysis of the issue to be necessary.
I en sådan analyse skulle der indgå bemærkninger fra interesserede parter.
Such an analysis would need to include any observations made by interested parties.
Først efter at have overvejet bemærkninger fra tredjemand kunne Kommissionen afgøre, hvorvidt den foranstaltning, som Det Forenede Kongerige havde foreslået, påvirker handelsbetingelserne i en sådan grad, at det strider mod den fælles interesse.
Only after consideration of third party comments could the Commission decide whether the measure proposed by the United Kingdom affects trading conditions to an extent contrary to the common interest.
Som reaktion på offentliggørelsen af beslutningen om at indlede den formelle procedure, hvilket skete i Den Europæiske Unions Tidende, modtog Kommissionen bemærkninger fra følgende interesserede parter:
In response to the publication of its decision to open the formal procedure in the Official Journal of the European Union, the Commission received observations from the following interested parties:
Alle de indkomne bemærkninger var positive, og der blev lagt vægt på foranstaltningens betydning og på, at de foreslåede maksimumsbeløb var passende.
All comments received were positive and underlined the importance of the measure as well as the appropriateness of the proposed maximum investment amounts.
I de synspunkter, som de interesserede parter fremlagde, blev det fremhævet, at lokale virksomheder i Nordirland har vanskeligt ved at fremskaffe egenkapital på 1 mio. GBP (1,5 mio. EUR) til 1,5 mio. GBP (2,2 mio. EUR).
The arguments put forward by the interested parties highlight the difficulty for local companies in Northern Ireland to raise equity funding of GBP 1 million (EUR 1,5 million) to GBP 1,5 million (EUR 2,2 million).
Dette skyldes overvejende følgende:
This is mainly a result of the following factors:
Kapitalfonde i resten af Det Forenede Kongerige hæver deres mindste investeringsniveau, og dette fænomen ses også i Nordirland.
venture funds in the rest of the United Kingdom are increasing minimum investment levels and this is also being mirrored in Northern Ireland;
Nordirland er et marginalområde, hvilket har en negativ indflydelse på omkostningsniveauet.
the peripherality of Northern Ireland adversely influences funds in terms of cost;
De midler, der investeres i resten af Det Forenede Kongerige og Irland, går normalt ikke til investeringer af denne størrelse, og der er ingen lokal fond i Nordirland, som er i stand til at påtage sig sådanne investeringer.
funds from the rest of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland are largely uninterested in investments of this deal size and there is no local Northern Ireland fund capable of undertaking such investments;
En negativ generel misopfattelse, som skyldes tidligere tiders borgerlige uroligheder, har fortsat en negativ indflydelse på investorernes holdning, når de overvejer at investere i Nordirland.
a general misplaced negative perception due to civil unrest in the past that continues to adversely affect the attitude of investors when considering Northern Ireland as an investment location.
Det Forenede Kongeriges bemærkninger til Kommissionens beslutning om at indlede den formelle procedure efter EF-traktatens artikel 88, stk. 2, og bemærkningerne fra tredjemand kan opsummeres som følger:
The United Kingdom’s comments on the Commission’s decision to open the formal procedure laid down in Article 88(2) of the EC Treaty, as well as on the observations from third parties will be summarised in the following recitals.
Der foreligger en række generelle økonomiske svagheder, som skal behandles, hvis Nordirlands konkurrencestilling skal forbedres:
There are a number of general economic weaknesses that must be addressed in order to improve the competitive position of Northern Ireland:
Nordirlands bruttonationalprodukt (BNP) per capita ligger under gennemsnittet for Det Forenede Kongerige (77,5 % af gennemsnittet for Det Forenede Kongerige).
Northern Ireland’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita is below the United Kingdom average (77,5 % of United Kingdom average).
Forskellen er kun indsnævret marginalt i løbet af 1990'erne (3 procentpoint siden 1989).
The gap has only narrowed marginally over the course of the 1990s (three percentage points since 1989);
Den samlede produktivitet i økonomien opgjort i BNP pr. lønmodtager i Nordirland ligger under gennemsnittet for Det Forenede Kongerige (89 % af gennemsnittet for Det Forenede Kongerige).
whole economy productivity as measured by GDP per employee in Northern Ireland is below that of the United Kingdom (89 % of United Kingdom average);
Høj grad af afhængighed af mindre virksomheder; i alt 85000 virksomheder, hvoraf 99 % beskæftiger under 50 personer, og 93 % under 10 personer.
high dependency on small businesses: 85000 businesses in total, of which 99 % employ fewer than 50 people, and 93 % employ fewer than 10 people;
Fremstillingsindustrien er stadig afhængig af de »traditionelle sektorer« med ringe merværdi; den del af erhvervssektoren, der bidrager med høj merværdi er kun halvt så stor sammenlignet med Det Forenede Kongerige.
manufacturing remains dependent on low value-added ‘traditional sectors’, the high value added business services sector is only half the size of its United Kingdom equivalent;
Et ringe antal videnbaserede virksomheder i forhold til andre regioner i Det Forenede Kongerige.
a small number of knowledge-based businesses compared with other United Kingdom regions;
Lavt niveau for innovation og F&U.
low levels of innovation and R&D activity;
Niveauet for nystartede virksomheder er et af de laveste blandt regionerne i Det Forenede Kongerige.
one of the lowest start-up rates of any United Kingdom region;
Mangel på gælds- og egenkapitalfinansiering for nystartede virksomheder.
shortage of debt and equity finance available for start-up companies.
Ud over de generelle økonomiske svagheder er markedet for risikokapital i Nordirland underudviklet i forhold til andre regioner i Det Forenede Kongerige:
In addition to the general economic weaknesses, the venture capital market in Northern Ireland is underdeveloped compared to other United Kingdom regions:
Risikokapitalinvesteringerne i Nordirland udgjorde for perioden 1985-2002 kun 0,7 % af de samlede risikokapitalinvesteringer, hvilket skal ses i forhold til, at Nordirlands andel af Det Forenede Kongeriges BNP var 2,2 %.
the level of venture capital investment in Northern Ireland over the period 1985-2002 represented only 0,7 % of the United Kingdom’s total venture capital investment as compared with Northern Ireland’s share of United Kingdom GDP of 2,2 %;
Risikokapitalaktiviteten i Nordirland skal firdobles fra det nuværende niveau for at svare til niveauet per capita i andre britiske regioner som Wales eller Skotland.
venture capital activity in Northern Ireland would have to increase by four times its current level to match the per capita levels of other United Kingdom regions such as Wales or Scotland.
Der er en række generelle faktorer, som står i forbindelse med dette fænomen:
There are a number of general factors that are related to this phenomenon:
Marginal placering: Nordirland har en klar ulempe ved sin geografiske placering.
peripheral location: Northern Ireland is significantly disadvantaged by its geographical location;
Vækst i det indenlandske erhvervsliv: Væksten i den lokale økonomi har været særdeles begrænset i de seneste år på grund af borgerlige uroligheder.
growth of indigenous business: Growth in the local economy has been severely limited over the last years due to civil unrest;
Tradition for tilskud: Dette fænomen er opstået, fordi regeringen har været nødt til at intervenere i Nordirlands industrielle udvikling på et langt højere niveau end i resten af Det Forenede Kongerige.
grant culture: This has arisen due to the government’s need to intervene in Northern Ireland industrial development activities at a much higher level than elsewhere in the United Kingdom.
For erhvervslivet er det derfor ikke oplagt at overveje at rejse ny egenkapital.
Accordingly, businesses have not been disposed to consider taking in new equity.
Selv om der er blevet oprettet fonde i de seneste år, er der behov for en langt større indsats, især med at skabe tilstrækkelige pengestrømme, men også med at tiltrække en bredere vifte af investorer:
While some funds have been established in recent years, much more needs to be done, especially in generating adequate deal flow, but also in broadening the range and quantity of investors:
Nordirland har ringe repræsentation for risikokapital og har kun et lille antal lokale fonde, som overvejende er fokuseret på mindre forretninger.
Northern Ireland is poorly represented for venture capital and has only a small number of locally based funds which are mainly focused on small deal sizes;
Der er kun tre kapitalfondsbestyrere på fuld tid i regionen.
only three venture capital fund managers maintain a full-time presence in the region;
De fleste risikokapitalfonde kan kun tilbyde investeringer på under 500000 GBP (730000 EUR).
the majority of venture capital funds available offer investment of below GBP 500000 (EUR 730000);
Undersøgelser antyder, at gennemsnitsstørrelsen af tidlig finansiering for teknologivirksomheder stiger i takt med, at markedet modnes.
studies suggest that the average size of early stage funding for technology businesses increases as the market matures.
I Nordirland forventes en egenkapitalmangel for opstartfasen i de næste fem år i størrelsesordenen 250000 GBP (367000 EUR) til 1,5 mio. GBP (2,2 mio. EUR).
For Northern Ireland, the equity gap for first round funding within the next five years is expected to be in the range of GBP 250000 (EUR 367000) to GBP 1,5 million (EUR 2,2 million);
Som følge af projekternes vækst og den prognosticerede stigning i efterspørgselen bør der oprettes to eller flere fonde med en kommerciel volumen på omkring 15 mio. GBP (22 mio. EUR) i Nordirland inden for de kommende fem år, og den ene bør være en statsstøttet fond.
in recognition of the increased scale of projects and predicted increases in demand, two or more commercial-sized funds of around GBP 15 million (EUR 22 million) each should be established in Northern Ireland over the next five years, one of which should be a government assisted fund.
Det Forenede Kongerige havde ingen yderligere bemærkninger til reaktionerne fra tredjemand, men fremhævede den stærke støtte fra tredjemand til oprettelsen af den foreslåede fond.
The United Kingdom had no further comments to make on the responses from third parties except to highlight the strong support expressed by those third parties for the establishment of the proposed fund.
V. VURDERING AF FORANSTALTNINGEN
V. ASSESSMENT OF THE MEASURE
Kommissionen har undersøgt ordningen på baggrund af EF-traktatens artikel 87 og især på grundlag af meddelelsen.
The Commission has examined the scheme in the light of Article 87 of the EC Treaty and in particular on the basis of the Communication.
Resultaterne af denne vurdering opsummeres i betragtning 56 og derefter.
The results of this assessment are summarised in recitals 56 and following.
Lovlighed
Legality
Ved at anmelde ordningen har de britiske myndigheder opfyldt deres forpligtelser efter EF-traktatens artikel 88, stk. 3.
By notifying the scheme, the United Kingdom authorities respected their obligations under Article 88(3) of the EC Treaty.
Det Forenede Kongerige bekræfter, at med undtagelse af det tilladte maksimumsbeløb for risikokapitalen i hver enkelt rate er alle andre væsentlige aspekter af Invest Northern Ireland Venture 2003-ordningen i overensstemmelse med Kommissionens afgørelse om Small and Medium Enterprises Venture Capital and Loan Fund.
The United Kingdom confirms that, with the exception of the allowable maximum amount of risk capital funding per single tranche, all other material aspects of the Invest Northern Ireland Venture 2003 scheme are in line with the Commission’s decision concerning the Small and Medium Enterprises Venture Capital and Loan Fund.
Kommissionens vurdering af, om der i denne sag foreligger statsstøtte, følger derfor vurderingen i denne afgørelse.
The Commission’s assessment of the existence of State aid in this case, therefore follows the assessment made in that decision.
I afgørelsen om Small and Medium Enterprises Venture Capital and Loan Fund udtalte Kommissionen, at i overensstemmelse med punkt IV.2 i meddelelsen skal der ved vurderingen af, hvorvidt der foreligger statsstøtte, tages hensyn til, at en risikokapitalforanstaltning kan betyde støtte på flere niveauer.
In its decision concerning the Small and Medium Enterprises Venture Capital and Loan Fund, the Commission stated that, in line with point IV.2 of the Communication, the assessment of the presence of State aid would need to take into account the possibility that a risk capital measure may confer aid at different levels.
Kommissionen konkluderede derefter, at Small and Medium Enterprises Venture Capital and Loan Fund medførte statsstøtte som forstået i EF-traktatens artikel 87, stk. 1, både hvad angik investorerne og de begunstigede SMV.
The Commission went on to conclude that the Small and Medium Enterprises Venture Capital and Loan Fund involved State aid within the meaning of Article 87(1) of the EC Treaty at the level of the investors and at the level of the beneficiary SMEs.
Kommissionen fandt tillige, at der ikke indgik statsstøtte som forstået i EF-traktatens artikel 87, stk. 1, for så vidt angik fonden eller for usikrede lån, der blev ydet til SMV til den gældende referencerente plus 4 procentpoint eller mere, eller for sikrede lån til den gældende referencerente.
The Commission also considered that State aid within the meaning of Article 87(1) of the EC Treaty was not present at the level of the fund, or for unsecured loans granted to SMEs at the prevailing reference rate plus 4 percentage points or more, or for secured loans at the prevailing reference rate.
Denne vurdering gælder stadig ved vurderingen af den anmeldte foranstaltning i denne afgørelse.
That assessment is still valid for the assessment of the notified measure in this Decision.
Påvisning af markedssvigt
Evidence of market failure
I overensstemmelse med bestemmelserne i meddelelsen kan Kommissionen acceptere, at der foreligger markedssvigt uden at forlange yderligere beviser, hvis den risikokapital, der helt eller delvis finansieres via statsstøtte til SMV i støtteområder i henhold til EF-traktatens artikel 87, stk. 3, litra c), begrænses til maksimumsbeløbet på 750000 EUR efter meddelelsens punkt VI.5.
In line with the provisions of the Communication, the Commission is prepared to accept the existence of market failure without further provision of evidence if risk capital funding wholly or partially financed through State aid for SMEs in areas qualifying for assistance pursuant to Article 87(3)(c) of the EC Treaty is limited to the maximum amount of EUR 750000 as foreseen under point VI.5 of the Communication.
I den foranstaltning, som Det Forenede Kongerige har stillet forslag om, er der planer om risikokapitalinvesteringer i størrelsesordenen 250000 GBP (367000 EUR) til 1,5 mio. GBP (2,2 mio. EUR) per investeringsrate for SMV i Nordirland.
The measure proposed by the United Kingdom foresees risk capital investments in the range of GBP 250000 (EUR 367000) to GBP 1,5 million (EUR 2,2 million) per investment tranche for SMEs in Northern Ireland.
I henhold til regionalstøttekortet 2000-2006 for Det Forenede Kongerige betragtes Nordirland imidlertid som et »atypisk« område efter EF-traktatens artikel 87, stk. 3, litra c), med et tilsvarende regionalstøtteloft på 40 %, som almindeligvis er forbeholdt regioner, der er støtteberettiget efter artikel 87, stk. 3, litra a).
However, according to the Regional Aid Map 2000-2006 for the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland is considered to be an ‘atypical’ Article 87(3)(c) region with a corresponding regional aid ceiling of 40 %, generally reserved for regions qualifying for assistance under Article 87(3)(a).
Eftersom de foreslåede risikokapitalinvesteringer i den anmeldte ordning overstiger loftet på 750000 EUR for områder, der er støtteberettiget efter artikel 87, stk. 3, litra c), har Kommissionen i overensstemmelse med bestemmelserne i meddelelsen oplyst Det Forenede Kongerige om, at det skal kunne bevises, at der er tale om markedssvigt.
In line with the provisions of the Communication, the Commission has informed the United Kingdom that in view of the fact that the proposed risk capital investments under the notified scheme exceed the EUR 750000 threshold foreseen for areas qualifying for assistance pursuant to Article 87(3)(c), the United Kingdom would have to provide evidence of market failure.
For at kunne vise, at der er markedssvigt ved risikokapitalinvesteringer på over 750000 EUR i SMV i Nordirland, fremlagde Det Forenede Kongerige argumenter, der tydede på, at markedet for risikokapital i Nordirland har særlige kendetegn, der medfører, at området adskiller sig fra andre regioner i Det Forenede Kongerige.
In order to demonstrate the existence of market failure for risk capital investments exceeding EUR 750000 for SMEs in Northern Ireland, the United Kingdom presented arguments indicating that the venture capital market in Northern Ireland is characterised by unique particularities distinguishing it from other regions in the United Kingdom.
Det Forenede Kongeriges argumenter blev understøttet af en undersøgelse, hvori det understreges, at der mangler risikovillig kapital til SMV i Nordirland i størrelsesordenen 250000 GBP (367000 EUR) til 1,5 mio. GBP (2,2 mio. EUR).
The arguments put forward by the United Kingdom were supported by a study underlining that there exists a gap in the provision of private venture capital for SMEs in Northern Ireland in the deal size range of GBP 250000 (EUR 367000) to GBP 1,5 million (EUR 2,2 million).
Selv om der også kan konstateres markedsgab i andre regionale økonomier, er fænomenet mere udtalt i Nordirland.
Although such a market gap also occurs in other regional economies, the United Kingdom submitted that it is more pronounced in Northern Ireland.
Dette vises i den undersøgelse, som Det Forenede Kongerige har fremlagt.
This has been demonstrated by the study submitted by the United Kingdom.
Ifølge denne undersøgelse er der, for så vidt angår antal indgåede forretninger og deres værdi, en væsentlig forskel på risikokapitalaktiviteterne i henholdsvis Nordirland og andre britiske regioner som Skotland og regionen North West and Merseyside.
According to that study, venture capital activity in Northern Ireland, in terms of the number of deals and the value of the deals, varies significantly from other United Kingdom regions such as Scotland and the North West and Merseyside region.
Mens antallet af indgåede aftaler i Skotland vedrørende nystartede virksomheder i perioden 2000-2002 udgjorde 9,9 % af det samlede antal i Det Forenede Kongerige, og mens regionen North West and Merseyside tegnede sig for 8,1 % af det samlede antal i Det Forenede Kongerige, stod Nordirland kun for 4,4 % af det samlede antal i Det Forenede Kongerige.
Whereas the number of deals for early stage companies in Scotland for the period 2000-2002 was 9,9 % of the United Kingdom total, and in the North West and Merseyside region was 8,1 % of the United Kingdom total, Northern Ireland only accounted for 4,4 % of the United Kingdom total.