natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
Kommissionen har noteret sig, at en dom afsagt af Kassationsrettens handelsretsafdeling, hvori retten anfører, at den ville være indstillet på at behandle et sagsanlæg med påstand om, at et kontrollerende selskab, hvis forsømmelige adfærd har medført datterselskabets konkurs med deraf følgende kollektive afskedigelser, hæfter for visse omkostninger, peger i samme retning som kendelsen i Aspocomp-sagen.
The Commission notes that a judgment of the commercial division of the Court of Cassation, in which that court states that it would be prepared to grant an action in damages against a dominant company the wrongful conduct of which led to the downfall of the subsidiary, and as a result, collective redundancies, is to the same effect as the Aspocomp case-law.
I denne sammenhæng konstaterer Kommissionen dog, at det principielle i dommen fra Appelretten i Rouen endnu ikke er blevet bekræftet af andre domme i tilsvarende sager.
The Commission notes, however, that the line taken by the judgment of the Court of Appeal of Rouen has so far not been reflected in other judgments of the same kind.
Kommissionen føler sig derfor ikke tilstrækkeligt overbevist af de franske myndigheders argumentation, til at konkludere, at SNCM's hovedaktionær med overvejende sandsynlighed risikerede at blive holdt ansvarlig og dømt til at betale supplerende fratrædelsesgodtgørelser med henvisning til den ovenfor omtalte retspraksis.
The Commission therefore considers that the French authorities have not sufficiently dispelled the Commission’s doubts regarding the fact that SNCM’s shareholder would be at a reasonably certain risk of its liability being put in issue and of having to make additional redundancy payments on the basis of that case-law.
Kommissionen mener på baggrund af ovenstående, at beslutningen om at afhænde SNCM til en negativ pris på 158 mio. EUR svarer til, hvad en privat markedsøkonomisk koncern ville have gjort under hensyn til de sociale omkostninger, som selskabets likvidation ville have medført.
The Commission takes the view, on the basis of the foregoing, that the choice to sell SNCM at a negative price of EUR 158 million is consistent with the choice which a private group of undertakings in a market economy would have made taking account of the social costs which a liquidation of the undertaking would entail.
Kommissionen har udelukkende baseret sin analyse på de hypoteser, den anså for rimelige og velbegrundede.
The Commission based the above analysis only on the assumptions which it considered reasonable and sufficiently motivated.
Disse skøn peger imod, at forskellen mellem det scenario, de franske myndigheder valgte, og den alternative løsning ville udgøre mindst […] mio. EUR, hvilket er mere end tilstrækkeligt til at tage højde for eventuelle fejl i de skøn, Kommissionen er nået frem til efter en grundig analyse.
Those estimates lead to the view that the discrepancy between the scenario chosen by the French authorities and the alternative solution would be at least EUR […] million, which should more than cover a possible error in the estimates arrived at after analysis.
Kommissionen mener desuden, at den negative pris på 158 mio. EUR er resultatet af en forretningsmæssig forhandling mellem staten og de private overtagere efter en offentlig, åben, ikke-diskriminatorisk og direkte udvælgelsesprocedure.
Further, the Commission is of the opinion that the negative price of EUR 158 million is the result of a commercial negotiation between the State and the private purchasers following an open, transparent, non-discriminatory and unconditional public selection procedure.
Det er Kommissionens opfattelse, at denne pris, der er mindst muligt negativ, er en markedspris.
In that respect, the Commission considers that that price, which is the best possible price, constitutes a market price.
På trods af de begrænsninger, der er nævnt i betragtning 284 i denne beslutning, vil Kommissionen gerne påpege, at Kommissionens ekspert på grundlag af »Discounted Free Cash Flow«-metoden har efterprøvet scenarierne for værdiansættelsen af SNCM, hentet fra en rapport fra Banque HSBC, der var bestilt af de franske myndigheder.
In spite of the restrictions referred to in paragraph 284 of this decision, the Commission states that the Commission expert verified the valuation scenarios of SNCM on the basis of the present value method of unrestricted operating cash flows stemming from a report of HSBC bank commissioned by the French authorities.
Kommissionens ekspert er af den opfattelse, at HSBC's beregninger er udført korrekt.
The Commission’s expert considers that HSBC’s calculations were made correctly.
Det kan på grundlag af resultaterne af disse simulationer konkluderes, at den pris, der blev betalt for SNCM, var i overensstemmelse med virksomhedens værdi, anslået efter »Discounted Free Cash Flow«-metoden på tidspunktet for salget.
On the basis of the results of those simulations, it may be concluded that the price paid for SNCM is consistent with the value of the undertaking estimated on the basis of the present value method of unrestricted operating cash flows at the time of the transaction.
Det fremgår af afsnit 10.2.2.1 ovenfor, uden at det er nødvendigt at drage detaljerede konklusioner vedrørende de enkelte forhold, for hvilke der er redegjort under afsnit 10.2.2.2, at den omhandlede foranstaltning ikke gav hverken SNCM eller de private overtagere nogen økonomisk fordel.
It follows from section 10.2.2.1 above, without any need to reach a conclusion on the aspects set out in section 10.2.2.2 above, that that measure does not confer any economic advantage on either SNCM or its private purchasers.
Kapitaltilførslen fra staten på 158 mio. EUR forud for salget af virksomheden til de private overtagere, dvs. den negative salgspris på 158 mio. EUR, udgør således ikke statsstøtte i den i EF-traktatens artikel 87, stk. 1, fastsatte betydning.
Therefore the State’s capital contribution of EUR 158 million prior to the sale of the undertaking to private purchasers, that is to say, the negative sale price of EUR 158 million, does not constitute State aid within the meaning of Article 87(1) EC.
Kapitaltilførslen fra CGMF på 8,75 mio. EUR
The capital contribution of CGMF of EUR 8,75 million
Hvis de offentlige myndigheders intervention gennemføres samtidigt med en større intervention fra private aktørers side og på tilsvarende vilkår, kan det umiddelbart udelukkes, at den indebærer en økonomisk fordel.
If intervention by the public authorities at issue takes place concurrently with significant intervention by private operators, under comparable conditions, the existence of an economic advantage may be automatically ruled out.
Kommissionens beslutningspraksis, der underbygges af EF-retspraksis, udelukker på forhånd, at en kapitaltilførsel fra staten under sådanne omstændigheder kan udgøre støtte, forudsat at følgende tre betingelser er opfyldt:
The Commission’s practice in previous decisions, confirmed by the Community judicature, automatically excludes the aid nature of a capital contribution by the State in such circumstances provided that three conditions are fulfilled:
den private intervention skal hidrøre fra økonomiske operatører.
The private intervention must come from economic operators.
Det er f.eks. ikke tilfældet med medarbejderes køb af aktier i virksomhedenden private intervention skal være af et betydeligt omfang.
That is not the case with an acquisition of a holding by employees in the capital of the undertaking concerned,The private intervention must be significant.
Det er f.eks. ikke tilfældet med en privat intervention, der kun vedrører 3,3 % af det samlede beløb, der er tale omden private intervention skal ligeledes være tidsmæssigt sammenfaldende med den offentlige intervention.
That is not the case, for example, where such private intervention relates only to 3,3 % of the total amount involved,The private intervention must also be concurrent with the public intervention.
Domstolen har således bekræftet Kommissionens analyse, hvorefter kapitaltilførsler fra det offentlige kan udgøre statsstøtte, hvis de private investeringer i samme virksomhed først foretages efter, at der er tilført offentlige midler.
The Court has thus confirmed the Commission’s analysis that public contributions may constitute State aid when private investments in the same undertaking are made only after the allocation of the public contributions.
Kommissionen vil dog i visse tilfælde acceptere en privat intervention, der finder sted ganske kort tid efter en offentlig intervention, især hvis den private investor allerede har underskrevet en hensigtserklæring på tidspunktet for den offentlige intervention.10.3.2.
The Commission accepts, however, sometimes to take account of private intervention which took place shortly after public intervention, in particular when the private investor has already signed a letter of intent at the time of the public intervention.10.3.2.
Kommissionen kan for det første konstatere, at SNCM's aktier blev overdraget til økonomiske operatører, BCP et VT.
The Commission notes, first, that the shares in SNCM were transferred to the economic operators BCP and VT.
Ved overdragelsen skulle staten samtidig tilføre virksomheden et beløb på 8,75 mio. EUR, således at statens aktiepost i SNCM forblev 25 % i overensstemmelse med statens forpligtelser over for bl.a. de ansatte.
Following the transfer transaction, the State had to contribute concurrently a sum of EUR 8,75 million to the undertaking in order to maintain the 25 % holding in SNCM in accordance with its commitment in particular vis-à-vis the employees.
Den private intervention udgjorde 75 % af det samlede beløb, hvilket Kommissionen anser for at være »af betydeligt omfang«.
Since the private intervention relates to 75 % of the total amount, the Commission considers it to be significant.
Det turde være overflødigt at fremhæve, at de private partnere har en solid finansiel struktur, at overtagelsen af SNCM passer perfekt ind i deres forretningsstrategi, og at SNCM ifølge overtagernes forretningsplan atter vil kunne være rentabelt inden udgangen af 2009.
Moreover the Commission notes, solely in the interest of completeness, that the private partners have a sound financial structure, that the acquisition of SNCM fits perfectly into their entrepreneurial strategy and that the business plan of those purchasers provides for a return to profitability for the end of 2009.
Med hensyn til samtidigheden mellem de to kapitaltilførselstransaktioner har Kommissionens ekspert kontrolleret, at de pågældende beløb blev indbetalt af samtlige aktionærer i SNCM, herunder også CGMF.
As regards, finally, the concurrent nature of the two capital contribution transactions, the Commission’s expert verified that that capital had been paid by all SNCM’s shareholders, including CGMF.
Det er verificeret, at SNCM's bestyrelse den 31. maj 2006 konstaterede, at alle ovennævnte transaktioner var gennemført.
It was verified that, on 31 May 2006, the management board of SNCM stated that the two transactions cited above had been carried out.
Tilførslerne af offentlig og privat kapital var dermed helt samtidige.
The public and private capital contributions are therefore plainly concurrent.
På baggrund af ovenstående mener Kommissionen, at de ved retspraksis fastsatte kriterier for på forhånd at udelukke, at den omhandlede foranstaltning har karakter af statsstøtte, er opfyldt.
In the light of the foregoing, the Commission considers that the criteria laid down by the case-law to exclude automatically the aid nature of the measure in question are fulfilled.
Kommissionen er derfor af den opfattelse, at kapitaltilførslen fra den franske stat på 8,75 mio. EUR ikke gav SNCM en økonomisk fordel, eftersom den blev gennemført sideløbende med en tilførsel af privat kapital og på samme vilkår i den i EF-retspraksis fastsatte betydning.
The Commission therefore considers that the French State’s capital contribution of EUR 8,75 million does not confer any economic advantage on SNCM since that contribution was made in parallel to a contribution of private capital under comparable conditions in accordance with Community case-law.
Kommissionen mener under alle omstændigheder, at forrentningen af statens kapitalindskud, dvs. […] % om året, giver et afkast på lang sigt, der er rimeligt for kapital investeret af en privat investor.
In any event, the Commission is of the opinion that the rate of return of the State’s contribution, that is, […] % per annum, constitutes adequate long-term profitability for capital invested by a private investor.
Kommissionen konstaterer i den anledning, at den faste forrentning af statens kapitalinvestering i SNCM friholder den for enhver risiko vedrørende gennemførelsen af forretningsplanen, eftersom dette afkast er helt uafhængigt af virksomhedens resultater (både i positiv og negativ retning).
In that regard, the Commission notes that the fixed yield of the State’s capital investment in SNCM exempts the latter from any exposure in respect of performance of the business plan since that yield is completely dissociated from the performance (upwards or downwards) of the undertaking.
Tildelingen af public service-kontrakten til SNCM gav således ikke staten mulighed for at forbedre det forventede afkast af investeringen.
Accordingly, the grant of the public service delegation will not enable the State to increase the yield expected from its holding.
Kommissionens ekspert konkluderede deraf, at statens kapitaltilførsel med hensyn til risici mere svarede til en fast forrentet obligation end til en aktieinvestering.
The Commission’s expert concluded that in terms of risks the French State’s capital contribtution bore more similarity to a bond at a fixed rate than to an investment in shares.
Det betyder, at forrentningen på […] % skal sammenlignes med obligationsrenten i den private franske sektor på det tidspunkt, transaktionen fandt sted.
It follows that the rate of return of […] % should be compared to the rate for bonds in the French private sector at the time of the transaction.
Ifølge Kommissionens ekspert var denne rente 4,15 % i slutningen af maj 2006.
According to the Commission’s expert, that rate was established at 4,15 % at the end of May 2006.
Kommissionen mener således, at klausulen om ophævelse af overtagelsen af SNCM er uden betydning i relation til princippet om ligebehandling af investorer.
The Commission considers, finally, that the existence of the clause to cancel the sale of SNCM is not such as to call into question the principle of equal treatment of investors.
Denne klausul omfatter således hele salget af SNCM til de private overtagere og ikke kun den investering (35 mio. EUR), der skulle foretages samtidig med de private overtageres (26,25 mio. EUR) og statens (8,75 mio. EUR) investering i det privatiserede SNCM.
That clause relates, in fact, to the entire sale of SNCM to private purchasers and not to the concurrent investment (EUR 35 million) by private investors (EUR 26,25 million) and the State (EUR 8,75 million) in the privatised SNCM.
På baggrund af ovenstående konstaterer Kommissionen, at den omhandlede foranstaltning ikke udgør statsstøtte i den i EF-traktatens artikel 87, stk. 1, fastsatte betydning.
In the light of the foregoing, the Commission finds that the measure at issue does not constitute State aid within the meaning of Article 87(1) EC.
De individuelle støtteforanstaltninger (38,5 mio. EUR)
Measures involving aid to individuals (EUR 38,5 million)
For at kunne vurdere, om en foranstaltning medfører en økonomisk fordel for en virksomhed, må det […] fastlægges, »hvorvidt den virksomhed, foranstaltningen er rettet til, opnår en økonomisk fordel, som den ikke ville have opnået under sædvanlige markedsbetingelser«, eller omvendt, om virksomheden derved kan »undgå omkostninger, der normalt skulle have været afholdt af virksomhedens egen kapital; disse lån og nedsættelser har altså hindret, at markedskræfterne kom til at virke på sædvanlig måde«.
In order to determine whether a measure gives an undertaking an economic advantage, ‘it is necessary […] to establish whether the recipient undertaking receives an economic advantage which it would not have obtained under normal market conditions’ or if the undertaking avoids ‘having to bear costs which would normally have had to be met out of the undertaking’s own financial resources, and thereby prevented market forces from having their normal effect’.
Ifølge fast retspraksis er en normal omkostning en omkostning, som en virksomhed normalt skal afholde i forbindelse med den daglige drift eller sine normale aktiviteter.
The Court has consistently held that a normal charge is a charge which an undertaking must normally be able to bear as part of its day-to-day running or its normal activities.
Den 20. september 2001 bekræftede Domstolen denne praksis: »en støtte […] består i en lettelse af de byrder, som normalt belaster virksomheders budget henset til den pågældende byrdeordnings art eller opbygning […], mens en særlig byrde derimod er en yderligere byrde ud over disse normale byrder«.
On 20 September 2001, the Court reaffirmed that approach: ‘an aid consists of a mitigation of the charges which are normally included in the budget of an undertaking, taking account of the nature or general scheme of the system of charges in question, whereas a special charge is, on the contrary, an additional charge over and above those normal charges’.
For at kunne vurdere, hvad der udgør en fordel ifølge retspraksis i relation til statsstøtte er det helt afgørende at fastlægge, hvilken referencebestemmelse eller hvilket almindeligt socialsikringssystem der er gældende inden for en given retsorden, og hvormed den pågældende fordel skal sammenlignes.
Accordingly, in order to identify what constitutes an advantage in accordance with the case-law on State aid, it is crucial to determine the rule of reference or the common system applicable within a given legal system on the basis of which the advantage in question is to be compared.
Domstolen har i øvrigt vurderet, at fastlæggelsen af referencerammen er endnu vigtigere, hvor det drejer sig om skattemæssige foranstaltninger, eftersom selve tilstedeværelsen af en fordel kun kan fastslås i forhold til en såkaldt »normal« beskatning, dvs. den gældende beskatningsprocent i det geografiske referenceområde.
In this respect, the Court has also held that the determination of the reference framework is of particular importance in the case of tax measures since the very existence of an advantage may be established only in relation to ‘normal’ taxation, that is the tax rate in force in the reference geographical area.
Ifølge fast retspraksis gælder det i øvrigt, at »med hensyn til anvendelsen af traktatens artikel 92 er det uden betydning, om situationen for den, der formodes at være omfattet af foranstaltningen, er forbedret eller forværret i forhold til den tidligere retstilstand, eller om situationen ikke har udviklet sig med tiden […].
Furthermore, it is established case-law that ‘for the application of Article 92 of the Treaty, it is irrelevant that the situation of the presumed beneficiary of the measure is better or worse in comparison with the situation under the law as it previously stood, or has not altered over time.
Der skal udelukkende tages stilling til, om en statslig foranstaltning som led i en bestemt retlig ordning kan begunstige »visse virksomheder eller visse produktioner«, jf. traktatens artikel 92, stk. 1, i forhold til andre virksomheder, der under hensyntagen til det formål, der forfølges med den pågældende foranstaltning, befinder sig i en tilsvarende faktisk og retlig situation«.
[…] The only question to be determined is whether, under a particular statutory scheme, a State measure is such as to favour “certain undertakings or the production of certain goods” within the meaning of Article 92(1) of the Treaty in comparison with other undertakings which are in a legal and factual situation that is comparable in the light of the objective pursued by the measure in question’.
Det følger af retspraksis og Kommissionens beslutningspraksis, at Kommissionen for at kunne udelukke, at den omhandlede foranstaltning udgør statsstøtte, skal verificere, at foranstaltningen ikke fritager SNCM for omkostninger, der vedrører den løbende drift, dvs. i dette tilfælde omkostninger, der følger af normal anvendelse af den gældende social- og arbejdsmarkedslovgivning i sektoren i forbindelse med afbrydelse af en ansættelseskontrakt.
It follows from the case-law and the Commission’s past practice that, in order to rule out the aid nature of the measure in question, the Commission must ascertain that the measure does not exempt SNCM from having to pay charges arising out of its day-to-day operations, that is, in the present case, charges arising out of the normal application of social legislation applicable to the sector in respect of employment contracts.
Her kan Kommissionen konstatere, at den spærrede konto ifølge den aftaleprotokol, parterne har indgået, kun kan aktiveres til finansiering af godtgørelser til enkeltpersoner, hvis ansættelseskontrakt hos SNCM er blevet afbrudt.
In that respect, the Commission confirms that, in compliance with the memorandum of understanding signed by the parties, the escrow account may be used solely for the purpose of financing compensation paid to individuals whose employment contracts with SNCM have been terminated prematurely.
De pågældende foranstaltninger har således hverken til formål eller til virkning at fristille ansatte, til hvem SNCM i mangel af disse foranstaltninger fortsat skulle have betalt løn eller fratrædelsesgodtgørelse.
Therefore, it is neither the intention nor the effect of those measures to make it possible for employees to leave who, without those measures, would have been able to remain the responsibility of SNCM.
Kommissionen bemærker desuden, at ydelsen af disse godtgørelser til medarbejdere, der afskediges efter salget af SNCM, blev godkendt af staten og ikke af virksomheden.
The Commission also notes that the grant of that compensation to workers laid off after the sale of SNCM was approved by the State in the exercise of its public authority and not by the company.
Kommissionen bemærker også, at disse supplerende sociale foranstaltninger går ud over den godtgørelse, der er fastsat i social- og arbejdsmarkedslovgivningen og gældende kollektive overenskomster.
Furthermore, the Commission notes that those additional social measures go beyond the compensation provided for by social legislation and the applicable collective agreements.
De omkostninger, der er forbundet med anvendelsen disse bestemmelser skal således fortsat dækkes i fuldt omfang af SNCM.
The costs arising out of the application of the latter therefore continue to be borne in their entirety by SNCM.
Endelig noterer Kommissionen sig, at disse supplerende sociale foranstaltninger skal gennemføres i tilfælde af, at overtagerne iværksætter en plan for personalenedskæringer, når SNCM først er overtaget.
Finally, the Commission observes that those additional social measures will be implemented if, once SNCM has been sold, the purchasers decide to reduce staff numbers.
De svarer med andre ord ikke til gennemførelsen af de planer for personalenedskæringer, der indgik i omstruktureringsplanen fra 2002.
In other words, that compensation does not relate to the planned staff reductions provided for under the 2002 restructuring plan.
Kommissionen mener derfor, at omkostningerne ved de supplerende sociale godtgørelser hverken er sammenfaldende med omkostningerne ved de socialplaner, der forelå før overtagelsen, og som blev dækket af staten, eller til de ovenfor anslåede sociale omkostninger ved en likvidation af SNCM.
Therefore, the Commission is of the opinion that the cost of the additional social compensation does not overlap either with the cost of the social plans borne by the State which were in existence prior to the transfer, or with the social costs estimated previously in the event of the compulsory liquidation of SNCM.