natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
Undersøgelsen indeholder imidlertid ikke nogen stærke beviser for denne procentdel, hverken kvantitative eller kvalitative.
On the contrary, by letter of 18 February 2014, Italy submitted that:
Der tages hverken udgangspunkt i faktiske omstændigheder vedrørende Ryanairs aktiviteter, lufttransportmarkeder eller lufthavnstjenester til underbygning af denne sats på 30 %.
the agreements with the airlines have been negotiated by the Director-General of So.Ge.A.AL;
Der etableres ingen forbindelse mellem denne sats og de faktorer, som nævnes overfladisk (en fremtrædende position, et stærkt brand, netværksvirkninger og tilbagevendende passagerer), og som formodes at forlænge fordelene ved aftalen om lufthavnstjenester og aftalen om markedsføringstjenester ud over deres udløbsdatoer.
the Director-General informed the Board of Directors on the status of the negotiations, the content of the agreements and the development prospects of the agreements in question;
Der fremlægges heller ingen dokumentation for, at vækstraten for lufttransportmarkedet i Europa er en nyttig indikator til at måle virkningen af en aftale om lufthavnstjenester og en markedsføringsaftale i en given lufthavn.
In addition, the Commission considers that the nature of So.Ge.A.AL's activities (airport management) is another indication that the measures at stake are imputable to the State given that regional airports are often seen by local and regional authorities as an important tool for fostering local economic development.
Desuden er markedsføringstjenesterne klart målrettet personer, som kan tænkes at benytte den rute, der dækkes af markedsføringsaftalen.
Third, in what follows the Commission shows that sufficient indications exist to the effect that the regional authorities have in fact incited the conclusion of the agreements in question, in particular — but not limited to — the agreements with the main airline operating at the airport, Ryanair.
Hvis denne rute ikke forlænges ved udløbet af aftalen om lufthavnstjenester, er det usandsynligt, at markedsføringstjenesterne fortsat vil have en positiv indvirkning på passagertrafikken i lufthavnen efter udløbsdatoen.
Those indications constitute evidence of imputability to the State in the sense of the Stardust Marine case-law [99].
Det er meget vanskeligt for en lufthavnsoperatør at vurdere sandsynligheden for, at et luftfartsselskab fortsætter med at drive en rute ved udløbet af den periode, som den har forpligtet sig til i aftalen om lufthavnstjenester.
Regional authorities were informed of and were expected to contribute to the costs resulting from the agreements with the airlines
Især lavprisselskaberne har vist, at de, når det drejer sig om at åbne og lukke ruter, er meget lydhøre over for markedsforholdene, der som oftest ændrer sig meget hurtigt.
The minutes of the meetings of the Board of Directors submitted by Italy in the course of the investigation demonstrate that Sardinia was informed of and consulted on the negotiation and agreed to the conclusion of contracts with the airlines operating at Alghero airport.
I den foreliggende sag oplyste Italien f.eks., at Germanwings besluttede at indstille driften fra Alghero lufthavn efter kun ét år, og derfor løb selskabets aftale med So.Ge.A.AL ikke i hele sin varighed (luftfartsselskabet havde indgået en treårig aftale med lufthavnen), da det ikke kunne skabe tilstrækkelig trafik til, at det kunne blive rentabelt.
By way of example, the minutes of the Board of Directors of 9 March 2000 indicate that the Board of Directors unanimously approved the agreements with airlines proposed by So.Ge.A.AL.
Det følger ligeledes af sagsakterne, at Ryanair mindst én gang (i 2009) havde taget sin virksomhed fra Alghero lufthavn op til revision.
So.Ge.A.AL reported in particular on the negotiations with Volare, Ryanair, Italair, Alpi Eagles, Air Dolomiti, Azzura and Gandalf Air.
Ved indgåelse af en transaktion som den, der undersøges i denne sag, vil en forsigtig markedsøkonomisk aktør derfor ikke satse på et luftfartsselskab, som udvider driften af den pågældende rute ved aftalens udløb.
As concerns Volare, it was reported that a new agreement under negotiation laid down a fixed payment of 4550000 per air traffic movement (‘ATM’) and EUR 3000 per passenger for a load factor of 60 %.
Sidst, men ikke mindst, bemærker Kommissionen, at denne tilgang med at inkludere en »slutværdi«, som Italien har fulgt i rekonstruktionen af en forudgående rentabilitetsanalyse af aftalerne fra 2006 og 2010, ikke blev anvendt af Italien ved overvejelserne om rentabiliteten af de aftaler, der blev indgået med andre luftfartsselskaber, som opererer i lufthavnen, selv om der var indgået markedsføringsaftaler med lufthavnsoperatøren.
The minutes of the Board of Directors of 18 December 2006 demonstrate that the Board of Directors was informed of the progress of the negotiations of the 2007 agreement with Germanwings.
Italiens argumentation på dette punkt beror på, at antallet af potentielle besøgende på websteder for andre luftfartsselskaber end Ryanair er betydeligt lavere end for besøgende på ryanair.com.
The consultation and agreement of the public authorities on the agreements concluded with the airlines operating at the airport was therefore not limited to Ryanair.
I betragtning af denne meget lavere popularitet ville det ikke være relevant at sætte tal på en slutværdi i rentabilitetsanalysen af aftalerne med andre luftfartsselskaber.
For instance, based on the minutes of the Management Board of 10 February 2002, the start-up by French carrier Auris of a route to Paris was decided only subject to explicit agreement by the shareholders including their commitment to cover any resulting financial obligations.
Kommissionen bemærker dog, at So.Ge.A.AL frem til 2006 havde indgået aftaler med Ryanair snarere end AMS.
The involvement of the public authorities in the decision to conclude agreements governing the operations of various carriers at Alghero airport as detailed in recitals 382 to 388 is a strong indication that the public authorities were generally involved in the conclusion of such agreements, even for carriers not mentioned in the evidence detailed in recitals 382 to 388.
En slutværdi blev ikke anset for at tegne sig for de fremtidige fortjenester efter udløbet af varigheden af de markedsføringsaftaler, So.Ge.A.AL indgik med Ryanair i 2002 og 2003.
When concluding the agreements with the airlines, So.Ge.A.AL acted on mandate from the public authorities
Det fremgår altså klart af betragtning 428-449, at den eneste fordel, som en forsigtig aktør under markedsøkonomiske vilkår ville kunne forvente af en markedsføringsaftale, og som den pågældende ville tage i betragtning ved beslutningen om, hvorvidt en sådan aftale skulle indgås sammen med en aftale om lufthavnstjenester, ville være, at markedsføringstjenesterne ville få en positiv indvirkning på antallet af passagerer, der benytter de pågældende ruter for disse ruters driftsperioder som fastsat i aftalerne.
The Commission considers that sufficient indications exist that the conclusion of the agreements with the airlines was incited and coordinated by the State.
Kommissionen mener, at alle andre mulige fordele er for usikre til at kunne kvantificeres og tages i betragtning.
For example, according to the minutes of the Shareholders Assembly meeting of 5 October 2001 So.Ge.A.AL was negotiating, ‘in agreement with the shareholders’, the start-up of an important route for Sardinia, namely the Alghero–London route, and temporarily bore the resulting costs, ‘which should have been borne by the public entities’.
Vurdering af meromkostninger og -indtægter
The minutes of the Board of Directors meetings also demonstrate that, in concluding the agreements with the airlines, the management had to take the requirements of the public authorities into account.
På baggrund af overvejelserne i betragtning 398-450 og med henblik på anvendelsen af det markedsøkonomiske aktørprincip skal Kommissionen i) undersøge hver af aftalerne om lufthavnstjenester sammen med eventuelle markedsføringsaftaler, herunder på tidspunktet, hvor en sådan aftale blev indgået med AMS, og ii) fastlægge de meromkostninger og -indtægter, der med rimelighed kunne forventes som følge af hver fælles transaktion, idet der tages hensyn til markedsføringsaftalernes virkning på de forventede belægningsgrader.
By way of example, in the meeting of the Board of Directors of 30 July 2004 the President of the Board informed of a meeting between different regional entities on the potential development of Ryanair's activities at the airport.
Aftalerne med Ryanair
Assurances were required from Sardinia as concerns the financing by regional funds of the costs connected with traffic development initiatives.
De aftaler om lufthavnstjenester, som So.Ge.A.AL indgik med Ryanair, vises i tabel 7:
The fact that, when concluding the agreements in question, So.Ge.A.AL acted under the influence of Sardinia is also evident in the 2000 ASA signed with Ryanair, which lays down that ‘So.Ge.A.AL, having interested the territory's institutional bodies, among which the Autonomous Regional government, and having received ample interest and consent regarding the initiative in question, is concluding with the aforementioned [i.e. Ryanair] for the payment of an economic contribution sufficient to cover the entire undertaking of the present Agreement’ (Preamble).
Tabel 7
According to the minutes of the meeting of the Board of Directors of 17 July 2009 it is clear that So.Ge.A.AL considered the co-marketing contributions to Ryanair as the result of political choices at regional level.
Aftaler om lufthavnstjenester indgået mellem So.Ge.A.AL og Ryanair
Consequently, So.Ge.A.AL considered that the required financial means had to be ensured by the regional authorities.
Aftale
The company also inquired on the negotiating margin with the carrier, if any, ‘given that So.Ge.A.AL's shareholders had not given the Board a mandate to terminate the agreement with the airline’.
(underskriftsdato)
In the course of the investigation Ryanair claimed that the public authorities' interference in the decisional process of So.Ge.A.AL would have been insufficiently proven by the Commission.
Periode, hvori aftalen skulle være gældende
The circumstance that ‘So.Ge.A.AL and Sardinia signed agreements in 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007 for co-marketing contributions’ would only support the position that Sardinia was financing So.Ge.A.AL, but not that it was directing So.Ge.A.AL's action towards Ryanair or AMS.
(22. juni 2000)
The Commission cannot accept Ryanair's argument.
22. juni 2000-21. juni 2010
First, as mentioned in recital 384, in the course of the investigation Italy explicitly confirmed that the conclusion of the agreements with the airlines was an integral part of Sardinia's strategy to increase tourist flows to and from the island.
(25. januar 2002)
The references to the discussions between So.Ge.A.AL and its public shareholders underlying the regional and economic development objective pursued by RAS in respect of the agreements concluded by So.Ge.A.AL with carriers operating at Alghero airport show that So.Ge.A.AL implemented regional policies within the instructions and guidelines received from the public entities.
1. januar 2002-31. december 2012
Therefore, the Commission concludes that the agreements entered into by So.Ge.A.AL and various carriers operating at Alghero airport and which are subject to the formal investigation procedure are imputable to the State.
(1. september 2003)
In the course of the investigation Italy claimed that, when concluding each of the agreements with airlines that fall within the scope of this investigation, So.Ge.A.AL acted as a prudent MEO guided by profitability perspectives would have done in a similar situation, such that the measures under assessment do not confer any economic advantage that the airlines would not have obtained under normal market conditions.
1. september 2003-1. september 2014
General considerations
(3. april 2006)
According to the 2014 Aviation Guidelines, by virtue of the MEOP, aid to an airline using an airport can, in principle, be excluded where:
1. januar 2006-31. december 2010
the price charged for the airport services corresponds to the market price, or
ASA 2010
it can be demonstrated through an ex ante analysis, namely an analysis based on the data which would have been available at the moment the measures in question were decided, that the airport/airline arrangement could be expected to lead to a positive incremental profit contribution for the airport [100].
(20. oktober 2010)
In addition, according to the 2014 Aviation Guidelines, ‘when assessing airport/airline arrangements, the Commission will also take into account the extent to which the arrangements under assessment can be considered part of the implementation of an overall strategy of the airport expected to lead to profitability at least in the long term.’ [101].
1. januar 2010-31. december 2013
As concerns the first approach mentioned at recital 398 (comparison of the price charged for airport services with the market price), the Commission has strong doubts that an appropriate benchmark can be defined so as to establish the market value of the services provided by airports.
Ingen af disse forretningsplaner gælder dog en særlig aftale indgået mellem So.Ge.A.AL og de luftfartsselskaber, der flyver fra og til Alghero lufthavn eller AMS.
At present the Commission considers ex ante incremental profitability analysis to be the most relevant criterion for the assessment of arrangements concluded by airports with individual airlines [102].
Desuden omfatter de ikke hele varigheden af So.Ge.A.AL's aftaler med disse luftfartsselskaber.
It is worth noting in this sense that in general the application of the MEOP in reference to an average price observed on comparable markets may be reliable to the extent a market price may be identified or deducted from other market indicators.
På grundlag af disse analyser kunne So.Ge.A.AL med rimelighed forvente, at aftalerne med Ryanair ville være rentable for lufthavnen på det tidspunkt, hvor de blev indgået.
Indeed, the structure of costs and revenues tend to differ quite significantly from one airport to another.
So.Ge.A.AL's forretningsplan for 2000 er blevet brugt i den rekonstruerede analyse af den forventede rentabilitet af aftalerne om lufthavnstjenester for 2000, 2002 og 2003, mens forretningsplanerne for 2004 og 2009 er blevet anvendt i den rekonstruerede analyse af aftalerne om lufthavnstjenester for 2006 og 2010.
Those costs and revenues depend on the development of the airport, the state of the airport infrastructure, the number or aid carriers operating at the airport, the airport's capacity, the regulatory framework at national level, which may be different from one Member State to another, as well as the deficits and obligations incurred by the airport in the past.
Det har imidlertid ikke været muligt at udlede alle de ekstra indtægter og omkostninger, der er knyttet til hver aftale med Ryanair, af So.Ge.A.AL's forretningsplaner.
Moreover, the liberalisation of the air transport market complicates any purely comparative analysis.
For disse kategorier af ekstra indtægter og omkostninger, som ikke kunne have været udledt af forretningsplanerne, baserede Italien sin analyse af merfortjenesten af de aftaler, So.Ge.A.AL havde indgået med Ryanair, på bestemmelserne i aftalerne om lufthavnstjenester og markedsføringsaftalerne.
As can be seen in this case, commercial practices between airports and airlines are not always based exclusively on a published schedule of charges.
Tabel 8
Rather, these commercial relations are very varied.
NNV af de forventede pengestrømme fra Ryanairs aftaler — MEOP-rapporten fra 2014 [108]
They include sharing risks with regard to passenger traffic and any related commercial and financial liability, standard incentive schemes and adapting the spread of risks during the term of the agreements.
NNV i aftalens løbetid (mio. EUR) [109]
Consequently, one transaction cannot easily be compared with another based on a turnaround price or price per passenger.
ASA 2000
In the course of the investigation Ryanair has claimed that in order to exclude an economic advantage that would not be obtained under normal market conditions the charges in the agreements with the airlines operating at Alghero airport have to be compared with charges paid by Ryanair at similar airports over an appropriate timeframe.
[4-8] [110]
[…] Airports have been selected by Ryanair as the most relevant comparators for the purposes of this analysis [103].
ASA 2002
[…] is ultimately owned by […], which is in turn owned by various local authorities from the […] area.
[3-6]
Ryanair noted that […]'s annual reports do not provide any indication of State funding, and that the airport has made profits every year since at least […].
[9-12]
Ryanair's operations at […] Airport started in […].
De antagelser, der ligger til grund for den rekonstruerede rentabilitetsanalyse, er nærmere beskrevet i betragtning 459-471.
The airport has consistently been privately owned, which in Ryanair's view would suggest that the airport can be used as a comparator in the application of the MEO test.
Luftfartsindtægter
According to Ryanair, the results from comparing the data on charges paid by Ryanair at Alghero airport with charges at comparable airports are mixed.
Italien tog hensyn til de forskellige kategorier af luftfartsrelaterede indtægter, navnlig indtægterne fra afgifter som f.eks. landing, groundhandling og billettering.
If it is assumed that no municipal tax is returned to the region, the charges payable by Ryanair at Alghero airport are, on average, lower than those at comparators on both a per-passenger and a per-aircraft basis.
Hvor det er muligt, blev de afgifter, der er fastsat i aftalerne om lufthavnstjenester anvendt.
However, if it is assumed that a proportion of the municipal tax — specifically, 66 %, based on information provided by Ryanair — is returned to the region, average charges paid by Ryanair at Alghero airport are higher than at those paid at […] Airport, although still lower than those paid at […] Airport.
For disse afgifter, som ikke er specificeret i aftalerne, er antagelserne baseret på fakturadata fra Ryanair.
Ryanair suggests that this could be partly explained by the lower GDP in Sardinia, compared with the GDP in […] and […].
Ryanair fik en rabat på håndteringsomkostninger, der afspejler omfanget af luftfartsselskabets aktiviteter i lufthavnen, hvilket afspejledes i aftalerne.
The Commission agrees that a benchmarking of airport charges cannot be excluded outright as a possible approach to assess the presence of aid to airlines.
For at udlede merindtægterne fra luftfart supplerede So.Ge.A.AL oplysningerne om Ryanairs passagerer og flyekspeditioner af aftalerne om lufthavnstjenester med oplysninger fra forretningsplanerne.
However, the identification of a benchmark requires that a sufficient number of comparable airports providing comparable services under normal market conditions can be selected.
Der var ikke fastsat nogen trafikprognoser i aftalerne om lufthavnstjenester fra 2000, 2002 og 2003.
According to paragraph 54 of the 2014 Aviation Guidelines, an appropriate benchmark among airports whose managers behave as MEO has to be identified on the basis of available and relevant market prices.
Derfor er de trafikprognoser, der ligger til grund for analysen af disse aftaler, udledt af So.Ge.A.AL's forretningsplan for 2000, som indeholdt fremskrivninger for Ryanairs trafik i lufthavnen.
This benchmark should take into account indicators such as traffic volumes, type of traffic, the importance of freight and the relative importance of revenue stemming from the non-aeronautical activities of the airport, type and level of airport services provided, proximity of the airport to a large city, number of inhabitants in the catchment area of the airport, prosperity of the surrounding area (GDP per capita), and the different geographical areas from which passengers could be attracted.
Selv om der faktisk var fastsat visse trafikmål for Ryanair i luftfartsaftalerne fra 2006 og 2010, har Italien forklaret, at disse mål ikke afspejlede So.Ge.A.AL's forventninger til det samlede niveau for Ryanairs trafik i den pågældende lufthavn.
In that respect the Commission notes that, even if some airports are privately owned or managed without social or regional considerations, the prices charged by these airports might be strongly influenced by the prices charged by other publicly subsidized airport managers as these latter prices are taken into account by airlines during their negotiations with the privately owned or managed airports.
So.Ge.A.AL mente snarere, at målene udgjorde minimale kontraktlige tilsagn fra Ryanair.
In this case, the Commission notes that Ryanair itself considered that as Alghero airport is located on an island, with not many large cities or airports in proximity, it is difficult to find comparators with nearly identical characteristics.
For aftalerne om lufthavnstjenester fra 2006 og 2010 blev trafikprognoserne derfor baseret på de forretningsplaner, der blev udarbejdet af So.Ge.A.AL på det nærmeste tidspunkt før undertegnelsen af disse aftaler 2006 og 2010 (dvs. at trafikprognoserne er baseret på So.Ge.A.AL's forretningsplaner fra 2004 og 2009).
Ryanair further noted that the mixed results of the benchmarking exercise could be explained by the difference in GDP in Sardinia, compared with the GDP in the areas where potential comparator airports are located.
Eftersom So.Ge.A.AL's forretningsplaner ikke dækker hele varigheden af selskabets aftaler med luftfartsselskaberne, er prognoserne for lufttrafik (tur-retur-flyvninger) og passagerafgange blevet udviklet for de år, som ikke er omfattet af forretningsplanerne, med henblik på at udvide rentabilitetsanalysen over hele levetiden for aftalerne med Ryanair; udviklingen er sket i to trin.
Finally, the Commission notes that even if reliable comparators were available, a benchmarking exercise would in any event not have been possible in the present case.
For det første er antallet af Ryanairs tur-retur-flyvninger beregnet ved at ajourføre antallet af turnarounds i det sidste år, der er indeholdt i forretningsplanen, idet den årlige vækst i ekspeditioner antages at være 19 %.
Indeed, the arrangements under investigation include airport services and marketing agreements which lay down different ‘prices’, namely different airport charges, handling charges and the marketing fees.
Ikkeluftfartsrelaterede indtægter
Some of those charges depend on the number of passengers, some on the number of turnarounds, whilst others are fixed.
Antagelserne om ikkeluftfartsrelaterede indtægter er baseret på de forretningsplaner, So.Ge.A.AL udarbejdede på det nærmeste tidspunkt lige før undertegnelsen af hver aftale om lufthavnstjenester, jf. tabel 9:
Therefore each of those agreements imply complex financial flows between the airport manager and the airlines (and their subsidiaries) operating at the airport, namely airport charges, handling fees and marketing fees.
Tabel 9
Therefore the Commission considers that a comparison between the airport charges charged by So.Ge.A.AL to the airlines operating at Alghero airport with the airport charges payable at comparator airports would not provide any useful indication for the purpose of applying the MEOP.
Antagelser om forventede ikkeluftfartsrelaterede indtægter
In order for such a benchmarking exercise to produce reliable results, it would be necessary that at least comparable arrangements are found at the comparator airports, which should include in particular similar marketing payments and handling fees.
Ikkeluftfartsrelaterede indtægter pr. afrejsende passager
Given the specificity and complexity of the arrangements at stake, the Commission considers that such benchmarking exercise cannot be carried out, notably also given that the prices charged for handling services and marketing services are rarely made public and would therefore not be readily available for the purpose of such exercise.
Kilde
Neither has Ryanair provided such data for the two comparators.