natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
De slovakiske myndigheder henviser til, at der ved det første udbud blev budt en pris på kun 2 mio. EUR, og hævder, at ingen rationelt handlende tilbudsgiver ville have påtaget sig forpligtelser af den størrelsesorden.
This set of indicators was confirmed by the Court in its decision of 28 March 2012 in Ryanair v Commission, which confirmed the Alitalia decision [27].
Forpligtelserne omfattede investeringer på mindst 11 mio. EUR.
In view of the sale of the NCHZ business to Via Chem Slovakia, and subsequently to Fortischem, the Commission will thus analyse, on the basis of the above listed criteria, whether there is an economic continuity between NCHZ and the business ultimately acquired and currently operated by Fortischem.
Disse investeringer tog imidlertid specielt sigte på at finansiere foranstaltninger, der skulle sikre overholdelse af de gældende miljøregler, hvilket var nødvendigt for en fortsat kemikalieproduktion.
The Commission considers that it is not appropriate to analyse separately the economic continuity of the two transactions leading to the acquisition of NCHZ's business activities by Fortischem, i.e. first the sale to Via Chem Slovakia and then the sale to Fortischem.
Enhver tilbudsgiver, som ønskede at videreføre kemikalieproduktionen, ville være nødt til at foretage disse investeringer, og også de tilbudsgivere, der ikke ville påtage sig forpligtelserne, var derfor nødt til at tage højde for dette beløb.
Via Chem Slovakia sold the business to Fortischem in the second transaction on 1 August 2012, i.e. only one day after closing the first transaction.
Selv om de to andre forpligtelser (se betragtning (17)) også havde en potentiel indvirkning på prisen, ville en køber, der havde planer om at fortsætte eller måske udvide driften af NCHZ, ikke finde disse forpligtelser særlig byrdefulde i betragtning af den forrang, udbudsbetingelserne gav tilbudsgivere, der påtog sig disse forpligtelser.
Therefore, Via Chem Slovakia never actually managed and operated the NCHZ business activities it acquired.
Muligheden for, at der blev afgivet bud med disse forpligtelser, kan derfor ikke afvises som »yderst usandsynlig«, og denne mulighed kunne derfor påvirke den budte pris.
The Commission acknowledges that the scope of the two transactions is not exactly the same, since Via Chem Slovakia retained ownership of certain immovable assets (buildings and land).
Selv om der i sidste instans ikke indkom nogen bud med forpligtelser, åbnede udbudsbetingelserne ikke mulighed for deltagelse af det største mulige antal tilbudsgivere, der konkurrerede med hinanden om at afgive det bedste bud, hvilket er en nødvendig forudsætning for et salg til den højest mulige markedspris.
However, it is evident from the information provided that all the economic activities of NCHZ acquired by Via Chem Slovakia were immediately transferred to Fortischem.
Desuden var salget udformet som salg af hele virksomheden som en going concern, dvs. omfattende alle aktiver som en samlet pakke, og ingen af tilbudsgiverne kunne købe nogen af aktiverne særskilt.
With the sole exception of the immovable assets, Fortischem took over from Via Chem Slovakia all assets and rights related to chemical production (production machines and equipment, contracts etc.) as well as commitments related to chemical production (including all employment contracts).
Det udelukkede muligheden for at opnå den højst mulige endelige pris ved, at der kunne bydes på forskellige dele af NCHZ (samtidig med at man derved undgik eller begrænsede potentielle problemer i tilfælde af en indstilling af driften).
The immovable assets that were not sold to Fortischem but were necessary for the continuation of the NCHZ economic activities were made available to Fortischem on the basis of a lease contract.
Kommissionen hæfter sig ved, at det af oplysningerne fra de slovakiske myndigheder fremgår, at der var potentielle tilbudsgivere, som var interesseret i kun at overtage nogle dele af NCHZ (f.eks. var bluO Epsilon Limited interesseret i at overtage carbid-produktionsanlæggene).
Therefore, the Commission will directly analyse whether there is economic continuity between NCHZ and its business activities acquired by Fortischem.
Det kan derfor ikke udelukkes, at et salg af de forskellige dele af NCHZ ikke ville have ført til en højere samlet salgspris.
The specific features of the two transactions will be taken into account to the extent that they are relevant to this assessment.
I forbindelse med Via Chem Slovakias videresalg af virksomheden til Fortischem var der tale om en transaktion mellem to private parter uden noget udbud.
Selling price
Prisen blev simpelthen aftalt mellem de to private parter uden nogen mulighed for, at andre kunne tilbyde en højere pris.
In its decision to open the formal investigation procedure the Commission expressed doubts as to whether the price of EUR 2,2 million paid for the company's assets by Via Chem Slovakia, the successful bidder, represented a market price.
Den tvivl, der hersker om, hvorvidt den af Via Chem Slovakia betalte pris udgjorde markedsprisen, gør sig derfor også gældende for den pris, der blev betalt af Fortischem.
The tender came with conditions attached that appear likely to have lowered the value of the assets.
I lyset af det ovenstående forekommer det sandsynligt, at NCHZ's aktiver ikke blev solgt på en måde, der sikrede det størst mulige provenu.
According to the tender conditions potential bidders could choose whether to make their bid with or without undertaking the ‘Commitments of the Transferee’ (for details see recitals 17 and 18).
På baggrund af det ovenstående har Kommissionen draget den konklusion, at den pris, Via Chem Slovakia betalte for NCHZ, formentlig ikke var den reelle markedspris, da udbudsbetingelserne såvel som den omstændighed, at tilbudsgiverne var nødt til at byde på den samlede pakke af aktiver, havde en indvirkning på prisen.
The rules of the tender stipulated that, if the highest bid came from a bidder that chose not to undertake the commitments, the highest bidder making those commitments would have the chance to match the highest bid.
Transaktionens omfang
The Commission considers that this possibility for one bidder to raise his bid after all the bids have been submitted is likely to discourage potential participants and/or have a negative impact on the bids that are made.
For at der kan antages ikke at bestå økonomisk kontinuitet, må de aktiver og andre dele af virksomheden, der afhændes, kun udgøre en del af den oprindelige virksomhed eller dens aktiviteter.
In fact, one of the elements that ensure that the highest price is achieved in a tender is the uncertainty as regards the prices offered by the other bidders.
Jo større en del af den oprindelige virksomhed, der overtages, desto større er sandsynligheden for, at den økonomiske drift af disse aktiver fortsat nyder godt af den uforenelige statsstøtte.
If a bidder submitting a bid with commitments knows that his bid need only be the highest among the bids with commitments and that he will be able to match his bid to that of the highest bidder not undertaking the commitments, he may well put in a lower bid than if no opportunity to match is provided for in the tender conditions.
Selv om Slovakiet hævder, at salget var et »salg af aktiver«, fremgår det af omstændighederne omkring dette salg, at virksomhed blev solgt som en going concern.
Furthermore, this condition could discourage bidders who do not wish to bid with commitments because they know that, even if their bid is the highest, it may be rejected because another buyer who is prepared to undertake the commitments can increase its bid.
Som nævnt i betragtning (19), overtog den nye ejer alle aktiverne og i det mindste en del af de passiver, der kunne overføres.
If this occurs, the bidder without commitments is not given the opportunity to re-bid and offer a higher purchase price.
Den virksomhed, som Fortischem, overtog, var af det samme omfang som NCHZ tidligere virksomhed.
In view of the above, the tender conditions seem to give preference to bidders undertaking the commitments, since if two bidders offer the same price, one with commitments and one without, the bid with the commitments is preferred over the other one.
Det fremgår klart, når man sammenligner NCHZ's produktionsprogram lige i begyndelsen af konkursbehandlingen [29] med det nuværende produktionsprogram ifølge Fortischems hjemmeside [30].
This would appear to be an indication that the price that would be achieved in the absence of the commitments could potentially be higher than the price offered by the winning bidder.
I begge tilfælde består såvel NCHZ's som Fortischems primære produktion af uorganiske (elektrolytiske) kemikalier, bl.a. calciumcarbid, organiske kemikalier, polymerer og biprodukter fra PVC-forarbejdning.
It can reasonably be presumed that the obligation to fulfil the commitments has financial implications for the buyer which it takes into account when submitting its bid.
Alle de 14 vigtigste produkter på disse produktionsområder, som tegnede sig for 99 % af NCHZ's indtjening i 2008 [31], produceres også af Fortischem.
In the absence of the commitments, the price offered by that buyer would thus likely be higher.
Både produktionsprogrammet for og indtægterne af den overtagne virksomhed forblev altså de samme som NCHZ's.
Slovakia argues that even a bidder offering to accept commitments could not be sure that there would be no other bidder offering commitments with a potentially higher bid.
Desuden fulgte over 95 % af NCHZ's ansatte med til Fortischem.
However, this does not undermine the fact that bidders without commitments were in general treated less favourably than bidders with commitments, and that potential bidders not willing to undertake the commitments could thereby have been discouraged from participating.
De ansatte blev ikke afskediget og derefter genansat af Fortischem, deres ansættelseskontrakter blev simpelthen overtaget af Fortischem.
Slovakia also argues that, in view of the total volume of the commitments, which exceeded EUR 11 million, it was highly unlikely that any bidder would submit a bid undertaking these commitments.
Slovakiet fremfører, at det var under 60 % af virksomheden, der blev overtaget, især fordi fast ejendom ikke indgik i salget.
It claims that, in particular in view of the price of only EUR 2 million offered during the first tender, no rational participant in the tender would have undertaken commitments with such financial implications.
Men som det fremgår af betragtning (134), har Fortischem lejet den faste ejendom (bygninger og grunde), der er nødvendig til kemikalieproduktionen, af Via Chem Slovakia.
The commitments in fact include investments of at least EUR 11 million.
Bortset fra den faste ejendom overtog Fortischem alle NCHZ's andre aktiver, rettigheder og forpligtelser.
However, the investment is earmarked to finance measures ensuring compliance with the applicable environmental rules necessary for the continuation of chemical production.
Fortischem driver NCHZ's virksomhed videre med den samme produktportefølje.
Any bidder wishing to continue chemical production would need to make such an investment and this amount would thus need to be taken into account also by bidders not undertaking the commitments.
Fortischem har desuden beholdt den hidtidige NCHZ-ledelse.
While the other two commitments (referred to in recital 17) did have a potential effect on price, a buyer planning to maintain or even expand NCHZ's activities would not find those commitments excessively burdensome, considering the advantage granted in the tender to bidders with commitments.
F. eks. er den person, der var NCHZ's administrerende direktør før overtagelsen, i dag direktionsformand hos Fortischem.
Therefore, the possibility of a bid undertaking commitments cannot be discounted as ‘extremely improbable’ and this possibility was therefore liable to influence the price offered in the tender.
Hvad angår transaktionens omfang finder Kommissionen derfor, at Fortischem reelt overtog alle NCHZ's økonomiske aktiviteter sammen med alle dertil knyttede aktiver, rettigheder og forpligtelser.
In addition, the sale was organised as a sale of the whole business as a going concern, i.e. with all the assets bundled together and no bidder could buy any asset separately.
At nogle af aktiverne ikke ejes, men lejes af Fortischem, ændrer intet ved, at Fortischem simpelthen driver NCHZ's virksomhed videre med det samme omfang som før transaktionen.
This excluded the possibility of maximising the final price through bidding for partial areas of NCHZ's activities (while at the same time avoiding or limiting potential difficulties stemming from the possible discontinuation of operations).
Desuden hævder de to interesserede parter, som fremsatte bemærkninger i sagen, at Fortischem optræder på samme måde, som NCHZ gjorde, og udbyder de samme produkter på de samme geografiske markeder, og at den eneste synlige ændring er det ændrede navn.
The Commission observes that the documents submitted by the Slovak authorities indicate that there were potential bidders who were interested in acquiring only some parts of NCHZ's business (for example, bluO Epsilon Limited was interested in acquiring only the carbide production facilities).
Det konkluderes derfor, at Fortischem driver NCHZ videre uden nogen større ændringer i forretnings-, personale- eller produktionspolitik.
Therefore, it cannot be excluded that a sale of partial areas of NCHZ's business would not have led to a higher total sales price.
Når ejerne af en overtagende virksomhed er de samme som ejerne af den overtagne virksomhed, er det et stærkt indicium for økonomisk kontinuitet.
The price was simply negotiated between the two private parties without any possibility for other parties to offer a higher price.
I denne sag var Kommissionen ikke i stand til at tilvejebringe dokumentation for klagerens påstand om, at der er forbindelser mellem de oprindelige og de nuværende ejere af NCHZ.
Therefore, the doubts as to whether the price paid by Via Chem Slovakia corresponded to a market price also relate to the price paid by Fortischem.
De direkte ejere er ikke de samme, men det er ikke muligt at fremskaffe uafhængige og pålidelige oplysninger om, hvem der i sidste instans ejer nogle af de direkte eller indirekte moderselskaber, der har hjemsted på Cypern.
In view of the above, it appears likely that NCHZ's assets were not sold in a manner that ensured the maximisation of revenue for the transferred business.
De slovakiske myndigheder har fremlagt erklæringer afgivet på tro og love af Fortischems nuværende moderselskab, Energochemica, om, at Fortischems ejere ikke har nogen forbindelse til NCHZ's tidligere ejere.
In view of the above, the Commission concludes that the price paid by Via Chem Slovakia for NCHZ's business was probably not a true market price, as the conditions of the tender as well as the fact that bidders had to bid for all assets bundled together had an impact on the price.
I mangel af bevis for det modsatte antager Kommissionen, at der ikke er nogen forbindelse mellem de oprindelige og de nye ejere af den NCHZ-virksomhed, der blev overtaget af Fortischem.
Scope of the transaction
Timingen af salget
In order to avoid economic continuity, the assets and other elements of the business transferred need to represent only a part of the previous company or its activities.
Salget fandt sted, efter at Kommissionen havde indledt en undersøgelse af klagen og videresendt klagen til Slovakiet med opfordring til at fremsætte bemærkninger hertil.
The larger the part of the original business that is transferred to a new entity, the higher the likelihood that the economic activity related to these assets continues to benefit from the incompatible aid.
Derfor var i hvert fald den slovakiske stat vidende om, at der var mulighed for, at de her omhandlede foranstaltninger kunne udgøre ulovlig og uforenelig statsstøtte, som ville skulle tilbagesøges.
Although Slovakia claims that the sale was an ‘asset deal’, the terms of the sale actually indicate that the company was sold as a going concern.
Transaktionens økonomiske logik
As indicated in recital 19 above, all assets and at least part of the transferable commitments were sold to the new owner.
Formålet med kriteriet angående den økonomiske logik er at afklare, om køberen af aktiverne anvender dem på samme måde, som sælger gjorde, eller om han derimod lader dem indgå i sin egen forretningsstrategi og derved opnår synergivirkninger som begrundelse for sin interesse i at overtage disse aktiver.
The sale of NCHZ to Via Chem Slovakia was approved by the Slovak Competition Authority on 19 July 2012.
Fortischem overtog alle NCHZ's kemikalieaktiviteter, dvs. størsteparten af NCHZ's virksomhed, som en going concern, sammen med over 95 % af medarbejderne og de dertil knyttede rettigheder og forpligtelser.
From this decision it is clear that the entire business of NCHZ, as a going concern, was the object of the notified merger and thus of the sale [28].
Som det fremgår af det ovenstående, er Fortischems produktsortiment og aktiviteter identiske med NCHZ's.
The scope of activity of the business acquired by Fortischem remains the same as the previous scope of NCHZ's activities.
Fortischem udtalte også offentligt i pressen, at man ikke havde planer om nogen større ændringer i driften af NCHZ og NCHZ's aktiviteter [35].
This is demonstrated by a comparison of the production programme of NCHZ at the very beginning of the bankruptcy proceedings [29] with the current production programme according to the website of Fortischem [30].
Selv om Fortischem indgår i en større koncern, nemlig Energochemica-koncernen, ser der ikke ud til at være nogen større synergivirkninger i forhold til andre virksomheder i koncernen.
In both cases, the main areas of activity of NCHZ and Fortischem respectively consist of inorganic (electrolytic) chemicals, including calcium carbide, organic chemicals, polymers and PVC processing products.
Nogle af dem er også aktive i kemikalieindustrien, men inden for andre områder (lysstabilisatorer, phenolharpikser, vaske- og rengøringsmidler osv.), og der forekommer derfor ikke at være nogen væsentlig forbindelse med Fortischems aktiviteter.
All 14 key products from these production areas, representing 99 % of NCHZ's revenue in 2008 [31], are also produced by Fortischem.
Der var derfor ingen større ændring af forretningsstrategi, og Fortischem anvender simpelthen aktiverne på samme måde, som sælgeren gjorde.
The revenue generated by the above products sold by Fortischem totalled EUR 161,3 million in 2013 [32].
Konklusion i spørgsmålet om økonomisk kontinuitet mellem NCHZ og de økonomiske aktiviteter, som Fortischem overtog og driver
This revenue is comparable to NCHZ's revenue of around EUR 150-160 million during the bankruptcy proceedings [33].
Som helhed forekommer de eneste ændringer at dreje sig om virksomhedens navn og koncerntilhørsforhold.
Therefore, both the production programme and the revenue of the transferred business remained the same as those of NCHZ.
Ifølge punkt 1.2 i udbudsbetingelserne skulle NCHZ afhændes samlet, som en pakke bestående af materielle og immaterielle aktiver og medarbejdere.
More than 95 % of NCHZ's 1412 employees were also transferred to Fortischem.
Og endelig svarer den pris, der blev betalt for NCHZ, formentlig ikke til markedsprisen.
The employees were not made redundant and then rehired by Fortischem, instead their employment contracts were simply transferred to Fortischem.
Kommissionen har derfor draget den konklusion, at der består økonomisk kontinuitet mellem NCHZ og Fortischem.
Slovakia argues that less than 60 % of the business was transferred, in particular because no immovable property was included.
På baggrund af det ovenstående finder Kommissionen, at den fordel, NCHZ modtog fra den slovakiske stat, udgør ulovlig og uforenelig statsstøtte, og at kravet om tilbagesøgning af denne uforenelige statsstøtte til NCHZ må udvides til også at gælde virksomhedens nye ejer.
However, as explained above (see recital 134), Fortischem leases the immovable property (land and buildings) necessary for the chemical production from Via Chem Slovakia.
Med videreførelsen af produktionsaktiviteterne på markedet nyder Fortischem fortsat godt af den statsstøtte, der blev ydet til NCHZ's økonomiske aktiviteter, og som fortsat fordrejer konkurrencen på markedet.
Apart from the immovable property, all other assets, rights and obligations related to the transferred business were taken over by Fortischem.
KONKLUSION
Fortischem thus runs the business of NCHZ and continues with the same product portfolio.
Kommissionen har konkluderet, at den slovakiske regerings beslutning om at tillægge NCHZ status som strategisk virksomhed i henhold til loven og dermed beskytte virksomheden mod de normale konsekvenser af en konkurs udgjorde statsstøtte som omhandlet i artikel 107, stk. 1, i TEUF.
In addition, Fortischem also kept the existing NCHZ management.
Kommissionen finder desuden, at denne støtte blev ydet ulovligt i strid med anmeldelses- og stilstandsforpligtelsen efter artikel 108, stk. 3, i TEUF.
For example, the CEO of NCHZ before the transfer of the business has become the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Fortischem.
Endelig finder Kommissionen også, at denne støtte er uforenelig med det indre marked, da de relevante betingelser i 2004-retningslinjerne for kriseramte virksomheder ikke var opfyldt, og der ikke kunne påvises nogen andre forenelighedsgrunde.
At the time of the acquisition of the NCHZ business, Fortischem also publicly announced in the press that it did not plan any major changes as regards staff or production and that it would keep the existing management [34].
Denne støtte skal tilbagesøges fra NCHZ, og dette tilbagesøgningskrav bør udvides til også at gælde for Fortischem, da der består økonomisk kontinuitet mellem denne og NCHZ —
Therefore, as regards the scope of the transaction, Fortischem effectively took over all the economic activities of NCHZ, together with all the associated assets, rights and obligations.
VEDTAGET DENNE AFGØRELSE:
The fact that part of the assets are used on the basis of a lease contract rather than direct ownership does not change the fact that Fortischem simply continues with the economic activities of NCHZ in the same scope as before the transaction.
Artikel 1
In addition, the two interested parties that submitted comments also claim that Fortischem continues to behave in the same way as NCHZ did, offering the same portfolio of products on the same geographic markets and that the only visible change is the change of name.
Den statsstøtte på 4783424,10 EUR, som Slovakiet ydede til NCHZ ved at erklære NCHZ for en strategisk vigtig virksomhed og dermed beskytte den mod de normale konsekvenser af en konkurs, blev ydet ulovligt i strid med artikel 108, stk. 3, i traktaten om Den Europæiske Unions funktionsmåde og er uforenelig med det indre marked.
Therefore, Fortischem continues the business of NCHZ without any major changes in commercial, staff or production policy.
Artikel 2
Identity of the owners
Beslutningen om at fortsætte driften af NCHZ efter lovens udløb på grundlag af kreditorudvalgets beslutning udgjorde ikke statsstøtte efter artikel 107, stk. 1, i TEUF.
Where the owners of an acquiring company are the same as those of the selling company, this would be a strong indication of economic continuity.
Artikel 3
In this case, the Commission was not able to collect any evidence that would confirm the claims of the complainant that there are links between the original and the new final owners of the NCHZ business.
På grund af den økonomiske kontinuitet mellem NCHZ og Fortischem skal kravet om tilbagebetaling også gælde for Fortischem.
However, the Slovak authorities submitted sworn statements by Energochemica, the current parent company of Fortischem, declaring that the owners of Fortischem are not in any way related to the former owners of NCHZ.
Den støtte, der skal tilbagebetales, pålægges renter fra det tidspunkt, hvor den blev stillet til rådighed for NCHZ, og indtil den er tilbagebetalt.
In the absence of any evidence to the contrary, the Commission presumes that there are no links between the original and the new owners of the NCHZ business transferred to Fortischem.