natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
Med tidshorisonten i de prognoser, som de franske myndigheder har fremsendt, ville den forventelige nedbringelse af gearingseffekten og under alle omstændigheder skattebeløbets beskedne indvirkning på gældsgraden have fået en fornuftig privat markedsøkonomisk investor til enten at sænke sine forventninger til investeringens rentabilitet eller til ikke at vurdere, at investeringen i egenkapital med skattebeløbet var begrundet i nødvendigheden af at forbedre EDF's gældssituation i 1997.
In their letter the ministers explain the restructuring of the upper part of EDF's balance sheet pursuant to Article 4 of Act No 97-1026 of 10 November 1997 and appear to reach a tacit decision on the tax implications of the restructuring, without there being any question of a profitable investment or of any mandatory requirements of the law.
I den henseende forekommer den forrentning, som staten som aktionær forventede for perioden 1997-2000 jf. de franske myndigheders oplysninger meget ringere end de 6,35 %, der blev ydet på franske statsobligationer i samme periode.
Hence the concern for EDF's activities to become more international evident in the 1997-2000 contract and the preparatory documents, as well as the parliamentary documents.
Desuden kunne denne forrentning de facto nedskrives med den skat, der blev betalt til staten som skatteudskrivningsmyndighed (jf. betragtning 103 og 106).
The contract itself presupposes that its implementation will require a regularising legislative measure such as that laid down in Act No 97-1026, thereby establishing a de facto link between the objectives of the contract and of the legislator.
Forrentningen til aktionæren var også betydeligt udhulet på det tidspunkt, hvor staten foretog den påståede investering.
However, neither the contract concluded in April 1997 nor the preparatory documents or exchanges with EDF's line ministries take a position on the precise amount of tax.
Enhver aktionær ville have noteret sig det pludselige og meget store fald i forrentningen af kapitaltilførslerne negativt.
This context, outlined by the evidence cited by France in its comments, does not, however, establish beyond doubt that the measure could be ascribed to a shareholder making an investment.
Denne forrentning skulle falde fra reelt 9,32 % i gennemsnit i perioden 1991-1996 til forventet 4,64 % i perioden 1997-2000, dvs. en nedsættelse med over halvdelen.
The need to correct the irregularities identified by the Court of Auditors in October 1994 is also part of the picture.
Sat i forhold til egenkapitalen faldt rentabiliteten fra 14,1 % i gennemsnit ultimo 1996 til forventet 2,94 % i perioden 1997-2000 (jf. betragtning 92 og 102, tabel 1 og 3).
While, on one side, there was a need to correct an accounting irregularity that had allowed EDF to avoid paying corporation tax for years, on the other, the French authorities stressed that the measure did not call into question EDF's monopoly (recital 105) and that the stable framework allowed by the liberalisation of the market should be maintained (recital 95).
En fornuftig privat investor kan ganske vist acceptere en nedsættelse af sin løbende forrentning ved udsigten til en vækst i virksomheden, der enten giver sig udslag i en bedre fremtidig forrentning eller en stigning i virksomhedens værdi, som vil kunne generere en merværdi ved salg af dens aktiver som udtryk for en ejendomsret til virksomheden.
Although liberalisation opened up possibilities for expansion into the national markets of other Member States and some measures were included in the 1997-2000 contract for services so that EDF could become more international, the concern of the public authorities to place national undertakings at an advantage through financial support in the early stages of liberalisation was not confined to public undertakings;
I den henseende ville den løbende rentabilitet, som kunne forventes i 1997, dels ikke have gjort det muligt at kompensere for den pludselige nedsættelse af rentabiliteten.
nor does it constitute typical behaviour by a prudent investor in a public undertaking.
Dels gør undersøgelsen af de fire faktorer, der potentielt kan skabe værdi for aktionæren, jf. betragtning 164-173, det ikke muligt på baggrund af de tilgængelige oplysninger i de dokumenter, som de franske myndigheder har fremsendt, at konkludere, at aktionæren kunne forvente en vækst i virksomhedens værdi.
Lastly, the Court of Justice states that the rules to which the disputed measure is subject are relevant for determining whether it constitutes an investment by the state as shareholder or a prerogative of a public authority.
I øvrigt giver den tilgængelige dokumentation ikke mulighed for at konkludere, at en fornuftig privat investor, der handlede i den franske stats sted i 1997, på baggrund af de tilgængelige oplysninger kunne have satset på en merværdi af kapitalen til at kompensere for den beskedne løbende forrentning til staten.
Classing the measure as one or the other may therefore take account of compliance with the rules governing it.
De franske myndigheder har ikke foretaget undersøgelser af EDF's værdi før og efter omposteringerne af henlæggelserne i 1997.
The rules governing the investment of tax resources in undertakings like EDF must therefore be examined.
Oven i købet havde EDF i 1997 i over 50 år været en offentlig erhvervsvirksomhed og ikke et aktieselskab.
Without the measure, the revenue from the uncollected corporation tax would have been paid into the general revenue of the budget of the French state in 1997.
I medfør af artikel 16 i lov nr. 46-628 tilhørte dens kapital den franske nation og kunne ikke afhændes (jf. betragtning 18).
Under Article 18 of Order No 59-2 of 2 January 1959 laying down an organic law for budget laws, which was in force at the time of the facts, as all revenue is used to implement all expenditure, all revenue and all expenditure of the state are posted to a single account, called the General Budget.
I ingen af de dokumenter, der har belyst de franske myndigheders påståede investeringsbeslutning, gøres der rede for et eventuelt forslag til privatisering af EDF gennem salg af hele eller dele af statens kapital heri.
The budget is subject to the constitutional principle of universality, whereby all revenue and all appropriations are posted as two separate blocks, with no specific link made, for example, between revenue from corporation tax and an allocation such as a capital contribution to a public undertaking like EDF.
Det ville have krævet på forhånd, at det blev vedtaget at lade EDF forlade sin status af offentlig erhvervsvirksomhed og i stedet få status af aktieselskab.
Of course, the pre-allocation of a tax resource to a legal person other than the state in the form of a subsidy or an investment is possible under French law, where expressly provided for.
Tværtimod var den eneste henvisning til EDF's status i disse dokumenter statens bekræftelse af sin vilje til at opretholde EDF's specifikke status, som »skulle forblive en stabil reference i den fremtidige udvikling« i det indre marked for elektricitet (betragtning 95).
Article 18 of Order No 59-2 thus provided that, apart from in the case of loans and advances in particular, the allocation of state resources was exceptional and could take place only pursuant to a provision of a budget law, which was for the government to adopt.
Det er med støtte i disse oplysninger, at Frankrig hævder, at investeringsbeslutningen blev truffet.
However, Act No 97-1026 of 10 November 1997 was not a budget law and as such could not allocate a tax resource to EDF's capital.
Disse fakta skal derfor forblive referencerammen for analysen af den påståede beslutning.
Moreover, there do not appear to have been any specific government initiatives to adopt budget-law provisions applicable to the 1997 budget with a view to pre-allocating the revenue from the tax owed by EDF to expenditure by the French state on any investment in EDF's capital as part of the same budget.
På disse betingelser ville det ikke have været rimeligt og fornuftigt af en investor at håbe på en merværdi af kapitalen, som ville have været betinget af den lovgivende magts indgreb imod dels lovbestemmelserne, som disse var vedtaget af de franske myndigheder i 1946 og siden havde været uafbrudt gældende, dels statens udtrykkelige vilje som bekræftet af den ansvarlige minister for statens kapitalandele i 1997 til at opretholde EDF's specifikke juridiske status i det indre marked for energi, der blev liberaliseret på EU-plan.
The rule allowing the investment of a tax resource constituted for the benefit of the state in a legal entity distinct from the state, such as EDF, does not seem to have been applied here.
De hypoteser, der ligger til grund for EDF's konklusioner vedrørende den rentabilitet af investeringen, som en fornuftig privat investor ville håbe på, og som bygger på den oprindelige og fremtidige værdi af aktier i EDF i 1997 (jf. betragtning 69 og 70), tager ikke højde for EDF's status i 1997 og modsiges af de dokumenter, som de franske myndigheder har fremsendt, og som henviser dertil.
The vast majority of the evidence described above clearly shows that France did not, either before or at the same time as conferring the economic advantage resulting from the non-payment of the corporation tax, take a decision to make an investment in EDF by way of the tax exemption.
Som de franske myndigheder understreger, havde EDF som offentlig erhvervsvirksomhed i 1997 ingen selskabskapital i modsætning til f.eks. et aktieselskab, hvis kapital ejes af aktionærerne (jf. betragtning 19), som til hver en tid kan sælge deres aktier.
Accordingly, the prudent private investor in a market economy principle does not appear to be applicable to this measure.
Intet i de oplysninger, som de franske myndigheder har fremsendt om perioden før den påståede investering, gør det muligt at mene, at disse spørgsmål kunne være blevet besvaret i 1997.
The considerations set out below on the application of the private investor test are therefore provided in the alternative.
Det følger heraf, at en fornuftig privat investor ville have taget højde for denne omstændighed, da han traf beslutning om at investere eller ikke.
Application of the principle of the prudent private investor in a market economy
Denne mangel på likviditet kan gøre en eventuel stigning i virksomhedens værdi mindre interessant.
In its judgment of 5 June 2012 in the present case, the Court of Justice held that application of the private investor principle should make it possible to determine whether, in similar circumstances, a private shareholder would have subscribed, to an undertaking in a situation comparable to that of EDF, an amount equal to the tax due (paragraph 95 of the judgment).
I øvrigt skal, som det er angivet i betragtning 144, det markedsøkonomiske investorprincip primært testes ved hjælp af de oplysninger og dokumenter, der fremsendes af medlemsstaten i en situation, hvor beslutningen allerede er truffet, eftersom det er medlemsstaten, som hævder, at det er denne dokumentation og ikke andre hypotetiske elementer eller endda oplysninger, som er i strid med det fremsendte, som medlemsstaten har taget i betragtning.
Any difference between the cost to the private investor and the cost to the state as investor may be taken into account when assessing whether the conditions laid down by that principle are met (paragraph 96 of the judgment).
Men Domstolen kræver, at anvendelsen af det markedsøkonomiske investorprincip støtter sig på de evalueringer, der kunne foretages fremadrettet på tidspunktet for beslutningstagningen (jf. præmis 105 i dommen af 5. juni 2012).
The assessment must be carried out by reference to the objective and verifiable evidence which is available and the developments which were foreseeable, at the time when the decision to make the investment was taken (paragraphs 102 and 105 of the judgment).
Således hævdede de franske myndigheder i 1997, at EDF's status, som ikke tillod udstedelse og salg af aktier i EDF, ville blive opretholdt som en stabil reference, herunder i et liberaliseret indre marked (jf. betragtning 95).
On that view, only the benefits and obligations linked to the situation of the state as shareholder — to the exclusion of those linked to its situation as a public authority — are to be taken into account (paragraph 79 of the judgment).
At anvende hypoteser, der strider mod de franske myndigheders påstand, er det samme som at foretage testen i en situation, som ikke er den mest sammenlignelige med den, som medlemsstaten befinder sig, hvilket er i strid med, hvad der kræves ifølge retspraksis (jf. betragtning 126).
In view of the situation and the characteristics of EDF, which had existed as a public corporation fully controlled by the French state for over 50 years, it is advisable to keep in mind the benchmark of an investor pursuing an objective of long-term profitability and to examine in particular the information supplied by France as set out in recitals 87 to 108.
Selv om man antager af hensyn til analysen, at en fornuftig privat investor i sin beslutning om at foretage den påståede investering havde kunnet tage højde for en fremtidig værdistigning af sin investering på en ukendt dato oven i den normalt tilbudte rentabilitet, ville investoren ikke desto mindre som hypotese have valgt virksomhedens kapacitet til at generere udbytte på langt sigt og dermed have fulgt den tidshorisont, der gjaldt for den franske stat som ejer af EDF siden 1946.
It is this information that the French authorities relied on as the basis for their own decision in 1997.
For at vurdere værdien af sin ejendomsret i EDF ville den fornuftige private investor have fravalgt den regnskabsmæssige værdi af virksomhedens nettoaktiver, selv om han fokuserede på gældsnedbringelsen og genereringen af midler, som de franske myndigheder fremhæver (jf. betragtning 84).
First it is necessary to examine the rate of return that EDF gave its shareholder in 1997.
Værdien af aktiverne, investeringsbeløbene eller gældsnedbringelsen falder ikke nødvendigvis sammen med den reelle økonomiske værdi med henblik på at fastsætte en transaktionspris.
This rate of return must be compared with reference values.
Man bør således ikke hæfte sig ved, at den fulde tilbagebetaling af EDF's gæld i 1997 ville have krævet beløb, som langt oversteg EDF's egenkapital (jf. betragtning 177).
In 1997, the average rate of return on French long-term bonds (30 years) was 6,35 %.
På langt sigt er en virksomheds værdi et resultat af dens evne til at generere værdi for aktionæren i form af udbytter eller en værdiforøgelse af kapitalen snarere end den regnskabsmæssige værdi af dens aktiver eller ejendom.
Even for shorter maturities (10 years) — shorter than the life cycle of EDF's installations — the average interest rate on French Government securities was 5,58 % [32].
Blandt de forskellige metoder, der anvendes inden for finansiering til at vurdere offeromkostningen ved eller den nødvendige rentabilitet af en omsættelig ejendomsret i en virksomheds kapital, er den hyppigst anvendte den såkaldte MEDAF (model for evaluering af finansielle aktiver, på engelsk Capital Asset Pricing Model »CAPM«) [36].
These values represent both the return on financial assets deemed to be low risk and the French state's long-term financing cost at the time.
Som vist i tabel 5 opnår man ved anvendelse af MEDAF på en investering i EDF's kapital i 1997 en målværdi for den nødvendige rentabilitet på ca. 12 % (der kan komme op på 13,4 %) for et likvidt aktiv som en EDF-aktie.
An investment in an undertaking such as EDF in 1997 was a riskier investment than holding government bonds during the same time period.
Men denne målværdi bør ses som en minimumsværdi.
As a result, a prudent private investor in a market economy would have required a better rate of return than the rate for government bonds.
Den forudsætter, at en ejendomsret i EDF såsom en aktie ikke blot var mulig og kunne overdrages, men også at der var et likvidt marked, mens staten ejede 100 % af kapitalen, og EDF ikke kunne udstede aktier.
Analysis of the current rate of return that the French state could expect in 1996-1997, as revealed by the documents submitted by the French authorities, does not justify the conclusion that the investment met the test of the prudent private investor in a market economy.
Til den nødvendige rentabilitet for et likvidt aktiv skal der lægges en præmie på mellem 0,5 og 1,5 % [37] for at afspejle den store usikkerhed, som udspringer af de faktorer, der blev undersøgt i betragtning 179 og 180 med hensyn til EDF-papirernes likviditet, og som kunne præge en fornuftig privat investor i 1997.
The French authorities forwarded EDF's projected income statement for the period subsequent to the restructuring of the balance sheet, as examined in 1997 by the authorities concerned (recital 92, Table 1).
Under alle omstændigheder er gyldigheden af størrelsesordenen 12 % uden likviditetspræmie tæt på om end mindre end den løbende rentabilitet af egenkapitalen på 14 %, som EDF ydede til den franske stat mellem 1991 og 1996 (jf. betragtning 102, tabel 3).
The estimates in the table are corroborated by other contemporaneous documents (recitals 96-97, 103).
Det er normalt af den reelt opnåede rentabilitet, at forventningen om den fremtidige rentabilitet udspringer.
These EDF baseline scenario estimates for the following period had been validated by the state authorities (recital 97).
Gyldigheden af denne størrelsesorden på 12 % underbygges også af anvendelsen af andre parametre ud fra tilgængelige tal fra daværende periode, herunder dem, som blev brugt til undersøgelsen, der blev udført for EDF's regning jf. betragtning 70, som fastsætter en målværdi inden for et spænd på mellem 11,9 % og 13,5 % med et gennemsnit på 12,7 %.
From this income statement, and from the expected amounts of resources invested by the state in EDF (recital 100, Table 2), it is possible to calculate the rate of return that the state could have expected on contributions to capital, to total capital (initial capital plus contributions) and to EDF's equity (total capital, revaluation reserves, reserve requirements and retained income) [33], as shown in Table 4.
Når resultaterne af analysen ikke ændrer sig med en likviditetspræmie på over målrentabiliteten på ca. 12 % eller ved anvendelse fra 1997 og frem af de 14 % i reel rentabilitet fra den nærmeste fortid, er det ikke nødvendigt at tage højde for denne præmie og den reelle rentabilitet.
Table 4
Tabel 5
Estimated remuneration from the capital on EDF's balance sheet 1997-2000 (billion FRF)
beregningsværdier
1997-2000
Værdi
Portion fixed at 3 %
Kilde
Variable portion
Risikofri rente
Fixed and variable portions
Årligt gennemsnit i 1997 for den daglige toneangivende rente på 30-årige og 10-årige fransk statsobligationer, kilde Banque de France:
Return on equity (FRF 79,8 billion) (%)
referencesats på skatkammerbeviser (bons du Trésor) og ombyttelig statsobligation (OAT), http://www.banque-france.fr/economie-et-statistiques/changes-et-taux.
Return on capital and contributions (FRF 53,3 billion) (%)
Beta for EDF — Vernimmen et alii op.cit., grafik s. 427.
It is clear from the documents referred to and submitted by the French authorities that in 1997 the remuneration the state as shareholder expected from EDF for the whole period 1997-2000 was FRF 9,4 billion, of which FRF 6 billion was in respect of the portion at the fixed rate of 3 % and EUR 3,4 billion for the whole period in respect of the supplementary portion, after the reclassification made by Act No 97-1026.
og 3.
On the basis of the estimates validated at the time, on average, the future current rate of return that the state as shareholder could expect was 2,94 % of EDF's total equity, 4,41 % of the total capital invested by the state in EDF and 4,64 % of the amount of the contributions to capital.
Oxera-undersøgelsen, tabel 3.8, Beta EU-selskaber i sektoren.
This rate of return, applicable to the amount of the tax exemption reclassified as contribution to capital, was well below the 6,35 % paid on the bonds that the French Government issued in 1997 with a view to its own long-term financing.
Gæld (%)
A prudent private investor in a market economy would have found that the expected current rate of return on an amount of FRF 5,88 billion corresponding to the tax exemption was insufficient to justify the investment.
EDF's kapitalstruktur efter omstruktureringen i 1997
Furthermore, the Court of Justice held in paragraph 96 of its judgment of 5 June 2012 that it is possible in the context of the application of the principle of the prudent private investor in a market economy to take into account the difference between the investment cost to a private investor and the cost to the state.
Beta for EDF (uden gæld)
This amounts to comparing the rate of return which, according to the French authorities, justified the reclassification of the grantor rights provisions at the amount of the tax exemption, with the rate that would have been obtained by a private shareholder on the same recapitalisation operation in an undertaking similar in every respect to EDF, except for the prerogative, which is not available to the private investor, to exempt the capital contribution from corporation tax.
og 2.
Such an undertaking whose shareholder had FRF 5,88 billion available to recapitalise it under conditions identical to those of EDF would have had the prospect of an annual return of 4,64 % on the additional capital invested by the shareholder, i.e. FRF 272 million per year, without taking account of corporation tax.
Kommissionens beregning.
By applying the rate of corporation tax of 41,66 % applicable in 1997, the prospective rate of return would be FRF 159 million per year for the same capital contribution, or a nominal annual rate of return of 2,7 %.
Oxera-undersøgelsen, tabel 3.8
Such a rate for a share in the capital of a company with the risks associated with such an investment must be compared with 6,35 % paid on French bonds at that time.
Markedsrisikopræmie
The low rate of return would have deterred a private investor who did not have the tax privileges of the state.
/Vernimmen op.cit. s. 423 citat af Mehra Prescott 2/2003 T.2 FR 1973-98.
With such poor prospects of return on the invested capital, it appears out of the question that a prudent private investor whose company is liable for corporation tax on contributions to capital would, instead of France, have participated in the increase in the capital of EDF in 1997.
Forventet risikopræmie i Frankrig i gennemsnit for perioden 1988-1996 (denne præmie var 10,1 % i 1996).
It is therefore necessary to examine whether the evidence and information dating from the time of the decision to reclassify the provisions without levying the tax submitted by France contain additional information which would have convinced a prudent private investor to make the alleged investment notwithstanding the apparent very low rate of return.
»An examination of Equity Risk Premium Forecasts in the G-6 Countries«, Khorana, Moyer & Pattel, I/B/E/S Working Paper, august 1997, s. 25.
These details may relate in particular to the capacity of EDF (i) to increase its long-term operating income; (ii) to improve its operating results through efficiency gains; (iii) to increase the net value of the productive assets of the undertaking;
Spænd for målrentabilitet
or (iv) to provide a steady and adequate remuneration for its shareholder.
Kommissionens beregning
These are factors which have the potential to create long-term value for the shareholder with a positive outlook, but destructive of value with a negative outlook.
Medianrentabilitet
In this respect, none of the documents forwarded by the French authorities contain a quantification, or even a qualitative assessment, of any potential creation of value for the shareholder that the French authorities examined and took into account for the period 1997-2000 or beyond.
Det kan derfor formodes, at investeringen gav ret til at modtage 11 % af udbytterne (forrentning af kapitaltilførslerne som anslået i tabel 1 og 4) og værdien af EDF.
There are only general references to taking better account of the interests of the state as shareholder.