natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
Belgien bestrider desuden, at egenkapitalens værdi skal indgå i værdiansættelsen af Duferco US.
The Commission doubted that the conditions under which FSIH had ended its stake in DPH were in line with the market economy investor principle.
Belgien gør for det første gældende, at en forøgelse af egenkapitalen ikke nødvendigvis øger selskabets markedsværdi, selv om den naturligvis indvirker på selskabets bogførte værdi.
Aside from the Commission's challenging the use of the US dollar to estimate the profitability of the investment in DPH, its main concerns related to the validity of the method for setting the sale price.
For det andet understreger Belgien de kraftige udsving i selskabets overskud i de år, som Kommissionen undersøger.
It was particularly surprised by the difference between the price adopted by the parties and the independent evaluation carried out by Ernst & Young in 2006.
I denne forbindelse er Belgien ikke enig i Kommissionens udtalelse om, at perioden 2003--2006 »som helhed var en gunstig periode« for Duferco US og Farrell.
During the preliminary investigation phase, Belgium had justified this difference by taking into account five haircuts.
Belgien mener derimod, at der bør anvendes en værdiansættelsesmetode baseret på en multipel af EBITDA (resultat før renter, skat og af- og nedskrivninger) i stedet for en evaluering baseret på egenkapitalen.
The Commission questioned whether these haircuts had actually featured in the negotiation between [the company that controlled DPH at the time] and FSIH and, beyond this formal challenge, had reservations about their economic validity.
Belgien bestrider værdien af den multipel, som Kommissionen har anvendt ved at basere sig på S&P Capital IQ's uafhængige database.
Finally, the Commission had concerns about the motives behind FSIH's withdrawal.
Belgien anfører, at den gennemsnitlige multipel for selskaber, der kan sammenlignes med Duferco US, (mellem […] og […]), er lavere end Kommissionens ([…]).
In conclusion, the Commission put forward the idea that, far from acting as a private investor, FSIH had merely sought to recover its initial stake of EUR 80 million, increased only by a dividend of EUR 4 million due for 2005 but which had not yet been distributed.
Værdiansættelsen af Duferco US bliver således lavere end 49,9 %.
MEASURE 3
Den overdragelsespris, som parterne har aftalt ([…] mio. USD), vil ifølge Belgien være betydelig højere end værdiansættelsen af de afhændede aktier ([…] mio. USD med en multipel på […] og […] mio. USD med en multipel på […]).
The Commission doubted whether the conditions under which FSIH had invested in DSIH were in line with the market economy investor principle.
Belgien understreger, at den endeligt aftalte overdragelsespris ([…] mio. USD) er betydeligt højere end disse værdiansættelser.
In response to Belgium's claim concerning the pari passu nature of the operation, the Commission noted that, at the time of investment, DSIH was already under the control of Duferco and that the assets brought to this new subsidiary were also already held by Duferco (at 50 %, through SIF).
Med hensyn til FSIH's udtræden fremfører Belgien endelig forskellige grunde: i) indgåelsen af aftalen om levering af plader med […], der imidlertid kunne reducere Duferco US' potentielle overskud, selv om aftalen samtidig stabiliserede resultaterne, ii) de igangværende forhandlinger om afståelse af 50 % af aktierne i SIF til NLMK, der havde til hensigt at integrere Duferco US i partnerskabet med den russiske koncern, iii) FSIH's forventning om en snarlig vending af konjunkturerne i stålsektoren, iv) den rigelige likviditet i Duferco-koncernen, der skabte rige muligheder for, at FSIH kunne overdrage sine andele i Duferco US.
Under these conditions, only the new (public) shareholder took on new risks and the operation could not be considered pari passu.
Med hensyn til prisen og købsoptionens udløb hævder Belgien, at prisen for optionen var integreret i den aftalte pris for udnyttelse, og at varigheden på næsten ti år var begrundet i usikkerheden forbundet med datoen for gennemførelse af den påtænkte transaktion mellem Duferco og NLMK.
Concerning the valuation of Duferco Diversification and its subsidiaries:
Som svar på Kommissionens første betænkelighed understreger Belgien, at det er nødvendigt at evaluere investeringen i DPH i USD og ikke i euro, da USD er DPH's funktionelle valuta.
the Commission was sceptical that one would want to put a price of EUR […] million on a project at such an early stage as the […] project,
Anvendelsen af USD som referencevaluta gør det muligt at beregne et årligt afkast på 8,81 % af aktierne i DPH.
the Commission expressed doubts as to the valuation of the Marcinelle project, given the underlying assumptions on which it was based.
Med hensyn til Kommissionens andre betænkeligheder begrunder Belgien forskellen mellem salgsprisen og intervallet i Ernst & Young-rapporten 2006 i fem nedslag.
Lastly, the Commission had reservations about the consequences for FSIH of the resale of Duferco Diversification to DLP in 2011, given that FSIH held only 49,7 % of DLP, but held all the shares minus one share in DSIH.
NEDSLAG NR.
MEASURES 4 AND 5
1 — VÆRDIANSÆTTELSE AF DPH'S TRADINGAFDELING
The Commission had reservations about Belgium's claim that the rate adopted for the two loans did not contain any element of aid since it was much higher than the average variable interest rate applied by banks to [the parent company of the Duferco Group at the time] and the SIF group, i.e. 1,31 % and 1,92 % respectively.
DPH er moderselskab for to store afdelinger: Trading (handel) og Industry (produktion).
With regard to the loan to [the parent company of the Duferco Group at the time], it was not possible to find private loans with similar characteristics using the information Belgium submitted at the time.
Den 29. september 2003, dvs. nogle måneder efter FSIH's erhvervelse af aktier i DPH, solgte DPH 50 % af andelene i sin tradingafdeling (Duferco International Trading Holding — […]) til […].
With regard to the loan to SIF, the Commission doubted that the company could be treated as AAA-rated, and it was surprised at the lack of collateral for this loan.
Dette salg blev gennemført på grundlag af tradingafdelingens bogførte værdi, idet prisen var baseret på halvdelen af egenkapitalen i Duferco International Trading Holding, dvs. 40,83 mio. USD eller 36,01 mio. EUR, beregnet på grundlag af den månedlige gennemsnitlige valutakurs USD-EUR i april 2003.
Consequently, the Commission was not in a position to definitively rule out the possibility that the loans granted to [the parent company of the Duferco Group at the time] and SIF had included elements of State aid.
Ifølge de belgiske myndigheder er denne pris en markedspris.
MEASURE 6
Der burde derfor tages hensyn til denne pris ved værdiansættelsen af hele koncernen ca. tre år efter.
The Commission expressed doubts about the whether the EUR 100 million capital increase in DLP complied with the market economy investor principle.
Ifølge Belgien burde Ernst & Young i sin rapport fra 2006 have taget højde for tradingafdelingens bogførte værdi i stedet for at anvende sin egen evalueringsmetode — dvs. »price/earnings ratio«-metoden — på koncernen som helhed.
The Commission noted that the investment could not be regarded a priori as pari passu since it was made for Duferco in a company already held by the group.
Belgien har derimod ingen indvendinger imod, at produktionsafdelingen fortsat evalueres på grundlag af price/earnings ratio-metoden.
Under these conditions, the public and private shareholders did not bear the same risks, because the latter could not be deemed independent in relation to the investment in question.
Ved værdiansættelse af tradingafdelingens bogførte værdi skal der foretages et nedslag på mellem 20 og 31 mio. USD i værdiansættelsen i Ernst & Young-rapporten fra 2006.
Concerning the price of the assets to be acquired by DLP, the Commission had particular concerns about the method used to value DLLPL, Duferco Trebos and the stock acquired from Duferco La Louvière Sales.
Belgien understreger endelig, at den ratio, som Ernst & Young anvendte i sin rapport fra 2006, ikke afspejlede DPH's risikoprofil, selv om man ønskede at anvende price/earnings ratio-metoden på koncernen som helhed.
COMPATIBILITY
Selv om man vælger en sådan metode, er det således fortsat nødvendigt at vurdere trading- og produktionsafdelingen særskilt på grundlag af særskilte ratioer.
The Commission noted that no framework or guidelines from the Commission concerning the compatibility criteria relating to State aid seemed to apply to the measures under investigation.
I Ernst & Young-rapporten 2006 er der begået en fejl ved at anvende en ratio, som udelukkende er baseret på sammenlignelige virksomheder i industrien, på hele koncernen (herunder tradingafdelingen).
In terms of the possibility of regional aid in particular, the relevant legislation provided that such aid in the steel sector was not compatible with the internal market.
Ifølge Belgien er handel nemlig en mere risikofyldt aktivitet end produktion.
COMMENTS BY BELGIUM
Ved at undlade dette har Ernst & Young overvurderet DPH i sin rapport fra 2006.
Belgium notes first that the functional currency of Duferco US, an undertaking established in the United States, is the US dollar pursuant to International Accounting Standard (IAS) 21.9.
NEDSLAG NR.
Consequently, it believes that FSIH's investment and the calculation of its return should be analysed in US dollars and not in euros after conversion.
2 — STÅLMARKEDETS CYKLIKALITET
It adds that FSIH took the risk of not hedging against exchange-rate fluctuations because cover was very difficult to obtain, given the nature of the operation and particularly because of the uncertainty surrounding the date of exit from the investment.
Belgien understreger, at den periode, som Ernst & Young har valgt til at beregne det overskud og den price/earnings ratio, der skal anvendes ved værdiansættelsen af Duferco US, ikke i tilstrækkelig grad afspejler stålindustriens cyklikalitet.
Belgium confirms that the return on the investment, based on amounts in US dollars, was 6,81 % per year.
Da denne periode kun dækker fire år fra 2003 til 2006, omfatter den tre gode år (2004, 2005 og 2006) og kun et dårligt år (2003).
Belgium then disputes that the value of own funds should be taken into account in the valuation of Duferco US.
Parterne har derfor tilføjet årene 2001 og 2002 i deres analyse og defineret andre vægte end Ernst & Young for hvert enkelt år.
It argues, first, that although an increase in own funds naturally has an impact on the book value of a company, this does not necessarily lead to an increase in its market value.
De værdier og vægte, som parterne har valgt, resulterer i en værdiansættelse af DPH på […] mio. USD (mod […] mio. USD i Ernst & Youngs referenceeksempel).
Second, it highlights how very volatile the company's profits were over the years under investigation by the Commission.
Disse betydelige forskelle i værdiansættelsen, hvortil kommer konsekvenserne af de øvrige nedslag og justeringer, vidner om Ernst & Youngs overvurdering af DPH i 2006.
In this regard, Belgium disagrees with the Commission's claim that the 2003-2006 period had been ‘on the whole a profitable period’ for Duferco US and Farrell.
NEDSLAG NR.
Belgium maintains that it is better to use a valuation based on a multiple of EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation) rather than on own funds.
3 — ANDELENES MANGLENDE LIKVIDITET
It disagrees with the multiple the Commission used on the basis of the independent S&P Capital IQ database.
Ifølge Belgien bør der ske et nedslag, som afspejler den manglende likviditet af FSIH's andele i DPH.
It argues that the average multiple of companies similar to Duferco US (between […] and […]) is below that of the Commission ([…]).
Der skal generelt tages højde for følgende faktorer ved evalueringen af likviditeten af et selskabs aktier:
Consequently, the valuation of Duferco US is reduced by 49,9 %.
Købsoption: Har aktionæren en option på at sælge sine aktier til en på forhånd aftalt pris?
According to Belgium, the sale price agreed by the parties (USD […] million) would be significantly higher than the valuation of the stake sold (USD […] million if the adopted multiple were […] and USD […] million if the multiple were […]).
En sådan option, som ikke eksisterer i denne sag, ville have forøget aktiernes likviditet.
To refine its valuation process, Belgium then refers to the influence of the supply contracts concluded by Farrell, Duferco and […] in September 2005 and January 2006.
Bestemmelser, der mindsker aktiernes tiltrækningskraft: FSIH og [det selskab, som kontrollerede DPH på daværende tidspunkt] rådede begge over en forkøbsret i tilfælde af et påtænkt salg af andele til tredjemand.
It argues that the stabilisation of Farrell's EBITDA resulting from these contracts, leading to a reduced risk/return on investment profile, supported a sale price for FSIH's stake in Duferco US of between USD […] million and USD […] million.
Denne type bestemmelser mindsker mærkbart en tredjemands interesse i at indlede lange og kostbare forhandlinger med en af de eksisterende aktionærer om erhvervelse af andele.
It stresses that the sale price that was finally agreed (USD […] million) was significantly higher than these valuations.
Hvis forhandlingerne munder ud i et tilbud, kan den anden eksisterende aktionær udnytte sin forkøbsret.
Lastly, Belgium puts forward several reasons as to why FSIH withdrew: (i) the conclusion of the slab supply agreement with […] which, while stabilising the results, still risked limiting the potential gains of Duferco US; (ii) the ongoing negotiations for the sale of 50 % of SIF to NLMK, which envisaged the integration of Duferco US into the partnership with the Russian group; (iii) the feeling FSIH had about a future downturn in the steel sector; (iv) the abundance of liquid assets in the Duferco Group, which created a window of opportunity for FSIH to sell its stake in Duferco US.
Udbytte: Fremover kan FSIH kun forvente at få tildelt et forholdsvis beskedent udbytte svarende til et årligt afkast på 4,8 % (et udbytte på 4 mio. EUR p.a.).
With regard to the price and maturity of the purchase option, Belgium claims that the option price was included in the negotiated exercise price and that the uncertainties surrounding the date of execution of the planned operation between Duferco and NLMK justified for duration of almost 10 years.
Et beskedent udbytteniveau mindsker imidlertid en akties likviditet.
In response to the Commission's first concern, Belgium stresses that it is necessary to value the investment in DPH in US dollars and not in euros given that US dollar is the functional currency of DPH.
Risikofaktorer, der berører investorerne: På grund af den betydelige cyklikalitet i stålindustrien og udsvingene i DPH's overskud opererede DPH i et meget risikabelt miljø.
Using the US dollar as the reference currency would result in an annual return of 8,81 % on the stake in DPH.
Et sådant risikoniveau mindsker en akties likviditet.
With regard to the Commission's other concerns, Belgium justifies the difference between the sale price and the range in the Ernst & Young 2006 Report by taking into account five haircuts.
Vækstperspektiver: I 2006 blev markedet anset for at være på toppen, og vækstperspektiverne for de kommende år var derfor begrænsede.
HAIRCUT 1 — VALUATION OF THE TRADING DIVISION OF DPH
En sådan faktor mindsker ligeledes aktiernes likviditet.
DPH is the parent company of two large divisions: the Trading division (trade) and the Industry division (production).
Aktieandelens størrelse: Jo større andel, desto færre potentielle købere.
On 29 September 2003, i.e. several months after FSIH acquired a stake in its capital, DPH sold 50 % of the shares in its Trading division (Duferco International Trading Holding — […]) to […].
Dette er endnu mere relevant, når aktieandelen er betydelig, men der fortsat er tale om en mindretalsaktiepost, som i denne sag.
This sale was made on the basis of the book value of the Trading division in that the sale price was calculated by taking into account half of the own funds of Duferco International Trading Holding, i.e. USD 40,83 million or EUR 36,01 million using the annual average USD-EUR exchange rate for 2003.
Selskabets størrelse og finansielle soliditet: DPH, der har en egenkapital på […] mio. EUR ifølge Ernst & Young-rapporten 2006, kan betragtes som en lille eller mellemstor virksomhed.
Belgium believes this price is a market price.
Aktier i en SMV, der desuden ikke er børsnoteret, er vanskeligere at afhænde end aktier i en stor virksomhed.
It therefore had to be taken into account when, around three years later, the whole group was valued.
I lyset af disse faktorer og »andre aktørers manglende interesse i disse aktier« valgte parterne at foretage et nedslag for manglende likviditet på 40 % imod de 30 %, der blev anbefalet af Ernst & Young.
Belgium believes that the Ernst & Young 2006 Report should have taken into account the book value of the Trading division rather than applying its valuation method, i.e. the price/earnings ratio, to the whole Group.
Belgien mener ikke, at det er nødvendigt at begrunde de supplerende nedslag nærmere, da disse nedslag holder sig inden for de intervaller, der normalt anvendes, og nedslaget på 40 % er forhandlet af parterne.
A contrario, Belgium does not object to the fact that the Industry division is still valued using the price/earnings ratio.
NEDSLAG NR.
Valuing the Trading division at its book value involves applying a haircut of between USD 20 and 31 million on the valuation from the Ernst & Young 2006 Report.
4 — FORBEHOLD VEDRØRENDE PRÆFERENCEUDBYTTE TIL FSIH
Finally, Belgium underlines that, even if one wanted to apply the price/earnings ratio method to the whole Group, the ratio adopted in the Ernst & Young 2006 Report does not reflect the risk profile of DPH.
Ernst & Young har ikke tilføjet denne nutidsværdi direkte i sin værdiansættelse.
Choosing this kind of method does not remove the need to assess the Trading division and the Industry division separately, given that a different ratio should apply to each of them.
Ernst & Young har foretaget et nedslag på 6,2 % ud fra den vurdering, at risikoen for, at dette præferenceudbytte ikke blev udbetalt, kunne sammenlignes med risikoen for misligholdelse af en obligation med BBB-rating.
The Ernst & Young 2006 Report erred in applying a ratio derived from comparable undertakings operating only in one industry to the whole Group (including the Trading division).
I Ernst & Young-rapporten 2006 er der således blevet tillagt 22,2 mio. USD til den beregnede værdi for 25 % af andelene i DPH.
Belgium believes that trade is a riskier activity than production.
Ifølge Belgien vurderede parterne på daværende tidspunkt, at dette nedslag på 6,2 % ikke var tilstrækkeligt til at afspejle risikoen for, at præferenceudbyttet ikke blev udbetalt.
Therefore a lower price/earnings ratio should be applied to this type of activity, reflecting investors' reduced appetite for this risk profile (Belgium has provided data taken from S&P Capital IQ to support this conclusion).
Belgien fremfører i denne forbindelse to hovedargumenter.
By not doing so, Ernst & Young overvalued DPH in 2006.
Det første argument vedrører DPH's svingende resultater, der betyder, at DPH må give afkald på udbetaling af udbytte i tilfælde af utilstrækkelig indtjening eller likviditet.
HAIRCUT 2 — THE CYCLICAL NATURE OF THE STEEL MARKET
Belgien understreger i denne forbindelse, at beslutningen om udbetaling af præferenceudbytte henhørte under selskabet.
Belgium maintains that the period selected by Ernst & Young to estimate the profits and the price/earnings ratio to use in the valuation of Duferco US does not adequately reflect the cyclical nature of the steel sector.
Det andet argument vedrører organisationen af Duferco-koncernen.
This period covers only the four years from 2003 to 2006, so it includes three good years (2004, 2005 and 2006) and only one bad year (2003).
Da det selskab, der udbetaler udbytte, var et holdingselskab (DPH), var overskud på koncernniveau blot en konsolidering af datterselskabernes overskud.
The parties therefore added 2001 and 2002 to their analysis and established different ratings than those of Ernst & Young for each year.
Af forskellige årsager (herunder navnlig skattelovgivningen, finansielle forpligtelser, kontraktlige forpligtelser) var det ikke altid nemt eller endog muligt at overføre datterselskabernes overskud til holdingselskabet.
The values and weightings adopted by the parties result in a valuation of USD […] million for DPH, (compared with USD […] million in the Ernst & Young reference case).
Alle disse faktorer skabte reel usikkerhed omkring den fremtidige udbetaling af præferenceudbytte i DPH.
This significant difference in values, to which the effects of other haircuts and readjustments also have to be added, prove that Ernst & Young overvalued DPH in 2006.
Ifølge Belgien skulle det beregnede nedslag nødvendigvis være højere end det nedslag, der ville have været anvendt for fremtidigt udbytte af obligationer med en BBB-rating.
HAIRCUT 3 — NON-LIQUIDITY OF SHARES
Parterne var derfor nået frem til 14 % — dvs. et nedslag på 4 mio. USD i forhold til Ernst & Youngs evaluering.
Belgium believes that a haircut reflecting the illiquidity of the shares in DPH held by FSIH should be applied.
NEDSLAG NR.
The factors commonly taken into account to assess the liquidity of shares in a company are as follows:
5 — BONUS FOR ERHVERVELSE AF KONTROL
sale option: do shareholders have the option to sell their shares at a previously agreed price?
I Ernst & Young-rapporten 2006 vurderes det derfor, at der bør tillægges en bonus for erhvervelse af kontrol på mellem 0 og 10 % af aktiernes værdi.
Such an option, which is absent in this case, would increase the liquidity of the shares,
Ifølge Belgien valgte parterne ikke at anvende en sådan bonus for erhvervelse af kontrol, da de pågældende rettigheder i realiteten ikke havde nogen handelsværdi ved overdragelse til tredjemand eller til [det selskab, som kontrollerede DPH på daværende tidspunkt].
clauses making the stake less attractive: FSIH and [the company that controlled DPH at the time] both had right of first refusal in the event of a plan to sell shares to a third party.
[Det selskab, som kontrollerede DPH på daværende tidspunkt] skulle derfor ikke betale et bestemt beløb for at genvinde den fulde kontrol.
An offer resulting from this negotiation could be pre-empted by the other existing shareholder,
Belgien bemærker, at parterne havde aftalt, at de særlige rettigheder, der var knyttet til andelene i FSIH i henhold til aktionæroverenskomsten, ophørte ved en af disse aktionærers overdragelse af sine aktier til tredjemand.
amount of dividends: for the future, FSIH could only hope to receive relatively modest dividends, representing an annual yield of 4,8 % (dividend of EUR 4 million per year).
De særlige rettigheder i henhold til aktionæroverenskomsten giver uden tvivl FSIH ret til i det mindste at påvirke forvaltningen af DPH, og disse rettigheder havde derfor nødvendigvis en vis værdi på tidspunktet for FSIH's erhvervelse af andele i DPH, men FSIH kunne ikke desto mindre ikke frit overdrage selskabets særlige rettigheder til tredjemand.
A modest amount of dividends has a negative impact on the liquidity of a share,
Disse rettigheder havde således ingen handelsværdi.
risk factors affecting investors: it is clear from the highly cyclical nature of the steel sector and the volatility of DPH's profits that the company was operating in a high-risk environment.
ANDRE FORHOLD
Such a level of risk has a negative impact on the liquidity of a stake,
Belgien fremfører to andre elementer, der ikke har ført til et nedslag, men som Belgien ønsker at nævne, således at Kommissionen får kendskab til de forskellige forhandlingselementer, der blev drøftet af parterne inden fastlæggelsen af den endelige pris.
growth prospects: in 2006 the market was considered to be at the top of the cycle and growth prospects for the coming years were therefore limited.