natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
Den støtte, der følger af loftet over afgiftens beregningsgrundlag på 25000 m3 vand, jf. § 24 b i lovbekendtgørelse nr. 935 af 24. september 2009, er blevet indført ulovligt af Danmark i strid med artikel 108, stk. 3, i traktaten om Den Europæiske Unions funktionsmåde og er støtte, der er uforenelig med det indre marked.
Furthermore, the Danish authorities themselves acknowledge that it is not possible to document that the condition of necessity under point 158 has been met in each individual case (see recital 50), and that their figures (on the grant equivalent of the aid) do not change this conclusion as the figures do not help determine whether the environmental tax without the reduction (i.e. without the ceiling) would lead to a substantial increase in production costs in the agricultural product processing sector.
Artikel 5
As regards point 159(a) of the Environmental Guidelines, the Commission finds that the condition of comparing the best performing technique within the EEA is not relevant in this case., given that it was already stated in recital 98 that the EEA agreement does not apply to the agricultural sector, and this case is not about introducing technologies or reducing pollution, but rather involves surveys of water resources with an eye to better management and water extraction.
Den støtte, der følger af loftet over afgiftens beregningsgrundlag på 25000 m3 vand, jf. § 24 b i lovbekendtgørelse nr. 935 af 24. september 2009, udgør ikke statsstøtte, hvis den på det tidspunkt, den blev ydet, opfylder betingelserne i en forordning vedtaget i henhold til artikel 2 i forordning (EF) nr. 994/98, som finder anvendelse på tidspunktet for ydelsen af støtten.
With regard to point 159(b), the Commission notes that the Danish authorities themselves acknowledge that some enterprises may have paid less than 20 % of the tax.
Artikel 6
The Danish authorities' argument that the Commission ought to take the average into account is unacceptable.
Danmark skal tilbagesøge den i artikel 4 omhandlede støtte fra støttemodtagerne.
From the wording of point 159(b) it is clear that the sole exception to the condition that at least 20 % of the tax must be paid is if the aid causes only limited distortion of competition, and applying an average is in no way sufficient to demonstrate that this is the case.
Den støtte, der skal tilbagesøges, pålægges renter fra det tidspunkt, hvor den blev udbetalt til støttemodtagerne, og indtil den er blevet tilbagebetalt.
Finally, as regards point 159(c), the Danish authorities have not provided any information documenting that agreements regarding environmental protection objectives have been concluded.
Beløbet beregnes med renters rente i overensstemmelse med kapitel V i forordning (EF) nr. 794/2004.
In light of the considerations in recitals 89 to 109, the Commission cannot conclude that all relevant conditions in the Environmental Guidelines have been met, and the doubts it expressed in the opening decision have therefore not been dispelled.
Artikel 7
With regard to the Danish authorities' reference to the Temporary Crisis Framework, the Commission found it necessary, in the original version that applied from 17 December 2008, to temporarily authorise limited aid falling under Article 87(1) (because it exceeded the de minimis ceiling) and to declare it compatible with the internal market under Article 107(3)(c) TFEU, provided that all the following conditions were met:
Tilbagesøgningen af den i artikel 4 omhandlede støtte iværksættes øjeblikkeligt og effektivt.
the aid does not exceed a cash grant of EUR 500000 per undertaking; all figures used must be gross, that is, before any deduction of tax or other charge; where aid is awarded in a form other than a grant, the aid's grant equivalent is the basis for the aid amount;
Danmark efterkommer denne afgørelse senest fire måneder efter meddelelsen deraf.
the aid is granted in the form of a scheme;
Artikel 8
the aid is granted to firms which were not in difficulty on 1 July 2008 (whereby ‘firm in difficulty’ for large companies is a firm as defined in point 2.1 of the Community guidelines on State aid for rescuing and restructuring firms in difficulty, and for SMEs it is a firm as defined in Article 1(7) of Commission Regulation (EC) No 800/2008; it may be granted to firms that were not in difficulty at that date but entered in difficulty thereafter as a result of the global financial and economic crisis;
Senest to måneder efter meddelelsen af denne afgørelse forelægger Danmark følgende oplysninger:
the aid scheme does not apply to firms active in the fisheries sector;
listen over støttemodtagere, der modtog den i artikel 4 omhandlede støtte, og det samlede støttebeløb, de hver især har modtaget
the aid is not export aid or aid favouring domestic over imported products;
det samlede beløb (hovedstol og renter), der skal tilbagesøges hos hver støttemodtager, som har modtaget støtte, der ikke kan dækkes af de minimis-reglen
the aid is granted no later than 31 December 2010;
en detaljeret beskrivelse af de foranstaltninger, der allerede er truffet eller er planlagt for at efterkomme afgørelsen
prior to granting the aid, the Member State obtains a declaration from the undertaking concerned, in written or electronic form, about any other de minimis aid and aid pursuant to this measure received during the current fiscal year and checks that the aid will not raise the total amount of aid received by the undertaking during the period from 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2010, to a level above the ceiling of EUR 500000;
dokumentation for, at støttemodtagerne har fået besked på at tilbagebetale støtten.
the aid scheme does not apply to undertakings active in the primary production of agricultural products as defined in Article 2(2) of Commission Regulation (EC) No 1857/2006; it may apply to undertakings active in the processing and marketing of agricultural products as defined in Article 2(3) and (4) of that Regulation unless the amount of the aid is fixed on the basis of the price or quantity of such products purchased from primary producers or put on the market by the undertakings concerned, or the aid is conditional on being partly or entirely passed on to primary producers.
Danmark holder Kommissionen orienteret om fremskridtene med de nationale foranstaltninger, der træffes for at efterkomme denne afgørelse, indtil den i artikel 4 omhandlede støtte er tilbagebetalt.
A further condition was attached to these conditions, stating that the temporary aid measures could not be cumulated with de minimis aid granted for the same eligible costs.
Danmark indsender på Kommissionens anmodning straks oplysninger om de foranstaltninger, der allerede er truffet eller er planlagt for at efterkomme afgørelsen.
If an enterprise had already received de minimis aid prior to the entry into force of the Temporary Crisis Framework, the total of the aid under the Framework and the de minimis aid could not exceed EUR 500000 in the period from 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2010.
Danmark fremsender også detaljerede oplysninger om de støttebeløb og renter, som støttemodtagerne allerede har tilbagebetalt.
On 28 October 2009 the Temporary Crisis Framework was expanded to include primary agricultural production.
Artikel 9
Before the aid was granted, the Member State was to obtain a declaration from the undertaking concerned, in written or electronic form, about any other de minimis aid and aid pursuant to the relevant measure received during the current fiscal year and check that the aid would not raise the total amount of aid the undertaking received during the period from 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2010 to a level above the ceiling of EUR 15000.
Denne afgørelse er rettet til Kongeriget Danmark.
Aid to enterprises active in the primary production of agricultural products could not be set on the basis of the price or volume of products put on the market.
Udfærdiget i Bruxelles, den 16. oktober 2017.
The temporary aid measures could not be cumulated with the de minimis aid granted for the same eligible costs.
På Kommissionens vegne
If an enterprise had already received de minimis aid for primary production prior to the entry into force of the Temporary Crisis Framework, the combined amount of the aid under the Framework for primary production and the de minimis aid could not exceed EUR 15000 in the period from 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2010.
Medlem af Kommissionen
The Temporary Crisis Framework, which also covers primary production, was extended until 31 December 2011.
Med virkning fra den 1. december 2009 er EF-traktatens artikel 87 og 88 blevet til henholdsvis artikel 107 og 108 i traktaten om Den Europæiske Unions funktionsmåde (»TEUF«).
In order to be eligible for aid, beneficiaries had to not only meet the conditions in recitals 112 (with the exception of the condition in (h)), 113 and 114, but also have submitted a complete application no later than 31 December 2010 under a national aid scheme approved by the Commission under the Temporary Crisis Framework (no later than 31 March 2011 as regards enterprises active in primary agricultural production).
De to sæt bestemmelser er i det væsentlige identiske.
Any national aid scheme under which aid was granted after 31 December 2010 had to be notified by the Member State and approved by the Commission under Article 108(3) TFEU.
I denne afgørelse skal henvisninger til artikel 107 og 108 i EUF-traktaten efter omstændighederne forstås som henvisninger til EF-traktatens artikel 87 og 88.
Based on the information which the Danish authorities have submitted in the context of the examination procedure, the Commission cannot conclude that all the conditions in the Temporary Crisis Framework have been met, for the following reasons:
I TEUF blev der desuden indført visse terminologiske ændringer, f.eks. er »Fællesskabet« erstattet med »Unionen«, »fællesmarkedet« med »det indre marked« og »Retten i første instans« med »Retten«.
the Temporary Crisis Framework did not apply to primary agricultural production between 17 December 2008 and 28 October 2009.
I denne afgørelse anvendes terminologien i TEUF.
Therefore it cannot form the basis for the compatibility of the tax exemption for the sector;
Kommissionens konklusion i denne sag var, at afgiftsordningen ikke indebar statsstøtte.
the information from the Danish authorities still does not make it possible to determine whether the criterion for firms in difficulty has been met;
Brev SG-Greffe (2012) D/5011.
nothing in this information suggests that the criterion in Article 107 has been met, which requires statements to have been collected on de minimis aid already received or aid received under the Temporary Crisis Framework;
EUT C 114 af 19.4.2012, s. 4.
as there are no statements, it is impossible to check whether the ceiling laid down in the Temporary Crisis Framework has been complied with in cases where de minimis aid has also been granted, regardless of the grant equivalent of the exemption, not least because the check on compliance with the de minimis ceiling also needs to be viewed with caution (see recital 63);
Ved »almene vandforsyningsanlæg« forstås offentlige eller private anlæg, som forsyner mindst ti ejendomme med drikkevand.
in order to receive aid within the context of the Temporary Crisis Framework in 2011, beneficiaries had to have submitted, no later than 31 December 2010 (or 31 March 2011 for the primary agricultural production sector), a complete application under a national aid scheme notified to and approved by the Commission.
Kommissionens forordning (EF) nr. 1535/2007 af 20. december 2007 om anvendelse af EF-traktatens artikel 87 og 88 på de minimis-støtte til produktion af landbrugsprodukter (EUT L 337 af 21.12.2007, s. 35).
The Danish authorities themselves acknowledge that at that time they had not made use of the options available under the Temporary Crisis Framework.
Kommissionens forordning (EF) nr. 1998/2006 af 15. december 2006 om anvendelse af traktatens artikel 87 og 88 på de minimis-støtte (EUT L 379 af 28.12.2006, s. 5).
The non-notified aid pointed out by the Danish authorities (see recital 53) is therefore not the only condition in the Temporary Crisis Framework which has not been met.
EUT C 82 af 1.4.2008, s. 1.
In light of the above, a tax ceiling set at a volume of 25000 m3 cannot be considered as eligible for a derogation from the Treaty's provisions (which in any case should have been a derogation under Article 107(3)(b) and not under Article 107(3)(c), on the basis of the Temporary Crisis Framework).
EUT C 319 af 27.12.2006, s. 1.
The Danish authorities' other arguments
EUT C 16 af 22.1.2009, s. 1.
The question of the beneficiaries' legitimate expectations (see recital 58) does not affect the assessment of the ceiling's compatibility with the internal market.
Disse rammebestemmelser blev i 2009 udvidet til også at omfatte primærproduktion af landbrugsprodukter (EUT C 261 af 31.10.2009, s. 2) og derefter forlænget frem til udgangen af 2011 for alle de sektorer, de gælder for (EUT C 6 af 11.1.2011, s. 5).
The Danish authorities must obtain the Commission's approval before they introduce an aid scheme.
Domstolens dom af 22. december 2008, British Aggregates mod Kommissionen, C-487/06, ECLI:EU:C:2008:757, præmis 82.
The fact that there is no corresponding tax in the other Member States (see recital 58) does not mean that those affected by the ceiling did not receive an advantage.
Domstolens dom af 8. november 2001, Adria Wien Pipeline GmbH og Wietersdorfer & Peggauer Zementwerke GmbH mod Finanzlandesdirektion für Kärnten., C-143/99, ECLI:EU:C:2001:598, præmis 42, og Domstolens dom af 8. september 2011, Kommissionen mod Nederlandene, C-279/08, ECLI:EU:C:2011:551, præmis 62.
This ceiling meant that, in absolute terms, they had at their disposal extra resources to carry out their business on a competitive market.
Der må maksimalt indvindes ca. 188 mio. m3 overfladevand årligt, heraf 13 mio. m3 til primærproduktion (ca. 500 bedrifter), som overvejende bruges til vanding.
The fact that no complaints about the scheme have been submitted does not in any way mean that the ceiling does not constitute State aid that is incompatible with the internal market.
Den største tilladelse med henblik på vanding var på 270000 m3 om året i perioden 2009-2011 og med henblik på husdyrhold på 511000 m3 om året.
CONCLUSION
Afgørelse C(2003) 777 final COR ændret (jf. afgørelse C(2003) 1224 final).
The Commission finds that reducing the tax by two thirds (see Section 24b) does not constitute State aid under Article 107(1) TFEU, given that the beneficiaries do not receive an advantage in relation to those paying the full tax under the provisions of Section 24a, and that the full exemption under Section 24c does not constitute State aid under Article 107(1) TFEU on grounds relating to the need for good administrative management of the scheme (the amounts are too insignificant to be recovered).
EFT C 384 af 10.12.1998, s. 3.
The Commission finds, however, that the tax ceiling set at a volume of 25000 m3 (see Section 24b) constitutes State aid under Article 107(1) TFEU and that Denmark has illegally applied this ceiling in contravention of Article 108(3) TFEU.
Domstolens dom af 24. oktober 1996, Forbundsrepublikken Tyskland, Hanseatische Industrie-Beteiligungen GmbH og Bremer Vulkan Verbund AG mod Kommissionen for De Europæiske Fællesskaber, C-329/93, C-62/95 og C-63/95, ECLI:EU:C:1996:394.
The analysis shows that the aid resulting from the ceiling cannot be declared compatible with the internal market, because the Danish authorities have been unable to demonstrate either the necessity and proportionality of a tax ceiling set at 25000 m3 or the fulfilment of all conditions in the Temporary Crisis Framework.
EUT C 105 af 24.4.2010, s. 3.
As the doubts expressed in the opening decision have not been dispelled, the Commission finds the aid is incompatible with the internal market.
C(2009) 8093 final.
RECOVERY
Rådets forordning (EF) nr. 659/1999 af 22. marts 1999 om fastlæggelse af regler for anvendelsen af artikel 108 i traktaten om Den Europæiske Unions funktionsmåde (EFT L 83 af 27.3.1999, s. 1).
The contested measure has been implemented without having been notified in advance to the Commission in accordance with Article 108(3) TFEU.
Denne forordning blev ophævet ved Rådets forordning (EU) 2015/1589 af 13. juli 2015 om fastlæggelse af regler for anvendelsen af artikel 108 i traktaten om Den Europæiske Unions funktionsmåde (EUT L 248 af 24.9.2015, s. 9).
It therefore constitutes unlawful aid.
Statistikken over samhandelen i EU viser, at den danske import af landbrugsprodukter i 2011 tegnede sig for 6,886 mia. EUR, mens eksporten tegnede sig for 9,223 mia. EUR.
Under Article 16(1) of Regulation (EU) 2015/1589, where negative decisions are taken in cases of unlawful aid, the Commission is to decide that the Member State concerned must take all necessary measures to recover the aid from the beneficiaries (in this case, all beneficiaries of the tax ceiling set at 25000 m3).
I 2013 var tallene henholdsvis 7,811 og 9,408 mia. EUR.
The Danish authorities have presented a series of arguments against carrying out a recovery (see recitals 55 to 59).
For drikkevarer var de henholdsvis 271,9 og 547,3 mio. EUR.
The Commission cannot accept these arguments.
Ifølge Domstolens retspraksis er alene den omstændighed, at en virksomheds konkurrencemæssige situation forbedres ved, at den opnår en fordel, som den ikke ville have kunnet opnå under normale markedsvilkår, og som de andre konkurrerende virksomheder ikke har, tilstrækkelig til at påvise en konkurrencefordrejning (sag 730/79, Philip Morris mod Kommissionen, ECLI:EU:C:1980:209.).
The question is not whether the distortion of competition is minimal (see recital 55) but whether it exists.
EUT C 262 af 19.7.2016, s. 1.
Once this has been established, the distortion must be eliminated in such a way that the competitive situation will be restored to how it was before the aid was granted.
Se Domstolens dom i sag C-143/99, Adria Wien (fodnote 13), præmis 41, Domstolens dom af 29. april 2004 i sag C-308/01, GIL Insurance, ECLI:EU:C:2004:252, præmis 68, Domstolens dom af 3. marts 2015 i sag C-172/03, Heiser, ECLI:EU:C:2005:130, præmis 40 og Domstolens dom af 6. september 2006 i sag C-88/03, Portugal mod Kommissionen, ECLI:EU:C:2006:511, præmis 54.
The Court of Justice has upheld the principle that the objective of the recovery is specifically to restore the situation that existed on the market before the aid was granted.
Se i den forbindelse Domstolens dom af 6. september 2006 i sag C-88/03, Portugal mod Kommissionen, ECLI:EU:C:2006:511 (fodnote 26).
It has also declared that recovery is the logical consequence of aid having been found to be unlawful, and that recovering the aid is therefore not disproportionate in relation to the Treaty's provisions concerning State aid, contrary to the Danish authorities' claim.
Se fodnote 23.
The argument that no advantage was gained in relation to competitors (see recital 57) is without substance in light of the conclusion concerning the existence of an advantage (recital 64) and the fact that beneficiaries were able to use the unpaid amounts for other purposes (recitals 85 and 119).
I dag artikel 107, stk. 1, i TEUF.
Finally, the Danish authorities wrongly claim that recovery will create a distortion of competition in relation to enterprises that extract surface water.
I dag det indre marked.
The tax only applies to the extraction of groundwater, and therefore it does not concern the extraction of surface water.
Sag C-173/73, Den Italienske Republik mod Kommissionen, ECLI:EU:C:1974:71, præmis 36.
As regards the question of the beneficiaries' legitimate expectations in recital 58, the Commission has already rejected the Danish authorities' argument that the vast majority of the potential beneficiaries could not possibly have anticipated that the scheme could give them an advantage according to State aid rules because there are no comparable taxes in other Member States (see recital 119).
Se punkt 733 i Retningslinjer for statsstøtte i landbrugs- og skovbrugssektoren og i landdistrikter 2014-2020 (EUT C 204 af 1.7.2014, s. 1).
Regarding the principle of legitimate expectations referred to by the Danish authorities, which is closely linked to the aid's lawfulness, the Commission points out that according to established case-law, in principle beneficiaries may only entertain a legitimate expectation that the aid is lawful if it has been granted under the procedure laid down in Article 88 TEU (currently Article 108 TFEU), and a diligent economic operator should normally be able to determine whether that procedure has been followed.
De er siden blevet forlænget frem til den 30. juni 2014 ved Kommissionens meddelelse af 20. november 2013 (EUT C 339 af 20.11.2013, s. 1).
If aid is granted without prior notification to the Commission, ‘... so that it is unlawful under Article 88(3) TEC, the recipient of the aid cannot have at that time a legitimate expectation that its grant is lawful’.
Rådets direktiv 2003/96/EF af 27. oktober 2003 om omstrukturering af EF-bestemmelserne for beskatning af energiprodukter og elektricitet (EUT L 283 af 31.10.2003, s. 51.)
Denmark must therefore take all necessary measures to recover the incompatible aid from the beneficiaries, regardless of its comments.
EUT C 244 af 1.10.2004, s. 2.
This case concerns the difference between the amount that ought to have been paid in tax on the basis of the volume for which a permit was granted and the amount that was paid on a volume of 25000 m3.
Kommissionens forordning (EF) nr. 800/2008 af 6. august 2008 om visse former for støttes forenelighed med fællesmarkedet i henhold til traktatens artikel 87 og 88 (generel gruppefritagelsesforordning) (EUT L 214 af 9.8.2008, s. 3).
In accordance with paragraph 42 of the Notice from the Commission titled ‘Towards an effective implementation of Commission decisions ordering Member States to recover unlawful and incompatible State aid’, Denmark has four months from the decision's entry into force to implement it.
Kommissionens forordning (EF) nr. 1857/2006 af 15. december 2006 om anvendelse af traktatens artikel 87 og 88 på statsstøtte til små og mellemstore virksomheder, der beskæftiger sig med produktion af landbrugsprodukter, og om ændring af forordning (EF) nr. 70/2001 (EUT L 358 af 16.12.2006, s. 3).
Interest is to be paid on the amounts to be recovered (see Commission Regulation (EC) No 794/2004.
Det maksimale støttebeløb blev sat til 15000 EUR pr. virksomhed.
This Decision is to be implemented immediately, except for aid that, at the time it was granted, met all the conditions in the applicable de minimis regulation (see Article 2 of Council Regulation (EC) No 994/98),
Dom af 10. juni 1993 i sag C-183/91, Kommissionen mod Grækenland, ECLI:EU:C:1993:233, præmis 16.
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
Dom af 4. april 1995 i sag C-348/93, Kommissionen mod Italien, ECLI:EU:C:1995:95, præmis 27.
Article 1
Dom af 22. april 2016 i forenede sager T-50/06 RENV II og T-69/06 RENV II, ECLI:EU:T:2016:227, præmis 230.
The reduction by two thirds of the tax that was introduced by Section 24 of Consolidating Act No 935 of 24 September 2009 (see Section 24b) does not constitute State aid under Article 107(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
EUT C 272 af 15.11.2007, s. 4.
Article 2
Kommissionens forordning (EF) nr. 794/2004 af 21. april 2004 om gennemførelse af Rådets forordning (EF) nr. 659/1999 om fastlæggelse af regler for anvendelsen af EF-traktatens artikel 93 (EUT L 140 af 30.4.2004, s. 1).
The ceiling on the calculation base for the tax, set at 25000 m3 of water (see Section 24b of Consolidating Act No 935 of 24 September 2009), constitutes State aid under Article 107(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
Rådets forordning (EF) nr. 994/98 af 7. maj 1998 om anvendelse af artikel 92 og 93 i traktaten om oprettelse af Det Europæiske Fællesskab på visse former for horisontal statsstøtte (EFT L 142 af 14.5.1998, s. 1).
Article 3