natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
Following the Commission's request of 21 October for additional information, Italy transmitted information to the Commission by letters of 21, 23 and 29 December 2004 and at meetings held on 27 October, 26 November and 14 December 2004.
Potem ko je prejela zahtevo Komisije po dodatnih informacijah z dne 21. oktobra, je Italija sporočila navedene informacije v pismih z dne 21., 23. in 29. decembra 2004 in na srečanjih 27. oktobra, 26. novembra in 14. decembra 2004.
By letter of 20 January 2005 (SG (2005) D/200261), the Commission informed Italy of its decision to initiate the procedure provided for in Article 88(2) of the Treaty against these measures.
Komisija je v pismu z dne 20. januarja 2005 (SG(2005)D/200261) Italijo obvestila o odločitvi, da v zvezi s temi ukrepi začne postopek iz člena 88(2) Pogodbe.
The Commission initiated the procedure by decision of 19 January 2005 (hereinafter referred to as the ‘decision to initiate the procedure’), which was published in the Official Journal of the European Union [2] on 19 February 2005.
Odločitev Komisije o začetku postopka, v nadaljnjem besedilu „odločitev z dne 19. januarja 2005“ ali „odločitev o začetku postopka“, je bil objavljen 19. februarja 2005 v Uradnem listu Evropske unije [2].
The Commission called on interested parties to submit their comments on the measures in question within one month of the date of publication, that is to say by 19 March 2005.
Komisija je pozvala zainteresirane strani, da predložijo pripombe o zadevnih ukrepih v roku enega meseca od datuma objave, in sicer do 19. marca 2005.
The Commission received comments from interested parties on 17, 18 and 22 March 2005 [3], all of whom confirmed that their comments did not contain any confidential material.
Komisija je 17., 18. in 22. marca 2005 [3] strani prejela pripombe tretjih oseb, za katere so vse navedle, da ne vsebujejo zaupnih informacij.
It transmitted these comments, including those received after the deadline, to Italy by letters of 18 and 30 March 2005, giving Italy the opportunity to respond to the comments within a period of one month.
Komisija je te pripombe, tudi tiste, ki so prispele po poteku roka, poslala Italiji v dveh pismih z dne 18. in 30. marca 2005 in ji obakrat dala možnost, da o njih sporoči svoje pripombe v roku enega meseca.
In order to ensure the greatest possible transparency of the procedure, the Commission decided to take account also of comments received from interested parties after the deadline and transmit them, on 30 March 2005, to the Italian authorities together with the comments received from interested parties within the deadline.
Da bi zagotovile čim večjo preglednost postopka, so se službe Komisije namreč odločile, da bodo upoštevale tudi pripombe, ki so prispele po poteku roka, in jih 30. marca 2005 sporočile italijanskim organom skupaj s pripombami tretjih oseb, ki so prispele v roku.
The Commission received Italy's response to the comments from interested parties and to the decision to initiate the procedure by letters dated 18 and 20 April 2005.
Komisija je prejela pripombe Italije k pripombam tretjih oseb in tudi k odločitvi o začetku postopka v pismih z dne 18. in 20. aprila 2005.
Further information, including that requested by the Commission on 20 April, was supplied by letters of 22 and 28 April, 31 May and 1 and 6 June 2005.
Druge informacije, ki jih je Komisija med drugim zahtevala 20. aprila, so bile poslane v pismih z dne 22. in 28. aprila 2005, 31. maja 2005 ter 1. in 6. junija 2005.
BACKGROUND
OPIS
The situation in July 2004 and the notification
Pregled položaja julija 2004 in uradnega obvestila
Alitalia's financial position in recent years
Nedavni razvoj družbe Alitalia
Alitalia, 62,3 % of which is currently controlled by the Italian State, has seen its financial situation worsen considerably since 2003.
Finančno stanje Alitalie, v kateri ima italijanska država trenutno približno 62,3-odstotni lastniški delež, se je od leta 2003 močno poslabšalo.
It was against this background that, by decision of 20 July 2004, the Commission approved rescue aid [4] (hereinafter referred to as the ‘decision to approve rescue aid’) of a maximum of €400 million consisting of a State guarantee of liquidity loans bearing 4,43 % interest per annum and repayable not later than twelve months after the last disbursement of funds.
V tem okviru je Komisija 20. julija 2004 odobrila pomoč za reševanje [4] („odločitev o odobritvi pomoči za reševanje“) v višini največ 400 milijonov EUR v obliki državnega jamstva za likvidnostna posojila z obrestno mero 4,43 % na leto, ki jih je treba vrniti najpozneje 12 mesecev po zadnjem izplačilu sredstev.
According to the report by Alitalia's directors on the state of the company's accounts at 30 June 2004, the loan was intended to cover the company's financial needs until March 2005.
To posojilo bi moralo v skladu s poročilom upraviteljev Alitalie o finančnih izkazih z dne 30. junija 2004 pokriti finančne potrebe podjetja do marca 2005.
The Italian authorities have given several undertakings in the framework of the Commission's decision of 20 July 2004, in particular:
Italijanski organi so v okviru te odločitve sprejeli več obveznosti, zlasti:
Alitalia assured the Commission that none of the routes opened from the 2004 summer season involved an increase in capacity as compared with the investments already agreed on 31 December 2002, and that all these routes were economic; it also confirmed that it did not currently practise predatory pricing on these new routes, nor would it do so in the future; the Italian authorities provided the Commission, in the framework of its analysis of the recapitalisation plan, with information showing that these undertakings were being honoured;
Alitalia je Komisiji zagotovila, da so bile vse letalske proge, ki jih je odprla od začetka „poletne“ sezone 2004, odprte brez povečanja zmogljivosti v primerjavi z naložbami, odobrenimi že 31. decembra 2002, in da so bile donosne; Alitalia je tudi potrdila, da za nove letalske proge ne zaračunava in tudi v prihodnosti ne bo uporabljala dampinških cen; italijanski organi so Komisiji za njeno analizo načrta dokapitalizacije dali prve informacije, ki naj bi potrdile upoštevanje teh obveznosti;
the Italian authorities also gave a written undertaking on 13 July 2004 that the State's share of Alitalia's stock would be a minority one within twelve months of the implementation of the rescue aid, that is to say before 8 October 2005.
italijanski organi so se 13. julija 2004 prav tako pisno zavezali, da bo državni delež v Alitalii postal manjšinski v dvanajstih mesecih od izvedbe pomoči za reševanje, se pravi pred 8. oktobrom 2005.
The restructuring measures notified
Priglašeni ukrepi za prestrukturiranje
On 20 September 2004 Alitalia's board of directors adopted a new plan (‘Industrial Plan 2005-2008’) to address the company's serious economic difficulties.
Upravni odbor Alitalie je 20. septembra 2004 sprejel nov poslovni načrt („Piano industriale 2005–2008“), da bi se spoprijel z močnim poslabšanjem finančnega stanja.
It includes a comprehensive set of measures intended to ensure the company's economic viability by increasing productivity and working hours and through cost control, better use of the fleet, etc. The new plan also provides for the separation of Alitalia's two activities, namely air transport (AZ Fly), which will retain the company's present legal form, and support, for which a subsidiary (AZ Servizi) will be set up to cover maintenance, groundhandling, information technology and shared services.
Načrt vključuje popoln paket ukrepov za zagotovitev ekonomske sposobnosti preživetja podjetja s povečanjem produktivnosti in podaljšanjem delovnega časa, obvladovanjem stroškov, boljšo uporabo flote itn. Novi načrt predvideva tudi ločitev dveh dejavnosti Alitalie, in sicer na AZ Fly za dejavnosti letalskega prevoza, ki bo ohranil pravno obliko sedanje Alitalie, ter AZ Servizi za podporne dejavnosti, ki bo kot hčerinska družba obsegala vzdrževanje, oskrbovanje letal na letališču, informacijsko tehnologijo in skupne storitve.
The plan includes shedding 3679 staff in Italy, using schemes provided for this purpose such as the ‘Cassa Integrazione’ which has been extended to cover the aviation industry in order to limit the social repercussions of such measures.
Načrt predvideva odpustitev 3679 zaposlenih v Italiji z uporabo za to predvidenih zakonskih mehanizmov, kot je „dopolnilna blagajna“ („cassa integrazione“), ki je bila razširjena na letalski sektor, da bi omejila socialne posledice teh ukrepov.
Alitalia's restructuring involves two recapitalisations:
Prestrukturiranje Alitalie vključuje dve dokapitalizaciji:
for AZ Fly with support from the State and from private investors contributing some €1,2 billion in early 2005 following approval of the accounts for 2004 at the shareholders' annual general meeting planned for 27 and 28 June 2005;
dokapitalizacijo AZ Fly s strani države in zasebnih vlagateljev v višini približno 1,2 milijarde EUR v letu 2005, potem ko bodo delničarji na skupščini, predvideni za 27. in 28. junij 2005, odobrili finančne izkaze za leto 2004;
for AZ Servizi, which is to be assigned Alitalia's maintenance, groundhandling, information technology and shared services activities, involving approximately €220 million between 2005 and 2007 from the State-owned holding company Fintecna, before the proposed transfer of Alitalia's activities to private partners, possibly in separate sectors.
dokapitalizacijo AZ Servizi, ki bo prevzela vzdrževanje, oskrbovanje letal na letališčih, informacijsko tehnologijo in skupne storitve Alitalie, s strani državnega holdinga Fintecna v višini približno 220 milijonov EUR med letoma 2005 in 2007, in to pred načrtovanim prenosom njegovih dejavnosti na zasebne partnerje, morebiti po posameznih sektorjih.
Recapitalisation will take the form of subscription of ordinary shares and preference shares ensuring a preferred dividend.
Ta dokapitalizacija se bo izvedla z izdajo navadnih in prednostnih delnic, ki zagotavljajo prednostne dividende.
The recapitalisation of AZ Fly
Dokapitalizacija AZ Fly
As with the recapitalisation in 2002, the State's contribution should be on the same terms as that of the private sector. Italy has declared its willingness to give undertakings similar to those given on that earlier occasion.
Država bo morala vložiti kapital sočasno z zasebnim sektorjem, kot je to storila pri dokapitalizaciji leta 2002; italijanski organi so izrazili pripravljenost, da sprejmejo podobne obveze kot takrat.
However, since this notification has been made in advance, the banks' letters of intent announcing their willingness to guarantee the successful conclusion of the operation in terms of the involvement of private investors were not yet available at the time of the notification.
Vendar pisma o nameri bank, v katerih so napovedale, da so pripravljene jamčiti za dobro izvedbo transakcije glede udeležbe zasebnih vlagateljev, še niso bila na voljo ob priglasitvi, ker je bila slednja predčasna.
Other details of the operation, such as reducing the capital prior to recapitalisation to cover past losses, still have to be worked out. These could of course affect the share which the State could underwrite while still honouring its undertaking to privatise Alitalia.
Druga podrobna pravila transakcije, kot je zmanjšanje kapitala pred dokapitalizacijo zaradi poravnave preteklih izgub, je bilo treba še opredeliti; vendar bi lahko vplivala na delež, ki bi ga država lahko vpisala ob upoštevanju svoje obveze, da privatizira Alitalio.
The recapitalisation of AZ Servizi
Dokapitalizacija AZ Servizi
The two parties, Alitalia and Fintecna, have signed two letters of intent and have agreed, with the aid of their respective consultants, on a scheme which will yield a profit of approximately 25 % on the funds invested by Fintecna up to 2008; however, certain aspects of the operation still have to be negotiated between the parties.
Obe strani, Alitalia in Fintecna, sta podpisali pismi o nameri in se s pomočjo svojih svetovalcev dogovorili o načrtu ovrednotenja, ki bi ustvaril donos v vrednosti približno 25 % sredstev, vloženih s strani holdinga Fintecna do leta 2008; vendar se morata še dogovoriti o nekaterih vidikih transakcije.
The Commission's initial assessment in the decision to initiate the procedure
Prvotna ocena Komisije v odločitvi o začetku postopka
From the information in its possession, the Commission could not rule out the possibility that these recapitalisations constitute State aid on the grounds that they do not comply with the principle of a private investor operating in a market economy.
Komisija na podlagi podatkov, ki jih je imela na voljo, ni mogla izključiti, da pri tej dokapitalizaciji ne gre za državno pomoč zaradi neskladnosti z načelom zasebnega vlagatelja v tržnem gospodarstvu.
Since Alitalia already received restructuring aid authorised in 1997, confirmed in 2001 and paid between 1996 and 2001, it cannot, according to the ‘one time, last time’ principle, receive further aid.
Ker je Alitalia že prejela pomoč za reševanje, ki je bila odobrena leta 1997, potrjena leta 2001 in izplačana med letoma 1996 in 2001, v skladu z načelom enkratnosti pomoči ni upravičena do nove pomoči.
With regard to the €1,2 billion recapitalisation of AZ Fly, the Commission therefore wished to receive definitive guarantees that the private sector was also actually involved and that the undertaking to privatise the company which Italy had given in July 2004 was being honoured.
Komisija je torej v zvezi z dokapitalizacijo AZ Fly v višini 1,2 milijarde EUR želela dobiti dokončna jamstva glede dejanske in sočasne udeležbe zasebnega sektorja in izpolnjevanja obveze glede privatizacije družbe, ki jo je Italija sprejela julija 2004.
With regard to the takeover of AZ Servizi by the State holding company Fintecna, the Commission wished to ascertain, with the aid of independent experts, that the operation would be profitable once the implementation details had been finalised, including as regards the future contractual relationship between the two companies and taking account of the existence of preference shares.
Glede na prevzem AZ Servizi s strani javnega holdinga Fintecna je Komisija želela preveriti, tudi s pomočjo neodvisnih izvedencev, ali bo ukrep po določitvi podrobnosti dobičkonosen, vključno s prihodnjimi pogodbenimi razmerji ter ob upoštevanju obstoja prednostnih delnic.
The Commission therefore decided to initiate the formal investigation procedure in order to check, as soon as possible given the company's overstretched cashflow situation, whether the two recapitalisations proposed are compatible with the common market.
Komisija se je torej odločila začeti uradni postopek preiskave, da bi v čim krajšem času in glede na zaostreno finančno stanje podjetja preverila, ali sta načrtovana ukrepa dokapitalizacije združljiva s skupnim trgom.
The Commission also wished to give interested parties the opportunity to comment on any aspect of Alitalia's restructuring and recapitalisation plan which they believed should be brought to its attention.
Ravno tako je hotela dati tretjim osebam možnost, da dajo svoje pripombe k vsem vidikom načrta prestrukturiranja in dokapitalizacije Alitalie, za katere bi se jim zdelo primerno, da nanje opozorijo Komisijo.
Should the recapitalisation measures covered by the present decision be considered state aid, all the Community rules on this subject would have to be applied in order to determine their compatibility.
Če bi bili ukrepi dokapitalizacije iz te odločitve opredeljeni kot državna pomoč, bi bilo namreč treba za ugotovitev morebitne združljivosti uporabiti vse veljavne predpise Skupnosti na tem področju.
New restructuring aid would certainly infringe the ‘one time, last time’ principle as Alitalia already received state aid in the past and because the requisite ten-year period since the end of the last restructuring plan of 2000-01 has not yet elapsed.
Nova pomoč za reševanje bi potemtakem pomenila zanesljivo kršitev načela enkratnosti pomoči, ker je družba že v preteklosti prejela državno pomoč in od zaključka zadnjega načrta prestrukturiranja v letih 2000–2001 še ni minilo deset let.
The Commission has also noted that a condition for the restructuring aid authorised in 1997 was that no further aid of this type could be paid to Alitalia.
Komisija je ravno tako opozorila, da je odločitev o odobritvi pomoči za reševanje iz leta 1997 določal, da Alitalii ni več mogoče izplačati nobene tovrstne pomoči.
Finally, a similar undertaking was given by the Italian authorities for the present recapitalisation when the rescue aid was authorised in July 2004.
Nazadnje so se italijanski organi znova podobno obvezali glede te dokapitalizacije, ko je bila julija 2004 odobrena pomoč za reševanje.
In its decision to initiate the procedure, the Commission stated that, to the extent that the recapitalisation and the advantages granted to Alitalia were considered to constitute State aid within the meaning of Article 87(1) of the Treaty, it doubted that this aid could be compatible with the common market under the derogations provided for in Article 87(2) and (3) of the Treaty.
Komisija je v odločitvi o začetku postopka zaključila, da dvomi, da so te pomoči združljive s skupnim trgom na podlagi izjem iz člena 87(2) in (3) Pogodbe, če bi bile ugodnosti, dodeljene Alitalii, državne pomoči v smislu člena 87(1) Pogodbe.
Preliminary remarks on the comments from interested parties
Predhodna opomba glede pripomb zainteresiranih strani
The Commission notes that the interested parties (a number of airlines and an association representing a number of airlines) criticise the planned financial support in part, namely the recapitalisation of AZ Fly and the takeover of AZ Servizi by Fintecna, in respect of which the investigation procedure was initiated by decision of 19 January 2005, but in particular the use by Alitalia of the rescue aid and especially the company's development with regard to the routes operated and its fares policy.
Komisija ugotavlja, da zainteresirane strani, v tem primeru nekatere letalske družbe in združenje, ki zastopa nekatere od njih, delno kritizirajo načrtovana finančna ukrepa, namreč dokapitalizacijo AZ Fly in prevzem AZ Servizi s strani Fintecne, ki sta predmet odločitve o začetku postopka z dne 19. januarja 2005, predvsem pa kritizirajo Alitaliino uporabo pomoči za reševanje in zlasti njen razvoj na področju letalskih prog in njeno cenovno politiko.
In the account below, which covers the various comments submitted, the Commission has taken pains to distinguish these two aspects.
Komisija se je v nadaljnji predstavitvi teh mnenj trudila ločevati med tema vprašanjema.
The Commission recalls that in order to ensure the greatest possible transparency in its decision-making process and also in the event that an aspect of the recapitalisation were to be considered as aid and have to be evaluated as such, it has given interested parties the opportunity to submit their comments on the rescue aid, although the procedure initiated does not address this point.
Komisija opozarja, da je za čim večjo preglednost postopka oblikovanja te odločbe in tudi za primer, da bi bil del dokapitalizacije mogoče opredeliti kot pomoč in bi ga bilo zato treba obravnavati kot takega, dejansko dala možnost zainteresiranim stranem, da predložijo svoje pripombe k pomoči za reševanje, vendar ni začela postopka o tem vprašanju.
Comments submitted by the interested parties
Pripombe, ki so jih predložile zainteresirane strani
Comments submitted jointly by eight European companies on 17 March 2005
Skupne pripombe osmih evropskih družb z dne 17. marca 2005
The eight airlines (Austrian Airlines, British Airways, Finnair, Hapag Lloyd Flug, Iberia, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines and TAP, hereinafter referred to as ‘the eight companies’) are of the opinion, as expressed in their joint letter of 17 March 2005, that the conditions for granting rescue aid have not been met, that Alitalia's restructuring plan entails new aid, and that the combination of these two facts produces significant spill-over effects.
Osem letalskih prevoznikov, tj. Austrian Airlines, British Airways, Finnair, Hapag Lloyd Flug, Iberia, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines in TAP, v nadaljnjem besedilu „osem družb“, v skupnem pismu z dne 17. marca 2005 meni, da pogoji pomoči za reševanje niso bili izpolnjeni in da načrt prestrukturiranja Alitalie vključuje nove pomoči, splet obojega pa ima velike učinke prelitja (spill-over).
Comments concerning the recapitalisations
Pripombe k dokapitalizaciji
The eight companies take the view that the Commission focuses too much on the reduction of the State's share in Alitalia and that the compatibility of AZ Fly's recapitalisation, the takeover of AZ Servizi and the public support measures are also questionable. In their opinion, the private-investor principle does not seem to be complied with inasmuch as Alitalia is unable to guarantee a sufficient return on investment.
Osem družb meni, da se Komisija preveč osredotoča na zmanjševanje državnega deleža v Alitalii in da so tudi združljivost dokapitalizacije AZ Fly, prevzem AZ Servizi in ukrepi državne podpore sporni; zdi se jim, da se glede na nezmožnost Alitalie, da bi zagotovila zadostno dobičkonosnost naložbe, ne upošteva načelo zasebnega vlagatelja.
In an annex, the eight companies note the following:
V prilogi menijo:
the undertaking given in connection with the rescue aid (point 41 of the decision to approve rescue aid) to privatise Alitalia within twelve months has not been maintained.
da ni bila izpolnjena obveza (točka 41 odločbe o odobritvi pomoči za reševanje) glede privatizacije Alitalie v 12 mesecih.
The separation of AZ Fly and AZ Servizi renders this principle applicable only to AZ Fly whereas the activity of AZ Servizi also benefited from the aid (point 58 of the decision to initiate the procedure).
To načelo namreč zaradi razdružitve v AZ Fly in AZ Servizi velja samo za prvo podjetje, čeprav je tudi drugo prejelo pomoč za svojo dejavnost (točka 58 odločitve o začetku postopka).
Accordingly, the plan submitted by Alitalia is inappropriate and an ‘appropriate’ plan should be submitted by 12 June 2005;
Predloženi načrt je zato neustrezen in do 12. junija 2005 bi bilo treba predložiti „ustrezen“ načrt;
the evaluation of profitability submitted by Fintecna (inappropriately called ‘Finmeccanica’ in the letter) is incorrect. The eight companies are of the opinion that the part of the capital of AZ Servizi held by AZ Fly must be taken into account in calculating the State share in AZ Fly's capital and that the calculation of the hurdle rate should be reviewed;
da je vrednotenje predložene dobičkonosnosti za holding Fintecna (v njihovem pismu nepravilno imenovan Finmeccanica) netočno; družbe menijo, da bi bilo treba delež kapitala AZ Servizi, ki ga ima v lasti AZ Fly, upoštevati pri izračunu deleža države v kapitalu slednjega in popraviti izračun minimalne stopnje donosa;
the presence of conditions to which is subject Italy's obligation to privatise AZ Fly (point 28 of the decision to initiate the procedure) is not acceptable; in their opinion, the State's maximum share in the operation (€750 million) should immediately be reduced, in particular because no account can be taken of the possibility of ‘unforeseeable and unfavourable market conditions’; they recall that in the Iberia case [5] the Commission had not accepted the request of the Spanish authorities to defer the company's privatisation because of problems in connection with the privatisation of its South American interests;
da obstoj pogojev pri obvezi Italije glede privatizacije AZ Fly (točka 28 odločitve o začetku postopka) ni sprejemljiv; maksimalni delež v transakciji, in sicer 750 milijonov EUR, je treba po njihovem mnenju nemudoma zmanjšati, zlasti ker ni mogoče dopustiti, da se upošteva možnost „neugodnih in nepredvidljivih tržnih razmer“; opozarjajo, da je Komisija v primeru Iberie [5] zavrnila zahtevo španskih organov za odložitev privatizacije družbe zaradi težav pri privatizaciji južnoameriških družb delničark Iberie;