natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
HAVING REGARD to the Agreement between the EFTA States on the Establishment of a Surveillance Authority and a Court of Justice (the Surveillance and Court Agreement) and in particular Article 24 thereof,
OB UPOŠTEVANJU Sporazuma med državami Efte o ustanovitvi nadzornega organa in sodišča (v nadaljnjem besedilu: Sporazum o nadzornem organu in sodišču) in zlasti člena 24 Sporazuma,
HAVING REGARD to Protocol 3 to the Surveillance and Court Agreement (Protocol 3) and in particular Article 1(2) of Part I and Article 4(4), Article 6 and Article 7(3) of Part II thereof,
OB UPOŠTEVANJU Protokola 3 k Sporazumu o nadzornem organu in sodišču (v nadaljnjem besedilu: Protokol 3) in zlasti člena 1(2) dela I ter člena 4(4), člena 6 in člena 7(3) dela II Protokola,
HAVING called on interested parties to submit their comments pursuant to those provisions [1] and having regard to their comments,
PO pozivu zainteresiranim stranem, naj predložijo svoje pripombe v skladu z navedenimi členi [1] in ob upoštevanju njihovih pripomb,
By letter of 27 January 2009 (Event No 506341), the Norwegian authorities notified the financing of the fitness centre at the Kippermoen Leisure Centre (the KLC), pursuant to Article 1(3) of Part I of Protocol 3.
Z dopisom z dne 27. januarja 2009 (ev. št. 506341) so norveški organi v skladu s členom 1(3) dela I Protokola 3 Nadzorni organ obvestili o financiranju fitnes centra v rekreacijskem centru Kippermoen (v nadaljnjem besedilu: center KLC).
After various exchanges of correspondence, by letter dated 16 December 2009 (Event No 538177) the Authority informed the Norwegian authorities that it had decided to initiate the procedure laid down in Article 1(2) of Part I of Protocol 3 in respect of the financing of the fitness centre at the KLC.
Po izmenjavi korespondence je Nadzorni organ z dopisom z dne 16. decembra 2009 (ev. št. 538177) obvestil norveške organe o svoji odločitvi, da začne postopek iz člena 1(2) dela I Protokola 3 v zvezi s financiranjem fitnes centra v centru KLC.
By letter dated 23 February 2010 (Event No 547864), the Norwegian authorities submitted comments to the opening decision.
Norveški organi so z dopisom z dne 23. februarja 2010 (ev. št. 547864) predložili pripombe na odločitev o začetku postopka.
The Authority’s Decision No 537/09/COL to initiate the procedure was published in the Official Journal of the European Union and the EEA Supplement thereto [2].
Odločba Nadzornega organa št. 537/09/COL o začetku formalnega postopka preiskave je bila objavljena v Uradnem listu Evropske unije in v Dopolnilu EGP k Uradnemu listu Evropske unije [2].
The Authority called on interested parties to submit their comments thereon.
Nadzorni organ je pozval zainteresirane strani, naj v zvezi z navedeno odločbo predložijo svoje pripombe.
The Authority received comments from the Norwegian Association for Fitness (the NAF) (Treningsforbundet) [3] and the European Health & Fitness Association (the EHFA).
Nadzorni organ je prejel pripombe norveške zveze za fitnes (Treningsforbundet, v nadaljnjem besedilu: NZF) [3] in evropske zveze za zdravje in fitnes (v nadaljnjem besedilu: EZZF).
On 2 November 2010, the Authority held a meeting with the NAF.
Nadzorni organ se je 2. novembra 2010 srečal s predstavniki NZF.
By letters dated 20 September 2010 (Event No 567099) and 9 November 2010 (Event No 576711) the Authority forwarded the comments and the information provided in the meeting to the Norwegian authorities, which submitted comments by letter dated 10 January 2011 (Event No 582713).
Nadzorni organ je z dopisoma z dne 20. septembra 2010 (ev. št. 567099) in 9. novembra 2010 (ev. št. 576711) posredoval pripombe in informacije s sestanka norveškim organom, ki so predložili svoje pripombe z dopisom z dne 10. januarja 2011 (ev. št. 582713).
The Norwegian authorities submitted further comments by letters dated 14 March 2011 (Event No 590193) and 22 March 2011 (Event No 591454), and e-mail dated 28 March 2011 (Event No 592463).
Norveški organi so nadaljnje pripombe predložili z dopisoma z dne 14. marca 2010 (ev. št. 590193) in 22. marca 2010 (ev. št. 591454) ter z elektronskim sporočilom z dne 28. marca 2011 (ev. št. 590193).
The Kippermoen Leisure Centre (the KLC) and its fitness centre
Rekreacijski center Kippermoen (v nadaljnjem besedilu: center KLC) in pripadajoči fitnes center
As stated in Decision No 537/09/COL, the KLC was established in the 1970s.
Kakor je bilo navedeno v Odločbi št. 537/09/COL, je bil center KLC ustanovljen v 1970-ih letih.
It is located in the municipality of Vefsn, in the county of Nordland.
Nahaja se v občini Vefsn, v okrožju Nordland.
The centre is owned by the municipality and is not organised as a separate legal entity.
Center je v lasti občine in nima statusa ločene pravne osebe.
Initially, the KLC consisted of an indoor swimming pool with a solarium and a sports hall, in addition to a modestly equipped fitness centre.
V centru KLC so bili najprej notranji bazen s solarijem in športno dvorano ter skromno opremljen fitnes center.
During the years 1997-1999 and again in 2006-2007, the KLC and its fitness centre were expanded.
V letih 1997–1999 in ponovno v letih 2006–2007 sta bila center KLC in pripadajoči fitnes center razširjena.
The financing of the KLC and its fitness centre
Financiranje centra KLC in pripadajočega fitnes centra
Since its establishment in the 1970s, the KLC has been financed by its users and the municipal budget.
Center KLC so od ustanovitve v 1970-ih letih delno financirali njegovi uporabniki, delno pa se je financiral iz občinske blagajne.
The users contribute to the financing by paying for access to the facilities.
Uporabniki prispevajo k financiranju s plačevanjem vstopnine v prostore centra.
The municipality fully controls the prices, the types of tickets on offer and the allocation of the revenue.
Občina v celoti nadzira cene, vrste ponujenih vstopnic in razdelitev prihodka.
Although the ticket prices have been subject to adjustments throughout the years, the contributions from the users do not cover the full cost of operations of the KLC.
Čeprav so se cene vstopnic med leti vedno prilagajale, prispevki uporabnikov ne pokrivajo v celoti stroškov poslovanja centra KLC.
The deficit is covered over the municipal budget in accordance with the budgetary decisions of the municipal council.
Razlika se krije iz občinskega proračuna v skladu s proračunskimi odločitvami občinskega sveta.
New information submitted by the Norwegian authorities
Nove informacije, ki so jih predložili norveški organi
Charging fees from the users of the fitness centre
Zaračunavanje vstopnine uporabnikom fitnes centra
In Decision No 537/09/COL, the Authority noted that the KLC, since its foundation in the 1970s, has been financed by fees levied on its users and over the municipal budget [4].
Nadzorni organ je v Odločbi št. 537/09/COL ugotovil, da se je center KLC od ustanovitve v 1970-ih letih financiral z vstopninami, ki so se zaračunavale njegovim uporabnikom, in iz občinskega proračuna [4].
In Decision No 537/09/COL, the Authority noted that the KLC as a whole was expanded in 1997 and that this expansion was financed i.a. by a NOK 10 million loan.
Nadzorni organ je v Odločbi št. 537/09/COL ugotovil, da je bil celotni center KLC razširjen leta 1997 in da se je ta razširitev med drugim financirala s posojilom v višini 10 milijonov NOK.
The Authority had not received detailed information about the loan and to what extent, if any, the fitness centre at the KLC benefited from the loan [6].
Nadzorni organ ni prejel podrobnih informacij o posojilu, niti o tem, v kolikšnem obsegu, če sploh, je imel od posojila korist fitnes center v centru KLC [6].
During the formal investigation procedure, the Norwegian authorities clarified that the loan amounted to NOK 5,8 million instead of NOK 10 million as mentioned in the opening decision [7].
Med formalnim postopkom preiskave so norveški organi pojasnili, da je posojilo znašalo 5,8 milijona NOK in ne 10 milijonov NOK, kakor je bilo navedeno v odločitvi o začetku postopka [7].
Furthermore, the Norwegian authorities clarified that the municipality did not obtain the loan in order to finance the expansions of the fitness centre, but in order to i.a. construct a new football arena known as Mosjøhallen at the total cost of NOK 14 million [8].In 1997-1999, the fitness centre was expanded and the KLC bought new equipment (weight-lifting equipment, stationary bicycles and various other fitness machines) for a total amount of approximately NOK 870000 (approximately EUR 109000) [9].2.2.3.
Poleg tega so norveški organi pojasnili, da občina ni pridobila posojila, da bi financirala razširitev fitnes centra, temveč med drugim za izgradnjo nove nogometne arene z imenom Mosjøhallen s skupnimi stroški v višini 14 milijonov NOK [8]. V letih 1997–1999 je bil fitnes center razširjen in center KLC je nabavil novo opremo (opremo za dvigovanje uteži, stacionarna kolesa in različne druge fitnes naprave) v skupni vrednosti približno 870000 NOK (okoli 109000 EUR) [9].
Expansions in 2006-2007
Razširitve 2006–2007
The Norwegian authorities have furthermore submitted new information about the expansion of the KLC undertaken in 2006-2007.
Norveški organi so nadalje predložili nove informacije o razširitvi centra KLC v letih 2006–2007.
In 2005, the municipality decided to expand the fitness centre, by constructing a new annex linking the existing buildings of the KLC.
Leta 2005 se je občina odločila, da bo razširila fitnes center, in sicer z izgradnjo novega dodatka, ki bi povezoval obstoječe zgradbe centra KLC.
The intention was to make the centre more user-friendly in terms of access.
Namen tega je bil uporabniku prijaznejši dostop do centra.
The municipality furthermore decided to upgrade the existing facilities in the process [10].
Občina se je poleg tega odločila, da bo ob tem nadgradila obstoječe prostore [10].
The linking and upgrading of the existing buildings was undertaken in order to ensure that the standard of the facilities of the KLC would be on par with comparable centres [11].In 2006-2007, the KLC and the fitness centre were consequently upgraded and expanded into a new annex (Mellombygningen).
Povezava in nadgraditev obstoječih zgradb sta bili izvedeni, da bi bil standard prostorov centra KLC enakovreden standardom primerljivih centrov [11].V letih 2006–2007 sta bila center KLC in fitnes center nadgrajena in razširjena v nov dodatek (Mellombygningen).
The total cost of the expansion was approximately NOK 14,2 million.
Skupni stroški razširitve so znašali približno 14,2 milijona NOK.
A cost allocation plan was drawn up to in order to ensure that the fitness centre would carry its proportionate share (approximately 80 %) [12] of the expansion costs.
Pripravljen je bil načrt razdelitve stroškov, da bi se zagotovilo, da bi fitnes center financiral sorazmeren delež (približno 80 %) [12] stroškov razširitve.
The remaining share (approximately 20 %) was to be covered by other means as these costs were not related to the fitness centre, but to other facilities at the KLC.
Preostali delež (približno 20 %) naj bi se kril iz drugih sredstev, saj ti stroški niso bili povezani s fitnes centrom, ampak z drugimi prostori centra KLC.
In the decision to open the formal investigation procedure, the Authority noted that the fitness centre had not carried its full share of the loan cost for 2008 according to the cost allocation plan.
V odločitvi o začetku formalnega postopka preiskave je Nadzorni organ ugotovil, da fitnes center ni pokril celotnega dodeljenega deleža stroškov posojila za leto 2008 v skladu z načrtom razdelitve stroškov.
Based on the information available at the time of the decision to initiate the formal investigation procedure, the Authority was not able to exclude that the fitness centre at the KLC had received funding from the county municipality of Nordland [14].
Na podlagi razpoložljivih informacij v času sprejetja odločitve o začetku formalnega postopka preiskave Nadzorni organ ni mogel izključiti, da je fitnes center v centru KLC prejel sredstva okrožne občine Nordland [14].
The Norwegian authorities were therefore asked to provide information on this matter.
Norveški organi so bili zato pozvani, da predložijo informacije o tej zadevi.
The Norwegian authorities have clarified that the fitness centre at the KLC has not been funded by the county municipality of Nordland [15].3.
Norveški organi so pojasnili, da se fitnes center v centru KLC ni financiral iz sredstev okrožne občine Nordland [15].3.
The Authority opened the formal investigation procedure, as it had doubts as to whether the financing of the fitness centre at the KLC constituted State aid within the meaning of Article 61 of the EEA Agreement.
Nadzorni organ je začel formalni postopek in pozval zainteresirane strani k predložitvi pripomb skladno z navedenimi določbami ter ob upoštevanju njihovih pripomb, saj je dvomil o tem, ali je financiranje fitnes centra v centru KLC pomenilo državno pomoč v smislu člena 61 Sporazuma EGP ali ne.
Furthermore, the Authority had doubts as to whether the financing of the fitness centre, if it were to be considered as State aid, could be held to be compatible with the EEA Agreement on the basis of either Article 59(2) as aid for a service of general economic interest or alternatively compatible on the basis of Article 61(3)(c) as aid to facilitate cultural or regional activities.
Poleg tega je Nadzorni organ dvomil, da bi bilo lahko financiranje fitnes centra, če bi se štelo za državno pomoč, združljivo s Sporazumom EGP bodisi na podlagi člena 59(2) kot pomoč za storitve splošnega gospodarskega pomena bodisi na podlagi člena 61(3)(c) kot pomoč za pospeševanje kulturnih ali regionalnih dejavnosti.
The Norwegian authorities had notified the financing of the fitness centre in January 2009 and had not provided any information to justify the provisional conclusion that the financing of the fitness centre, if it were to be considered as State aid, constituted a system of existing aid within the meaning of Article 1(1) of Part I of Protocol 3.
Norveški organi so priglasili financiranje fitnes centra januarja 2009 in niso predložili nobenih informacij, ki bi utemeljile začasen sklep, da je financiranje fitnes centra, če bi se štelo za državno pomoč, pomenilo sistem obstoječe pomoči v smislu člena 1(1) dela I Protokola 3.
Consequently, in view of the doubts it had, the Authority initiated the formal investigation procedure provided for in Article 1(3) and (2).
Zato je Nadzorni organ na podlagi izraženih dvomov začel formalni postopek preiskave iz člena 1(3) in (2).
The Authority received comments from two third parties, the EHFA and the NAF.
Nadzorni organ je prejel pripombe dveh tretjih oseb, in sicer EZZF in NZF.
It submits that fitness centres should be treated on equal terms regardless of whether they are privately or publicly owned, and that publicly owned fitness centres should not be granted advantages contrary to Article 59 of the EEA Agreement.
EZZF je neodvisna nepridobitna organizacija, ki predstavlja interese evropskih panog zdravja in fitnesa.Poudarja, da bi se morali fitnes centri obravnavati enakovredno, ne glede na to, ali so v zasebni ali javni lasti, ter da fitnes centri v javni lasti ne bi smeli biti v boljšem položaju, saj je to v nasprotju s členom 59 Sporazuma EGP.
Comments from the Norwegian Association for Fitness (the NAF)
Pripombe norveške zveze za fitnes (v nadaljnjem besedilu: NZF)
The NAF is a Norwegian organisation for commercial fitness centres.
NZF je norveška organizacija za komercialne fitnes centre.
The NAF submits that State resources selectively benefiting fitness centres in the Norwegian market in general constitute State aid within the meaning of Article 61(1) of the EEA Agreement since such financing distorts competition and affects intra-EEA trade.
NZF poudarja, da državna sredstva, ki se selektivno dodeljujejo fitnes centrom na norveškem trgu, na splošno pomenijo državno pomoč v smislu člena 61(1) Sporazuma EGP, saj tovrstno financiranje izkrivlja konkurenco in vpliva na trgovino v EGP.
To substantiate this, the NAF provided the Authority with general information on the Norwegian fitness centre market [16].The NAF furthermore argues that State aid to publicly owned fitness centres cannot be considered compatible with the functioning of the EEA Agreement on the basis of Article 59(2) as public service compensation or Article 61(3)(c) as aid to cultural or regional activities when the same aid is not offered to privately owned fitness centres on equal terms.
NZF je v podporo svoji trditvi Nadzornemu organu predložila splošne informacije o norveškem trgu za fitnes centre [16].NZF nadalje trdi, da državna pomoč fitnes centrom v javni lasti ne more šteti za združljivo z delovanjem Sporazuma EGP, in sicer na podlagi člena 59(2) kot kompenzacija za javno storitev ali člena 61(3)(c) kot pomoč za kulturne ali regionalne dejavnosti, če se enaka pomoč ne ponudi tudi zasebnim fitnes centrom na enakovredni ravni.
The Norwegian authorities consider that the financing of the fitness centre at the KLC does not constitute State aid within the meaning of Article 61(1) of the EEA Agreement for the following reasons: (i) the fitness centre does not receive a selective advantage stemming from state resources; (ii) the centre does not constitute an undertaking; and (iii) the financing of the fitness centre does not affect trade between the contracting parties of the EEA Agreement.
Norveški organi menijo, da financiranje fitnes centra v centru KLC ne pomeni državne pomoči v smislu člena 61(1) Sporazuma EGP in zato navajajo naslednje razloge: (i) fitnes center ni deležen selektivne prednosti, ki izhaja iz državnih sredstev, (ii) center ni podjetje in (iii) financiranje fitnes centra ne vpliva na trgovino med pogodbenicami Sporazuma EGP.
Additionally, the Norwegian authorities state that any municipal resources allocated to the fitness centre satisfies the requirements of the de minimis regulation [17] and does therefore not constitute State aid within the meaning of Article 61(1) of the EEA Agreement.In the event that the Authority should find that the financing involves State aid, the Norwegian authorities consider such aid as existing aid since the KLC has been financed over the municipal budget and user fees since before the entry into force of the EEA Agreement and that this method of financing has remained unaltered since then.
Poleg tega norveški organi navajajo, da vsa občinska sredstva, ki so bila dodeljena fitnes centru, izpolnjujejo pogoje uredbe de minimis [17] in zato ne pomenijo državne pomoči v smislu člena 61(1) Sporazuma EGP.Če bi Nadzorni organ ugotovil, da financiranje vključuje državno pomoč, norveški organi menijo, da gre pri takšni pomoči za obstoječo pomoč, saj se je center KLC financiral iz občinskega proračuna in vstopnin za uporabnike že v času pred začetkom veljavnosti Sporazuma EGP in da se ta način financiranja od takrat ni spremenil.
Regardless of the above, the Norwegian authorities consider any potential aid to be compatible with the EEA Agreement on the basis of either Article 59(2) as aid for a service of general economic interest or alternatively compatible on the basis of Article 61(3)(c) as aid to facilitate cultural activities.
Ne glede na navedeno norveški organi menijo, da je vsaka potencialna pomoč združljiva s Sporazumom EGP, in sicer bodisi na podlagi člena 59(2) kot pomoč za storitve splošnega gospodarskega pomena bodisi na podlagi člena 61(3)(c) kot pomoč za spodbujanje kulturnih dejavnosti.
Finally, the Norwegian authorities hold that the financing of the expansion of the fitness centre in 2006-2007 constitutes a form of regional aid compatible on the basis of Article 61(3)(c) and with reference to the Authority’s Guidelines on National Regional Aid (2007-2013) [18].
Norveški organi tudi trdijo, da financiranje razširitve fitnes centra v letih 2006–2007 pomeni neke vrste regionalno pomoč, ki je združljiva na podlagi člena 61(3)(c) in v povezavi s smernicami Nadzornega organa o nacionalni regionalni pomoči (2007–2013) [18].
The funding from the municipality of Vefsn
Financiranje, ki ga je zagotovila občina Vefsn
However, alterations to existing aid represent new aid, in line with Article 1(c) of the same Protocol.In its Decision the Authority indicated that it had not received sufficiently specific information on the two expansions of the fitness centre and the changes to the system of allocation of ticketing revenue, and noted that these factors could have altered the existing system of aid into new aid within the meaning of Article 1(c) of the same Protocol [21].
Vendar pa v skladu s členom 1(c) istega protokola spremembe obstoječe pomoči pomenijo novo pomoč.Nadzorni organ je v svoji odločitvi navedel, da ni prejel dovolj specifičnih informacij o obeh razširitvah fitnes centra in spremembah sistema dodeljevanja prihodka od vstopnic, ter ugotovil, da bi lahko ti dejavniki spremenili obstoječi sistem pomoči v novo pomoč v smislu člena 1(c) navedenega protokola [21].
In line with the principles laid down in the case law of the ECJ [22], the Authority dealt with the measures within the framework of the rules pertaining to new aid.Any assessment made in a decision to open the formal investigation procedure as to whether a potential aid measure constitutes new or existing aid is necessarily only of a preliminary nature.
V skladu z načeli sodne prakse Sodišča [22] je Nadzorni organ ukrepe obravnaval v okviru pravil, ki veljajo za novo pomoč.Vsaka ocena v okviru odločitve o začetku formalnega postopka preiskave glede tega, ali potencialni ukrep pomoči pomeni novo ali obstoječo pomoč, je nujno zgolj predhodna ocena.
Even if the Authority, based on the information provided at the time, decided to open a formal investigation procedure on the basis of Article 1(2) of Part I of Protocol 3, it can still, in the decision concluding that procedure, find that the measure, if aid is involved, in fact constitutes existing aid [23].
Tudi če se je Nadzorni organ na podlagi informacij, ki jih je imel takrat, odločil začeti formalni postopek preiskave na podlagi člena 1(2) dela I Protokola 3, lahko v odločitvi o končanju tega postopka še vedno ugotovi, da ukrep, če gre za pomoč, dejansko pomeni obstoječo pomoč [23].
Where existing aid is involved, the Authority has to follow the procedure for existing aid [24].
Kadar gre za obstoječo pomoč, mora Nadzorni organ uporabiti postopek za obstoječo pomoč [24].
Accordingly, in such a case, the Authority would have to close the formal investigation procedure and open the different procedure for existing aid laid down in Articles 17-19 of Part II of Protocol 3 [25].
Skladno s tem bi moral Nadzorni organ končati formalni postopek preiskave in začeti drugačen postopek za obstoječo pomoč, določen v členih 17 do 19 dela II Protokola 3 [25].
Under this latter procedure, and only under that, the Authority would assess whether a measure constitutes aid and if so, whether it is compatible with the functioning of the EEA Agreement.As explained above in Chapter I.2 of this Decision, the Norwegian authorities have submitted additional factual information about the financing and expansions of the fitness centre at the KLC.
Nadzorni organ bi nato izključno po slednjem postopku ocenil, ali ukrep pomeni pomoč, in če je tako, ali je pomoč združljiva z delovanjem Sporazuma EGP.Kakor je pojasnjeno v poglavju I.2 te odločbe, so norveški organi predložili dodatne stvarne informacije o financiranju in razširitvah fitnes centra v centru KLC.
As the fitness centre has not been financed as a separate operation, its financing cannot be assessed independently of the financing of the KLC as such.
Ker financiranje fitnes centra ni bila ločena operacija, tega financiranja ni mogoče oceniti neodvisno od financiranja centra KLC.
Since its foundation in the 1970s, the KLC has been financed by fees levied on its users and over the municipal budget.
Center KLC so od ustanovitve v 1970-ih letih delno financirali njegovi uporabniki s plačevanjem vstopnin, delno pa se je financiral iz občinske blagajne.