natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
Following Chapter 19.6(c) of the Guidelines, this is, amongst others, the case where the injection of capital into companies whose capital is divided between private and public shareholders makes the public holding reach a significantly higher level than it was originally and the relative disengagement of private shareholders is largely due to the companies’ poor profit outlook.
V skladu s poglavjem 19.6(c) Smernic gre za tak primer, med drugim, ko zaradi dokapitalizacije v družbah, katerih kapital je razdeljen med zasebne in javne delničarje, javni delež doseže precej višjo raven od prvotne, relativno zmanjšanje udejstvovanja zasebnih delničarjev pa je predvsem posledica slabega obeta družb glede dobička.
The Icelandic authorities argue that the Icelandic State’s share capital increase should not be looked at as an injection of fresh capital, but rather as the initial setting up of the company.
Islandski organi menijo, da povečanja delniškega kapitala islandske države ne bi smeli obravnavati kot vložka svežega kapitala, temveč kot začetno vzpostavljanje družbe.
The Icelandic authorities state that Farice hf., with the share capital of ISK 30 million was not, in September 2002, in the position to take on the project of construction or operation of a submarine communication cable system.
Islandski organi navajajo, da družba Farice hf. septembra 2002 s 30 milijoni ISK delniškega kapitala ni mogla prevzeti projekta gradnje ali delovanja podmorskega komunikacijskega kabelskega sistema.
Instead of creating — as discussed — a new company, the first share increase in January 2003 took place, which was in the view of the Icelandic authorities, therefore not a normal ‘share increase’ of a company, but in fact similar to the establishment of a new company with a new purpose.
Namesto ustanovitve nove družbe – o čemer so razpravljali – je januarja 2003 prišlo do prvega povečanja deleža, ki po mnenju islandskih organov ni bilo običajno „povečanje deleža“ družbe, temveč je bilo dejansko podobno ustanovitvi nove družbe z novim namenom.
The Authority points out that the State Aid Guidelines consider the share capital increase, regardless of at what point in time it takes place, as a subcategory of the injection of fresh capital.
Nadzorni organ opozarja, da Smernice o državni pomoči obravnavajo povečanje delniškega kapitala kot podkategorijo vložka svežega kapitala, ne glede na to, kdaj do njega pride.
As the Guidelines reflect the general principle of private market investor behaviour, the share capital increase must be analysed on its merits.
Ker Smernice odražajo splošno načelo ravnanja zasebnega vlagatelja v tržno gospodarstvo, je treba povečanje delniškega kapitala analizirati v skladu z njim.
Even if the Government had assumed the higher share already during the preparation phase, this still would have made the capital participation of the Icelandic State subject to an analysis under the State aid provisions.
Čeprav je država prevzela višji delež že med pripravljalno fazo, je kapitalska udeležba islandske države še vedno predmet analize po določbah o državni pomoči.
For that assessment it is therefore only relevant whether the share capital increase reflects the rationale of a private market investor.
Za to oceno je torej pomembno samo, ali povečanje delniškega kapitala odraža načelo zasebnega vlagatelja v tržno gospodarstvo.
The Authority does not deny that in real terms the private operators’ increased holdings occurred at the same time as the capital increase by the State.
Nadzorni organ ne zanika, da je prišlo do povečanja deležev zasebnih operaterjev dejansko sočasno s kapitalskim povečanjem države.
However, in the Authority’s opinion, the share increase of the private operators was not proportionate to the share capital increase by the State.
Vendar pa po mnenju Nadzornega organa povečanje deleža zasebnih operaterjev ni bilo sorazmerno s povečanjem delniškega kapitala države.
As can be seen from the table above (see Section I.2.2(b) of this Decision) Farice hf.’s capital rose from EUR 327000 to EUR 14070000 in January 2003. The share of the Icelandic State grew from 27,33 % (EUR 90000) to 46,53 % (EUR 6547000), i.e. by almost 20 percentage points.
Kot je razvidno iz zgornje tabele (glej oddelek I.2.2(b) te odločbe), se je kapital družbe Farice hf. januarja 2003 povečal s 327000 EUR na 14070000 EUR. Delež islandske države se je povečal s 27,33 % (90000 EUR) na 46,53 % (6547000 EUR), tj. za skoraj 20 odstotnih točk.
While it is correctly stated by the Icelandic authorities that the share of Síminn grew from EUR 155000 to EUR 4690000, in relative terms the share of Síminn fell from 47,33 % to 33,33 % (14 percentage points).
Islandski organi sicer pravilno navajajo, da se je Síminnov delež s 155000 EUR povečal na 4690000 EUR, vendar pa se je ta delež relativno zmanjšal s 47,33 % na 33,33 % (14 odstotnih točk).
Except for Telefonverkið, the shares of all other participants also fell (from 1,33 % to 0,33 %), which shows that in relative terms the commercial operators disengaged from the project.
Razen za družbo Telefonverkið so se zmanjšali tudi deleži vseh drugih udeležencev (z 1,33 na 0,33 %), kar kaže, da so komercialni operaterji relativno zmanjšali svoje udejstvovanje v projektu.
This is likely to result from the poor outlook of the company’s profit.
To je verjetno posledica slabih obetov glede dobička družbe.
In their letter of September 2004, the Icelandic authorities have submitted that:
V dopisu iz septembra 2004 so islandski organi navedli naslednje:
‘Síminn felt that increasing the capacity to meet foreseeable demand, as well as providing an alternate route for emergencies, was a financially risky undertaking, providing little return on investment (especially for a limited company in line for privatisation).
„V Síminnu so menili, da sta povečanje zmogljivosti za zadostitev predvidenega povpraševanja in zagotavljanje alternativne poti za nujne primere finančno tvegana ter pomenita slabo donosnost naložbe (predvsem za družbo z omejeno odgovornostjo, ki je pred privatizacijo).
In order to facilitate the necessary upgrade in capacity, particularly in view of the short time frame available until capacity would be outstripped by the demand, the Government stepped in.’
Da bi pospešila potrebno nadgradnjo zmogljivosti, zlasti glede na kratek razpoložljiv čas, preden povpraševanje prehiti razpoložljivo zmogljivost, je v projekt posegla vlada.“
The Icelandic authorities further state that the market’s reluctance towards the project was indicated in the preparatory phase when Síminn and Telefonverkið engaged IBM Consulting to advise them on the economic viability of the project and its financing possibilities.
Islandski organi nadalje navajajo nenaklonjenost trga projektu, ki se je pokazala v pripravljalni fazi, ko sta Síminn in Telefonverkið vključila IBM Consulting, da jima svetuje glede gospodarske izvedljivosti projekta in njegovih finančnih možnosti.
The findings strongly suggested that the funding could not be done via traditional means [41].It seems from this that the initial lack of engagement from private investors was the reason for the subscription of the necessary capital increase by the Government in early 2003 [42], which raised the state participation in Farice hf.The increase in the Icelandic State’s share of Farice was further accompanied by the grant of a State guarantee to cover the A Term Loan of EUR 9,4 million, assessed above in this Decision.
Ugotovitve so trdno kazale na to, da financiranje prek tradicionalnih sredstev ne bi bilo mogoče [41].Zato se zdi, da je bilo začetno pomanjkanje udejstvovanja zasebnih vlagateljev razlog za vpis potrebnega kapitalskega povečanja s strani vlade na začetku leta 2003 [42], kar je povečalo udeležbo države v Farice hf.Povečanje deleža islandske države v Farice hf. je nadalje spremljala dodelitev državnega jamstva za terminsko posojilo A v višini 9,4 milijona EUR, ocenjeno zgoraj v tej odločbi.
According to Chapter 19.6(d) of the Guidelines, there is a presumption that there is State aid where the authorities’ intervention takes the form of acquisition of a holding combined with other types of interventions which need to be notified pursuant to Article 1(3) in Part I of Protocol 3 to the Surveillance and Court Agreement.
V skladu s poglavjem 19.6(d) Smernic se domneva, da gre za državno pomoč, kadar je intervencija organov oblasti v obliki pridobitve deleža v kombinaciji z drugimi vrstami intervencij, ki jih je treba priglasiti po členu 1(3) dela I Protokola 3 k Sporazumu o nadzornem organu in sodišču.
The increase in the share capital in a situation in which no private investor was increasing its share capital in the same proportion, thus presented an advantage to an individual company, Farice hf. and a drain on state resources.
Povečanje delniškega kapitala, ko noben zasebni vlagatelj ni povečal svojega delniškega kapitala v enakem razmerju, je tako pomenilo prednost za posamezno družbo, Farice hf., in odtok državnih sredstev.
The intervention of the State strengthens the position of Farice hf. in securing the project financing versus competitors who do not profit from such a state participation (e.g. the CANTAT 3 network) in a situation in which private operators are not willing to raise additional funds.
Vključitev države krepi položaj Farice hf. pri zagotavljanju financiranja projekta v primerjavi s konkurenti, ki jim taka državna udeležba ne prinaša ugodnosti (npr. omrežjem CANTAT-3), ko zasebni operaterji niso pripravljeni vložiti dodatnih sredstev.
Furthermore, the share increase concerns a project which is carried out by multinational business operators and constitutes an activity which is subject to trade between the Contracting Parties.
Poleg tega povečani delež zadeva projekt, ki ga izvajajo mednarodni poslovni operaterji in pomeni dejavnost, ki je predmet trgovanja med pogodbenicami.
For the abovementioned reasons, the Authority concludes that the State guarantee for the A Term Loan and the capital share increase by the Icelandic State constitute State aid within the meaning of Article 61(1) of the EEA Agreement.
Zaradi zgoraj navedenih razlogov Nadzorni organ ugotavlja, da državno jamstvo za terminsko posojilo A in povečanje kapitalskega deleža s strani islandske države pomenita državno pomoč v smislu člena 61(1) Sporazuma o EGP.
PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS
POSTOPKOVNE ZAHTEVE
The Authority therefore notes that the Icelandic authorities did not respect the stand-still obligation laid down in Article 3 in Part II of Protocol 3 to the Surveillance and Court Agreement.
Nadzorni organ zato ugotavlja, da islandski organi niso upoštevali obveznosti mirovanja, določene v členu 3 dela II Protokola 3 k Sporazumu o nadzornem organu in sodišču.
In the Authority’s view, the aid measures do not comply with any of the exemptions provided for under Article 59(2) [44] and Article 61(2) or (3)(a) and (d) of the EEA Agreement.
Po mnenju Nadzornega organa ukrepi pomoči niso združljivi z nobeno od izjem, določenih po členu 59(2) [44] ter členu 61(2) ali (3)(a) in (d) Sporazuma o EGP.
As stated in the decision to open the formal investigation procedure, in the Authority’s view, the state support cannot be justified under Article 61(3)(b) of the EEA Agreement.
Kot je navedeno v odločbi za začetek formalnega postopka preiskave, po mnenju Nadzornega organa državne podpore ni mogoče upravičiti po členu 61(3)(b) Sporazuma o EGP.
Admittedly, the existence of reliable international connectivity could be considered of general interest under certain circumstances.
Obstoj zanesljive mednarodne povezljivosti bi pod nekaterimi pogoji lahko veljal za splošni interes.
While the project is trans-national, that does not suffice for accepting the project to fall under the exemption of Article 61(3)(b) of the EEA Agreement.
Projekt je sicer nadnacionalen, vendar pa to ne zadošča, da bi ga uvrstili pod izjemo po členu 61(3)(b) Sporazuma o EGP.
The aid in question presents itself in the form of sector aid, benefiting an individual company (Farice hf.) and brought about as a result of a private initiative of a group of business operators rather than achieving wider positive results for the European economy or creating important spill-overs for the general society.
Zadevna pomoč se kaže v obliki sektorske pomoči, ki prinaša ugodnosti posamezni družbi (Farice hf.), uresničena pa je kot posledica zasebne pobude skupine poslovnih operaterjev in ne dosega širših pozitivnih rezultatov za evropsko gospodarstvo oziroma ne ustvarja pomembnih prelitij na širšo družbo.
The project does not profit the European Economic Area as a whole [45] and is also outside any framework of any Community action in this field [46].It needs to be assessed whether the aid could be justified under Article 61(3)(c) of the EEA Agreement.
Projekt ne prinaša ugodnosti evropskemu gospodarskemu prostoru kot celoti [45] in je tudi zunaj vsakega okvira kakršnega koli delovanja Skupnosti na tem področju [46].Treba je oceniti, ali bi pomoč lahko upravičili po členu 61(3)(c) Sporazuma o EGP.
Under this provision aid may be declared compatible if ‘it facilitates the development of certain economic activities or of certain economic areas, where such aid does not adversely affect trading conditions to an extent contrary to the common interest’.
Po tej določbi je pomoč mogoče razglasiti za združljivo, če „pospešuje razvoj določenih gospodarskih dejavnosti ali določenih gospodarskih območij, kadar taka pomoč ne vpliva negativno na trgovinske razmere v obsegu, ki bi bil v nasprotju s skupnim interesom“.
The Authority considers that the compatibility assessment is to be based directly on Article 61(3)(c) of the EEA Agreement.
Nadzorni organ meni, da mora ocena združljivosti temeljiti neposredno na členu 61(3)(c) Sporazuma o EGP.
To be considered compatible under this provision, the State aid measure must be necessary and proportionate to the objective it pursues.
Da bi veljala za združljivo po tej določbi, mora biti državna pomoč potrebna in sorazmerna glede na zastavljeni cilj.
THE NECESSITY OF THE AID MEASURES
POTREBNOST UKREPOV POMOČI
The Authority notes that the project intends to secure Internet connectivity to Iceland by having a reliable transmission method to which the former CANTAT-3 connection will serve as a back-up.
Nadzorni organ ugotavlja, da je namen projekta zagotoviti varno internetno povezljivost z Islandijo prek zanesljive metode prenosa, pri kateri bo nekdanja povezava CANTAT-3 služila kot podpora.
Because of its geographic location, Iceland is particularly dependent on having access to economic and reliable telecom connectivity.
Zaradi svojega geografskega položaja je Islandija še posebej odvisna od dostopa do gospodarne in zanesljive telekomunikacijske povezljivosti.
As can be seen from Section I.2 of this Decision, alternatives in the form of the existing CANTAT-3 cable or satellites were no durable options, either because of their technical limitations or dependencies on other consortium shareholders (CANTAT-3 [47]) or their rising costs (satellites).
Kot je razvidno iz oddelka I.2 te odločbe, alternative v obliki obstoječega kabla CANTAT-3 ali satelitov niso bile trajne rešitve, bodisi zaradi svojih tehničnih omejitev ali odvisnosti od drugih delničarjev konzorcija (CANTAT-3 [47]) bodisi zaradi rastočih stroškov (sateliti).
The new submarine cable, which is to become the primary transmission connection to Iceland, has greater capacities, is more reliable and — together with the backup by CANTAT-3 — is able to secure the provision of telecommunication services to Iceland.
Novi podmorski kabel, ki naj bi postal glavna povezava za prenos na Islandiji, ima večje zmogljivosti, je zanesljivejši in – skupaj s podporo CANTAT-3 – lahko zagotovi ponudbo telekomunikacijskih storitev Islandiji.
The availability of broadband [48] has been acknowledged in Commission policy and State aid decisions [49] as a legitimate objective and type of service which is by its nature capable of positively affecting the productivity and growth of a large number of sectors and activities.As can be seen from its history (in particular the feasibility study of March 2002), the Farice project was not able to emerge as a purely private initiative.
Razpoložljivost širokega pasu [48] je bila v politiki Komisije in odločbah o državni pomoči [49] priznana kot zakonit cilj in vrsta storitve, ki je po svoji naravi zmožna pozitivno vplivati na produktivnost in rast velikega števila sektorjev in dejavnosti.Kot je razvidno iz njegove zgodovine (zlasti iz študije izvedljivosti iz marca 2002), projekt Farice ni mogel nastati kot izključno zasebna pobuda.
Both, the grant of a State guarantee and the share capital increase resulted from the need of a greater state participation to make the project economically viable.
Tako dodelitev državnega jamstva kot povečanje delniškega kapitala sta bila posledica potrebe po večji udeležbi države, da bi bil projekt ekonomsko izvedljiv.
Without state participation, the project would either have been delayed or not undertaken at all.
Brez udeležbe države bi bil projekt preložen ali pa sploh ne bi bil izveden.
For these reasons, the Authority considers that the state support was necessary within the meaning of 61(3)(c) of the EEA Agreement.
Zato Nadzorni organ meni, da je bila državna podpora potrebna v smislu člena 61(3)(c) Sporazuma o EGP.
THE PROPORTIONALITY OF THE AID MEASURES
SORAZMERNOST UKREPOV POMOČI
In order for the aid measures to be compatible with Article 61(3)(c) of the EEA Agreement, it must also be proportionate to the objective and not distort competition to an extent contrary to the common interest.
Da bi bil ukrep pomoči združljiv s členom 61(3)(c) Sporazuma o EGP, mora biti sorazmeren s ciljem in ne sme izkrivljati konkurence v obsegu, ki bi bil v nasprotju s skupnim interesom.
The trade-off between the advantages in terms of guaranteeing a reliable provision of telecommunication services to Iceland must be weighed against the disadvantages of the distortion of competition in comparison to competitors, which do not have access to public funding when realising similar projects.
Treba je proučiti razmerje med prednostmi v smislu zagotavljanja zanesljive ponudbe telekomunikacijskih storitev Islandiji in slabostmi izkrivljanja konkurence v primerjavi s konkurenti, ki pri uresničevanju podobnih projektov nimajo dostopa do javnih sredstev.
Neither the construction nor the management of the cable were given to Farice hf. after an open tender.
Niti gradnja niti upravljanje kabla nista bila zaupana družbi Farice hf. prek javnega razpisa.
In the opinion of the Authority, the widespread information on this project as claimed by the Icelandic authorities cannot replace a formal tender procedure, in particular as this participation was limited to Icelandic and Faeroe parties [50].
Po mnenju Nadzornega organa široko obveščanje o tem projektu, kot so ga navedli islandski organi, ne more nadomestiti uradnega razpisnega postopka, zlasti ker je bilo to sodelovanje omejeno na Islandijo in Ferske otoke [50].
The open tender has been considered a positive, although not necessarily mandatory, element for the approval of broadband projects in Commission practice [51].
Javni razpis velja kot pozitiven, čeprav ne nujno obvezen, element za odobritev širokopasovnih projektov v praksi Komisije [51].
In these decisions it has been, in particular, stressed that the tendering out of the management of the cable to an independent asset manager secured the neutrality of the infrastructure manager better than in a situation in which the service provider has control over the infrastructure, as is the case here.
V teh odločbah je bilo zlasti poudarjeno, da je dodelitev upravljanja kabla z razpisom neodvisnemu upravitelju premoženja bolje zagotovila nevtralnost upravitelja infrastrukture kot v primeru, ko ima ponudnik storitve nadzor nad infrastrukturo, kot je v tem primeru.
The Authority notes positively that the Shareholders Agreement provides for a non-discriminatory, transparent pricing on market terms.
Nadzorni organ pozitivno ugotavlja, da sporazum delničarjev zagotavlja nediskriminatorno in pregledno oblikovanje cen pod tržnimi pogoji.
The pricing policy seems transparent, the schedule is published on Farice hf.’s website and includes the formula used to calculate prices.
Politika oblikovanja cen se zdi pregledna, časovni razpored pa je objavljen na spletni strani Farice hf. in vključuje tudi uporabljeno formulo za izračun cen.
Furthermore, the Shareholders Agreement is in principle open to new entrants.
Poleg tega je sporazum delničarjev načeloma odprt novim delničarjem.
In the Decision to open the formal investigation procedure the Authority raised some doubts on the position of new entrants in relation to the founding parties.
V odločbi o začetku formalnega postopka preiskave je Nadzorni organ nekoliko podvomil o položaju novih delničarjev v primerjavi z ustanovitelji.
This doubts were mainly founded in Section 7 of the Shareholders Agreement which protects the founders’ position by giving them the possibility to maintain their equity position.
Ti dvomi so temeljili predvsem na oddelku 7 sporazuma delničarjev, ki ščiti položaj ustanoviteljev, s tem da jim omogoča ohranjati njihov lastniški delež.
In their comments to the Authority’s Decision [52], however, the Icelandic authorities have dispelled the doubts of the Authority and stressed the distinction between access to ownership of the company and access to the telecommunication cable.
Vendar pa so v svojih pripombah na odločbo Nadzornega organa [52] islandski organi pregnali dvome Nadzornega organa ter poudarili razliko med dostopom do lastništva v družbi in dostopom do telekomunikacijskega kabla.
As stated in the previous paragraph, the Shareholders Agreement provides for a non-discriminatory and transparent pricing on market terms and therefore grants adequate access to the telecommunication cable.The tentatively calculated aid with regard to the State guarantee (1,62 % [53] or some EUR 1,4 million) is rather limited, when compared to the total investment costs of EUR 48,9 million, as it amounts to 2,9 %.
Kot je navedeno v prejšnjem odstavku, sporazum delničarjev določa nediskriminatorno in pregledno oblikovanje cen pod tržnimi pogoji ter tako zagotavlja ustrezen dostop do telekomunikacijskega kabla.Okvirno izračunana pomoč glede državnega jamstva (1,62 % [53] ali približno 1,4 milijona EUR) je precej omejena, če jo primerjamo s skupnimi investicijskimi stroški v višini 48,9 milijona EUR, saj znaša 2,9 %.
As to the Icelandic State’s share increase, in June 2003 the State’s share capital has already decreased to 41 %, whereas the equity share of other private operators such as Og Vodafone had increased.
Glede povečanja deleža islandske države: junija 2003 se je delež delniškega kapitala države že znižal na 41 %, medtem ko se je kapitalski delež zasebnih operaterjev, kot je Og Vodafone, povečal.
The Icelandic authorities have pointed out that despite the openness of the current shareholders to newcomers no company has showed interest in the project [54].
Islandski organi so poudarili, da kljub odprtosti sedanjih delničarjev novincem, nobena družba ni pokazala zanimanja za projekt [54].
A calculation of the amount of State aid involved as a result of the increase in the Icelandic State’s share capital is not straightforward.
Izračun zneska državne pomoči, vključene kot rezultat povečanja delniškega kapitala islandske države, ni preprost.
The European Court of Justice has established that a compatibility assessment under the State aid provisions should not produce a result which is contrary to other treaty provisions.
Sodišče Evropskih skupnosti je določilo, da ocena združljivosti po določbah o državni pomoči ne sme imeti za posledico nečesa, kar je v nasprotju z drugimi določbami pogodbe.
Consequently, for the assessment under the State aid provisions, it is also relevant whether state support is given to a project which might raise competition concerns under the application of Article 53 and/or 54 of the EEA Agreement [57].
Posledično je za oceno po določbah o državni pomoči tudi pomembno, ali je državna pomoč dodeljena projektu, ki bi lahko sprožil pomisleke o konkurenci v skladu z uporabo člena 53 in/ali 54 Sporazuma o EGP [57].