On Friday 16 June, the European Commission approved the restructuring support measures decided upon by Greece in 2011 in favour of OSE, the national railway infrastructure manager, and TRAINOSE, the passenger and goods rail transport operator.
Following the opening of a formal investigation procedure in July 2011 into the measures in support of TRAINOSE, the Commission concluded that the measures taken for both companies – such as the cancellation of debt, transfers of staff and annual subsidies – were compatible with the provisions of the EU treaty that authorise state aid aiming to remedy a serious disturbance of the functioning of the economy of a member state.
In a press release, the Commission stresses that, when examining the two cases, it took particular account of the “difficulties the Greek railway sector is facing and the importance of a well-functioning railway service for the population”.
The Commission’s authorisation is directly related to the Greek privatisation programme, which will help to open the Greek railway transport market up to competition. “The aid will also facilitate future privatisation of the companies and the opening of the Greek railway sector to competition”, said European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager. (Original version in French by Marion Fontana)