The European Commission approved on Monday 24 June a Belgian measure to support the company JC Decaux concerning bike rentals in Brussels, but summoned the Belgian authorities to recover up to €2.5 million from the same company for advertising panels.
In March 2015, the European Commission opened an in-depth investigation into two cases of aid granted by Belgium to JC Decaux following a complaint.
The first measure concerns a bike rental service in Brussels. The region of Brussels defined it as a ‘Service of General Economic Interest' and granted an exclusive concession for this service to JC Decaux in 2008. Subsequently, the Brussels authorities granted the company certain tax and rent exemptions. Noting that the service provided was a public service and that the company had not been overcompensated, the Commission considered that the measure was in line with EU State aid rules for services of general economic interest.
The second measure concerns advertising panels. JC Decaux was able to maintain certain advertising panels in Brussels after the contractually agreed date for their removal and without paying any rent to the city. The Commission considers here that the company had enjoyed an unfair advantage over its competitors. It concluded that the measure was incompatible with EU state aid rules. Belgium will therefore be able to recover the sum in question, up to €2.5 million. (Original version in French by Lucas Tripoteau)