The European Commission approved, on Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 March, a series of aid schemes in five EU Member States under the 'Temporary Framework' for State Aid to support the economy in the context of the COVID-19 outbreak, adopted by the Commission on 19 March 2020.
“Within 72 hours” of the publication of the new Temporary Framework, the Commission approved several measures in the Member States, a Commission spokesperson said on Monday 23 March. These measures will enable the Member States concerned to “act to the benefit of businesses and the economy” in the context of COVID-19, she added (see EUROPE 12450/7).
On 21 March, three support schemes notified by France received a green light from the Commission: - two schemes enabling the French public investment bank Bpifrance to provide State guarantees on commercial loans and credit lines, respectively, for enterprises with up to 5,000 employees: - a scheme to provide State guarantees to banks on portfolios of new loans for all types of companies.
This is direct aid to the companies that will enable banks to quickly provide liquidity to any company that needs it. The French plan is expected to mobilise more than €300 billion of liquidity support for companies affected by the economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak.
Germany. Two German support measures were also accepted on 22 March; they are being implemented through the German development bank Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW): - a loan programme covering up to 90% of the risk for loans for companies of all sizes.
Eligible loans may have a maturity of up to five years and can reach €1 billion per company, depending on the company’s liquidity needs: - a loan programme in which the KfW participates together with private banks to provide larger loans as a consortium. For this scheme, the risk taken by the State may cover up to 80% of a specific loan but not more than 50% of total debt of a company.
Italy. On 22 March, the Commission approved an Italian aid scheme worth €50 million to support the production and supply of medical devices such as ventilators, and personal protection equipment, such as masks, goggles, gowns, and safety suits. The scheme will help Italy provide the necessary medical treatment to those infected, while protecting healthcare operators and citizens.
Portugal. The Commission approved four Portuguese guarantee schemes for SMEs and midcaps affected by the coronavirus outbreak.
These schemes have a total budget of €3 billion and benefit four sectors (tourism, restaurants, extractive and manufacturing industry, travel agency activities).
Denmark. The Commission has approved a Danish guarantee scheme for SMEs affected by the coronavirus outbreak with a budget of €130 million. This scheme is intended to limit the risks associated with granting operating loans to the firms hardest hit by the economic impact of this epidemic.
Statement by the European competition authorities. The competition authorities in the European Competition Network (European Commission, European Surveillance Authority and EU/EEA national competition authorities) issued a joint statement on Monday 23 March on how to apply the European competition rules during the crisis. The authorities underline that the competition rules are flexible enough to take into account changes in market circumstances such as these. Companies requiring further guidance are encouraged to contact the national competition authorities or the Commission for further advice.
Link to the statement: https://bit.ly/2UB1weu (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)