On Monday 25 November, the European Commission concluded that by leasing agricultural land at below market price to Tartu Agro AS, a private Estonian company producing milk, meat and cereals, Estonia had granted support that did not comply with EU State aid rules.
Estonia must now recover the incompatible state aid, including interest, from the beneficiary.
In 2017, the Commission opened an in-depth investigation to establish whether a land lease contract between the Estonian Ministry of Rural Affairs and Tartu Agro AS was in line with EU State aid rules (see EUROPE 12411/18). The lease contract was signed with Tartu Agro AS in 2000 for a period of 25 years and is therefore still in force. The Commission considered that the leasing of land constituted State aid. On 13 July 2022, the General Court annulled the Commission’s decision due to errors of assessment and lack of reasoning in examining the rental price of the land. Following the Court’s judgment, the Commission reopened its investigation and confirmed that Tartu Agro AS received incompatible aid. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)