In a judgment handed down on Wednesday 10 December (Case T-458/22), the General Court of the European Union dismissed the action of the airline Ryanair against the European Commission’s decision approving Portuguese State aid for the restructuring of TAP Portugal, in December 2021 (see EUROPE 12859/9).
Irish airline Ryanair is challenging the compatibility with the Guidelines on State aid for rescuing undertakings in difficulty of public support in the form of equity injections and a loan guarantee totalling €2.55 billion.
In its judgment, the General Court dismissed Ryanair’s action, holding that TAP Portugal was eligible for restructuring aid and that the disputed measure was necessary, appropriate and proportionate.
In particular, in the European Court’s view, the Commission had presented a body of evidence demonstrating that access to sufficient finance on the markets, without the grant of State aid was neither possible nor plausible for TAP Portugal. And it demonstrated that the four- to five-year restructuring plan was capable of restoring the long-term viability of the Portuguese company.
Finally, the General Court rejects Ryanair’s allegation that the Commission’s decision was not sufficiently justified, in particular because of an incomplete examination of the negative effects of the State aid at issue.
In February, the Irish company saw the dismissal of its first action against another rescue aid package for TAP Portugal approved by the Commission in July 2021 (see EUROPE 13573/23).
See the General Court’s judgment: https://aeur.eu/f/jxb (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)