Brussels, 12/04/2000 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission closed the procedure concerning the rebates on the price of electricity granted by Electricite de France (EDF) to five paper mills, believing that this was not a case of state aid. It took into account the fact that the rebates where granted between 1990 and 1996, before the liberalisation of the electricity market and that EDF - then suffering from over capacity - acted as a private operator. Furthermore, in two cases, the advances did not reach the ceiling of EUR 100,000 over three years and in three other cases, the company covered the variable costs and 57% on average of its fixed costs. Nevertheless, specifies the Commission in its press release, "this decision must be seen in the context of the specific circumstances of the French market in the past. Equally, the decision does not prevent the Commission from examining the issue concerning the existence of overcapacity and its implications in the context of a liberalised market."