Brussels, 27/02/2002 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday, the European Commission approved a series of transport state aid. This state aid mainly concerns Ireland and the Netherlands and aims to cover war and terrorism insurance risks to the airlines. This decision was taken within the framework of the Communication of 10 October on the consequences of the attacks in the United States on the air transport sector. The Commission has already approved this kind of aid for ten other Member States and will decide on what measures to take for Finland on 12 March.
The Commission has also authorised: 1) A system of loans subsidising Austria's combined transport system (a maximum of EUR 34.88 million until 2006), 2) Denmark to cancel its loans to local railway companies (EUR 86 million) and grant them aid for paying tax demands resulting from this cancellation (EUR 17 million); the Commission has indicated that these measures are intended to pave the way for liberalisation of the local railways, 3) Aid for the autonomous province of Bolzano Alto Adige in Italy for the combined transport system, particularly for the Bolzano-Brenner route (EUR 1 million for 2002), 4) Aid for Bavaria in Germany for a new independent combined transport system between Munich and Verona through the Brenner Pass. This service will be overseen by a joint venture - Lokomotion - the German company Kombiverkehr and the Italian RTC (EUR 194, 290 for 2001-2001), 5) A Spanish system of taxation per tonnage of sea-going vessel. The Commission believes that this will contribute to the development of a maritime transport system that has already been approved in the Netherlands, Germany and the United Kingdom, 6) A State Aid system that would help SMEs invest in small transport projects in Madeira in Portugal (EUR 42 million for 2000-2006).