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EU new door to decarbonisation help.
IRU welcomes the revision of rules governing small amounts of aid that Member States can grant to companies without clearance from the European Commission. In addition to a much-needed indexation of the de minimis amount, the amendments correct a historical injustice, removing limits on de minimis aid for road freight operators, providing them with equal rights as other EU undertakings.
In the much-awaited revision, the European Commission has increased the amount of de minimis from EUR 200,000 per enterprise over a three-year period to EUR 300,000. This applies across the economy. In the road transport sector, if Member States unleash the funds, they can be accessed by any operator active in the mobility of people and goods.
In addition to the very necessary indexation, the revision puts an end to a specific discrimination against companies active in the transport of goods by road.
For over 30 years since the inception of the de minimis system, the maximum amount of de minimis aid granted to a single goods transport operator was limited to half the amount set for other types of undertakings. Additionally, the previous rules excluded the utilisation of de minimis aid for fleet renewal.
As advocated for by IRU, the new rules now allow road freight carriers to benefit from de minimis state aid under the same rules as other undertakings, with an increased ceiling of up to EUR 300,000 over a three-year period and without any limit on the scope of the aid.
IRU EU Director of Advocacy Raluca Marian said, “Christmas came early this year for the EU road transport industry. The European Commission has rightly recognised that the arguments made for setting a lower ceiling for our industry are no longer valid.” Read more
Source: IRU
