With fuel prices steadily rising recently, the European
Commission has decided to provide support to Romanian road transport operators,
which have repeatedly asked for assistance.
The commission
approved a EUR 60.7 million Romanian scheme to support companies active in road
transport of goods and passengers. The
Commission found that the Romanian scheme is necessary, appropriate and
proportionate to remedy a serious disturbance in the economy of a Member State.
The scheme was
approved as part of the Temporary Crisis Framework for state aid, adopted by the
institution in March this year, in line with the Treaty on the Functioning of
the EU, which admits that the Union’s economy is facing major disruptions.
According to
an EC news release, under this aid scheme Romania will support its road
transport sector, severely affected by the fuel prices increase caused by the
current geopolitical crisis and the related sanctions. This is an important
step to mitigate the economic impact of Putin’s war against Ukraine,ˮ said
Margrethe Vestager, executive vice-president in charge of competition policy.
The measure
will be open to companies of all sizes active in road transport of goods and
persons with a valid community license that are affected by the current crisis.
The beneficiaries will be entitled to receive limited amounts of aid in the
form of direct grants of maximum EUR 400,000 per company, paid by the end of
this year.
With a view
to ensuring legal certainty, the Commission will assess before that date if the
scheme needs to be extended. Moreover, during its period of application, the
Commission will keep the content and scope of the Framework under review in the
light of developments regarding the energy markets, other input markets and the
general economic situation.
The
Temporary Crisis Framework includes a number of safeguards, such as proportional
methodology, requiring a link between the amount of aid that can be granted to
businesses and the scale of their economic activity and exposure to the
economic effects of the crisis. Member States are invited to consider, in
a non-discriminatory way, setting up requirements related to environmental
protection or security of supply when granting aid for additional costs due to
exceptionally high gas and electricity prices. (AMP)