Memo: State aid: Competition Commissioner Kroes meets Polish Treasury Minister Grad to discuss Polish shipyards

European Commissioner for Competition Neelie Kroes met Polish Treasury Minister Aleksander Grad in Brussels on 9th July 2008 to discuss state aid to the shipyards in Gdynia, Gdansk and Szczecin on the basis of the restructuring plans submitted recently by the Polish authorities.

Commissioner Kroes again underlined that, under EC state aid rules, the restructuring plans must:

(i) ensure the long-term profitability of the shipyards
(ii) include adequate compensatory measures to limit the distortion of competition caused by the aid and
(iii) be financed to a large extent from the companies' own resources.
Commissioner Kroes expressed serious doubts that the plans submitted comply with these requirements.

The Commissioner made clear that the Commission intends to take a decision as soon as possible on the aid for the shipyards.

The Commission has to apply the same approach to the Polish shipyards as to shipyards in other Member States. The European shipbuilding sector went through a painful process of restructuring in the 1990s. For example, similar strict conditions were applied in the restructuring of German shipyards accompanied by a significant reduction of shipbuilding capacity. The German yards are now economically viable.