Welsh Government State Aid Unit How to use a GBER Environmental Protection Scheme Version 2 July 2015 July 2015
How to use a GBER Environmental Protection Scheme This document provides practical guidance on how to use a General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER) Environmental Protection scheme. This guide is not a summary of the GBER. This guidance will be most relevant to Welsh Government officials, and organisations receiving Environmental Protection aid. This guide is not a substitute for legal advice which should be sought in individual cases. The guidance is accurate at the date of publication but please note that the law is subject to constant change. A full version of the Regulation can be found at: http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legalcontent/en/txt/?uri=uriserv:oj.l_.2014.187.01.0001.01.eng A summary of the GBER can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/325465/bis -14-943-state-aid-general-block-exemption-guidance.pdf IMPORTANT you should use this guide in conjunction with the full version of the GBER and the registration documentation applicable to your scheme. Background The environmental protection provisions of the GBER can be used by public authorities to provide support to organisations for a variety of environmental protection measures. This type of State aid is allowed because environmental protection is one of the key pillars of the European Commission s 2020 strategy. Using a GBER Environmental Protection scheme To run a GBER Environmental Protection scheme the correct procedures must be put in place. Step 1 Check that GBER Environmental Protection provisions apply Is the measure being provided to an undertaking engaged in economic activity? Is the aid for an environmental project? If you have answered yes to both questions, then it is likely that the GBER Environmental Protection Provisions will apply. Step 2 Identify the right State aid registration
Every GBER Environmental Protection Scheme must be registered with the Commission. If you work for the Welsh Government (or are running a scheme on behalf of the Welsh Government) you can use the following registration: SA.40460 Welsh Government Environmental Protection Scheme http://gov.wales/topics/businessan deconomy/stateaid/schemes/envir onment-protectionscheme/?lang=en You do not need to register a new scheme If this registration does not apply to you, then you will need to register a scheme. The State Aid Unit can help you with this process. Email the State aid mailbox: state.aid@wales.gsi.gov.uk Step 3 Make sure that the support you want to give is compatible with all the conditions for GBER Environmental Protection Aid Support is only considered to be compatible State aid where it meets all the terms and conditions of the GBER, and therefore the registered scheme. Each investment will need to be checked against these terms. Annex 1 of this document contains checklists that you can use to assist you. Checklist A Checklist B Checklist C Checklist D Checklist E Checklist F Checklist G Checklist H Checklist I Checklist J Checklist K Checklist L Investment aid enabling undertakings to go beyond Union standards for environmental protection or to increase the level of environmental protection in the absence of Union Standards Investment aid for early adaptation to future Union standards Investment aid for energy efficiency measures Investment aid for energy efficiency projects in buildings Investment aid for high-efficiency cogeneration Investment aid for the promotion of energy from renewables Operating aid for the promotion of energy from renewable sources in small scale installations Investment aid for remediation of contaminated sites Investment aid for energy efficient district heating and cooling Investment aid for waste recycling and re-utilisation Investment aid for energy infrastructure Aid for environmental studies
You will also need to keep supporting evidence to show that all the terms and conditions are met. This is because if the European Commission asks you will need to be able to show that the support you gave was compatible with the rules. Step 4 Check if the support is more than 500,000 If the support you are providing is more than 500,000. The sterling equivalent should be calculated using the European Commission s exchange rate convertor, this can be found at: http://ec.europa.eu/budget/contracts_grants/info_contracts/inforeuro/inforeuro_en.cfm Details of the investment will then be made available on a database that can be viewed by the general public. The European Commission has given Member States until June 2016 to implement this. You should collect the following information: Name of company receiving the support; The company s identifier; Type of company (small, medium or large) at time of granting; Region in which the company is located at NUTS 2 level (annex 2 has a list of NUTS 2 Areas); Sector of activity at NACE group level a list of NACE codes can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/competition/mergers/cases/index/nace_all.html; Aid amount in sterling; Aid instrument (grant/interest rate subsidy, loan, repayable advances/reimbursable grant, guarantee, tax advantage or exemption, risk finance, other (please specify); Date of granting the aid ; Objective of the aid i.e. what will it be used for? What do you hope to achieve by granting the aid? Granting authority; Reference of the aid measure. IMPORTANT this will only apply to projects/investments where aid is given after the UK has developed a database. However, you should take steps to ensure that you have the necessary processes and procedures in place to collect the required information. Step 5 Check you are registered for annual return monitoring Write to the Welsh Government s State Aid Unit to tell them which registration you are using providing a contact name, telephone number and email address. The State Aid Unit need this information because they co-ordinate the annual return monitoring process for Wales. They need to have a contact for each
organisation that is providing funding under a registered GBER Regional Aid scheme. The State aid email address is: state.aid@wales.gsi.gov.uk The Postal address is: Sian Brown State Aid Unit Welsh Government Cathays Park 2 Cardiff CF10 3NQ
Annex 1- Checklist A - Investment aid enabling undertakings to go beyond Union standards for environmental protection or to increase the level of environmental protection in the absence of Union Standards Information about the company/enterprise assisted Confirm size of the enterprise Confirm location of the enterprise (see annex 2 for areas) SME or large enterprise Article 107 3 (a) Article 107 3 (c) Non-assisted Confirm y/n Supportin g Evidence Provided enterprise assisted is NOT in one of the following sectors: enterprise assisted is NOT subject to either of the following: Fisheries and aquaculture Processing and marketing of agricultural products where (1) the amount of aid if fixed on the basis of the price or quantity of such products purchased from primary producers or put on the market by the SME concerned or (2) the aid is conditional on being partly or entirely passed on to the primary producers An outstanding order for the recovery of aid which has been declared by the Commission to be illegal and incompatible with the Common market; a firm in difficulty within the meaning of Chapter 2 of the Community guidelines on State aid for rescuing and restructuring firms in difficulty (OJ C 244, 1.10.2004, p.2). Information about the project Confirm that no work started on the project prior to the application company submitted a written application including the following information before work started on the project: (a) Name and size (b) Description of the project, including its start and end dates (c) Location of the project (d) List of project costs (e) Form of and amount of public funding needed for the project. Confirm the aid will not be granted for improvements that allow companies to comply with Union standards already adopted or adopted but not yet in force. Road, rail, inland waterway and maritime transport following are eligible: (a) the acquisition of vehicles complying with adopted Union standards provided that the acquisition occurs before those standards enter into force and that, once mandatory, they do not apply to vehicles already purchased before that date. (b) aid can be provided for retrofitting operations of existing transport
vehicles if the existing means of transport are upgraded to environmental standards not yet in force at the date of entry into operation of those vehicles, and that once mandatory they do not apply retrospectively to those vehicles. investment enables the beneficiary: (a) to increase the level of environmental protection resulting from its activities either by going beyond the applicable Union standards, irrespective of the presence of mandatory national standards that are more stringent than the Community standards; or (b) in the absence of Union standards, to increase the level of environmental protection resulting from, its activities in the absence of Union standards Union standard means: (a) a mandatory Union standard setting the levels to be attained in environmental terms by individual undertakings; or (b) the obligation under Directive 2010/75/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council to use the best available techniques (BAT) and ensure that emission levels of pollutants are not higher than they would be when applying BAT; for the cases where emission levels associated with the BAT have been defined in implementing acts adopted under Directive 2010/75/EU, those levels will be applicable for the purpose of this Regulation; where those levels are expressed as a range, the limit where the BAT is first achieved will be applicable; http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/txt/?uri=celex:32010l0075 Confirm that support is NOT for any of the following activities: following restrictions do not apply Information about the support Export related activities Aid contingent upon the use of domestic over imported goods For the closure of an uncompetitive coal mines exploiting R&D&I results in other Member States Companies are required to have their headquarters in the UK or to be predominantly established in the UK There company is restricted to only exploiting R&D&I results in the UK Confirm type of aid: Grant Interest rate subsidies Loan Repayable advance Guarantee Information about eligible costs
Confirm eligibility of supported costs: Confirm how the eligible costs have been calculated Extra investment costs necessary to go beyond the applicable Union standards or to increase the level of environmental protection in the absence of Union standards. Either: (a) The environmental protection investment has been identified in the total investment cost as a separate investment; or (b) The cost of investing in environmental protection is identified by reference to a similar, less environmentally friendly investment that would have been credibly carried out without the aid. The difference between the costs of both investments identifies the environmental protection-related cost and will be the eligible cost. Confirm the total level of ALL public funding (including structural funds) awarded and that it is within the permitted intensity levels Information about aid intensities Small Med Large 107 (3) a areas 107 (3) c areas Non-assisted areas 75% 65% 55% 65% 55% 45% 60% 50% 40% Information about notification thresholds aid is not more than 15m per undertaking, per investment project Information about reporting Confirm that if the aid is above 500,000 you have collected the following information to input (when required) on the Member State database: Name of company receiving the support The company s identifier Type of company (SME or large) at time of granting Region in which the company is located at NUTS II level (annex 2 has a list of NUTS II Areas) Sector of activity at NACE group level a list of NACE codes can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/competition/mergers/cases/index/nace_all.h tml Aid amount in sterling Aid instrument (grant/interest rate subsidy, loan, repayable advances/reimbursable grant, guarantee, tax advantage or exemption, risk finance, other (please specify) %
Date of granting Objective of the aid Granting authority Reference of the aid measure Confirm that you have provided contact name and information to state.aid@wales.gsi.gov.uk
Annex 1 B - Investment aid for early adaptation to future Union standards Information about the company/enterprise assisted Confirm size of the enterprise Confirm location of the enterprise (see annex 2 for areas) SME or large enterprise Article 107 3 (a) Article 107 3 (c) Non-assisted Confirm y/n Supporting Evidence Provided enterprise assisted is NOT in one of the following sectors: enterprise assisted is NOT subject to either of the following: Fisheries and aquaculture Processing and marketing of agricultural products where (1) the amount of aid if fixed on the basis of the price or quantity of such products purchased from primary producers or put on the market by the SME concerned or (2) the aid is conditional on being partly or entirely passed on to the primary producers An outstanding order for the recovery of aid which has been declared by the Commission to be illegal and incompatible with the Common market; a firm in difficulty within the meaning of Chapter 2 of the Community guidelines on State aid for rescuing and restructuring firms in difficulty (OJ C 244, 1.10.2004, p.2). Information about the project Confirm that no work started on the project prior to the application company submitted a written application including the following information before work started on the project: (a) Name and size (b) Description of the project, including its start and end dates (c) Location of the project (d) List of project costs (e) Form of and amount of public funding needed for the project. investment is for implementing a Union Standard that has been adopted but is not yet in force Union standard will not come into force within the next 12 months Union standard means: (a) a mandatory Union standard setting the levels to be attained in environmental terms by
individual undertakings; or (b) the obligation under Directive 2010/75/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council to use the best available techniques (BAT) and ensure that emission levels of pollutants are not higher than they would be when applying BAT; for the cases where emission levels associated with the BAT have been defined in implementing acts adopted under Directive 2010/75/EU, those levels will be applicable for the purpose of this Regulation; where those levels are expressed as a range, the limit where the BAT is first achieved will be applicable; http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/txt/?uri=celex:32010l0075 Confirm that support is NOT for any of the following activities: following restrictions do not apply Information about the support Export related activities Aid contingent upon the use of domestic over imported goods For the closure of an uncompetitive coal mines exploiting R&D&I results in other Member States Companies are required to have their headquarters in the UK or to be predominantly established in the UK There company is restricted to only exploiting R&D&I results in the UK Confirm type of aid: Confirm eligibility of supported costs: Confirm how the eligible costs have been calculated Grant Interest rate subsidies Loan Repayable advance Guarantee Information about eligible costs extra investment costs necessary to go beyond the applicable Union standards Either: (c) The environmental protection investment has been identified in the total investment cost as a separate investment; or (d) The cost of investing in environmental protection is identified by reference to a similar, less environmentally friendly investment that would
have been credibly carried out without the aid. The difference between the costs of both investments identifies the environmental protection-related cost and will be the eligible cost. Implementation and finalisation take place 3 years before date of entry into force of Community standard Confirm the total level of ALL public funding (including structural funds) awarded and that it is within the permitted intensity levels Implementation and finalisation take place between 1 and 3 years before date of entry into force of Community standard Confirm the total level of ALL public funding (including structural funds) awarded and that it is within the permitted intensity levels Information about aid intensities Small Med Large 107 (3)(a) 35% 30% 25% areas % 107(3)(c) 25% 20% 15% areas Nonassisted 20% 15% 10% 107 (3)(a) areas 107(3)(c) areas Nonassisted Small Med Large 30% 25% 20% % 20% 15% 10% 15% 10% 5% Information about notification thresholds aid is not more than 15m per undertaking, per investment project Information about reporting Confirm that if the aid is above 500,000 you have collected the following information to input (when required) on the Member State database: Name of company receiving the support The company s identifier Type of company (SME or large) at time of granting Region in which the company is located at NUTS II level (annex 2 has a list of NUTS II Areas) Sector of activity at NACE group level a list of NACE codes can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/competition/mergers/cases/index/nace_all.html Aid amount in sterling Aid instrument (grant/interest rate subsidy, loan, repayable advances/reimbursable grant, guarantee, tax advantage or exemption,
risk finance, other (please specify) Date of granting Objective of the aid Granting authority Reference of the aid measure Confirm that you have provided contact name and information to state.aid@wales.gsi.gov.uk
Annex 1 C - Investment aid for energy efficiency measures Information about the company/enterprise assisted Confirm y/n Confirm size of the enterprise SME or large enterprise Supporting Evidence Provided Confirm location of the enterprise (see annex 2 for areas) enterprise assisted is NOT in one of the following sectors: enterprise assisted is NOT subject to either of the following: Article 107 3 (a) Article 107 3 (c) Non-assisted Fisheries and aquaculture Processing and marketing of agricultural products where (1) the amount of aid if fixed on the basis of the price or quantity of such products purchased from primary producers or put on the market by the SME concerned or (2) the aid is conditional on being partly or entirely passed on to the primary producers An outstanding order for the recovery of aid which has been declared by the Commission to be illegal and incompatible with the Common market; a firm in difficulty within the meaning of Chapter 2 of the Community guidelines on State aid for rescuing and restructuring firms in difficulty (OJ C 244, 1.10.2004, p.2). Information about the project Confirm that no work started on the project prior to the application. company submitted a written application including the following information before work started on the project: (a) Name and size (b) Description of the project, including its start and end dates (c) Location of the project (d) List of project costs (e) Form of and amount of public funding needed for the project. Confirm the aid will not be granted for improvements that allow companies to comply with Union standards already adopted or adopted but not yet in force. Union standard means: (a) a mandatory Union standard setting the levels to be attained in environmental terms by
individual undertakings; or (b) the obligation under Directive 2010/75/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council to use the best available techniques (BAT) and ensure that emission levels of pollutants are not higher than they would be when applying BAT; for the cases where emission levels associated with the BAT have been defined in implementing acts adopted under Directive 2010/75/EU, those levels will be applicable for the purpose of this Regulation; where those levels are expressed as a range, the limit where the BAT is first achieved will be applicable; http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/txt/?uri=celex:32010l0075 Confirm that support is NOT for any of the following activities: following restrictions do not apply Information about the support Export related activities Aid contingent upon the use of domestic over imported goods For the closure of an uncompetitive coal mines exploiting R&D&I results in other Member States Companies are required to have their headquarters in the UK or to be predominantly established in the UK There company is restricted to only exploiting R&D&I results in the UK Confirm type of aid: Confirm eligibility of supported costs: Confirm how the eligible costs have been calculated Grant Interest rate subsidies Loan Repayable advance Guarantee Information about eligible costs extra investment costs necessary achieve the higher level of energy efficiency Either: (a)the environmental protection investment has been identified in the total investment cost as a separate investment; or (b)the cost of investing in environmental protection is identified by reference to a similar, less environmentally
friendly investment that would have been credibly carried out without the aid. The difference between the costs of both investments identifies the environmental protection-related cost and will be the eligible cost. Information about aid intensities Confirm the total level Small Medium Large of ALL public funding 107 65% 55% 45% (including structural (3)(a) funds) awarded and areas that it is within the 107(3)(c) 55% 45% 35% permitted intensity levels areas Nonassisted 50% 40% 30% Information about notification thresholds aid is not more than 10m per undertaking, per investment project Information about reporting Confirm that if the aid is above 500,000 you have collected the following information to input (when required) on the Member State database: Name of company receiving the support The company s identifier Type of company (SME or large) at time of granting Region in which the company is located at NUTS II level (annex 2 has a list of NUTS II Areas) Sector of activity at NACE group level a list of NACE codes can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/competition/mergers/cases/index/nace_all.html Aid amount in sterling Aid instrument (grant/interest rate subsidy, loan, repayable advances/reimbursable grant, guarantee, tax advantage or exemption, risk finance, other (please specify) Date of granting Objective of the aid Granting authority Reference of the aid measure Confirm that you have provided contact name and information to state.aid@wales.gsi.gov.uk
Annex 1 D - Investment aid for energy efficiency projects in buildings Information about the company/enterprise assisted Confirm y/n enterprise assisted is NOT in one of the following sectors: Fisheries and aquaculture Processing and marketing of agricultural products where (1) the amount of aid if fixed on the basis of the price or quantity of such products purchased from primary producers or put on the market by the SME concerned or (2) the aid is conditional on being partly or entirely passed on to the primary producers Supporting Evidence Provided enterprise assisted is NOT subject to either of the following: An outstanding order for the recovery of aid which has been declared by the Commission to be illegal and incompatible with the Common market; a firm in difficulty within the meaning of Chapter 2 of the Community guidelines on State aid for rescuing and restructuring firms in difficulty (OJ C 244, 1.10.2004, p.2). Information about the project Confirm that no work started on the project prior to the application. company submitted a written application including the following information before work started on the project: (a) Name and size (b) Description of the project, including its start and end dates (c) Location of the project (d) List of project costs (e) Form of and amount of public funding needed for the project. Confirm the aid will not be granted for improvements that allow companies to comply with Union standards already adopted or adopted but not yet in force. Union standard means: (a) a mandatory Union standard setting the levels to be attained in environmental terms by individual undertakings; or (b) the obligation under Directive 2010/75/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council to use the best available techniques (BAT) and ensure that emission levels of pollutants are not higher than they would be when applying BAT; for the cases where emission levels associated with the BAT have been defined in implementing acts
adopted under Directive 2010/75/EU, those levels will be applicable for the purpose of this Regulation; where those levels are expressed as a range, the limit where the BAT is first achieved will be applicable; http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/en/txt/?uri=celex:32010l0075 Confirm that support is NOT for any of the following activities: following restrictions do not apply Information about the support Export related activities Aid contingent upon the use of domestic over imported goods For the closure of an uncompetitive coal mines exploiting R&D&I results in other Member States Companies are required to have their headquarters in the UK or to be predominantly established in the UK There company is restricted to only exploiting R&D&I results in the UK support is being paid to either an energy efficiency fund (EFF) or other financial intermediary. benefits will be passed to building owners or tenants. Confirm the form of the aid to the EFF/Financial intermediary Endowment Equity Guarantee Loan Information about the EFF/Financial Intermediary set up (a) Financial intermediary/eff of the EFF or use of managers, selected through an financial intermediaries open, transparent and nondiscriminatory call in accordance has been subject to the following with applicable Union and national conditions laws. In particular there shall be no discrimination on the basis of their place of establishment or incorporation in any Member State. Financial intermediaries and EFF fund managers may be required to fulfil predefined criteria objectively justified by the nature of the investments; (b) The independent private investors
have been selected through an open, transparent and nondiscriminatory call in accordance with applicable Union and national laws aimed at establishing the appropriate risk-reward sharing arrangements whereby for investments other than guarantees, asymmetric profit-sharing shall be given preference over downside protection. If the private investors are not selected by such a call, the fair rate of return to the private investors shall be established by an independent expert selected via an open, transparent and nondiscriminatory call; (c) In the case of asymmetric losssharing between public and private investors, the first loss assumed by the public investor shall be capped at 25% of the total investment; (d) In the case of guarantees, the guarantee rate shall be limited to 80% and total losses assumed by a Member State shall be capped at 25% of the underlying guaranteed portfolio. Only guarantees covering the expected losses of the underlying guaranteed portfolio can be provided for free. If a guarantee also compromises coverage of unexpected losses, the financial intermediary shall pay, for the part of the guarantee covering unexpected losses, a market conform guarantee premium. (e) The investors shall be allowed to be represented in the governance bodies of the EFF or financial intermediary, such as the supervisory board or the advisory committee; and (f) The EFF, or financial intermediary shall be established according to the applicable laws and the Member State shall provide for a due diligence process in order to ensure a commercially sound investment strategy for the purpose of implementing the energy efficiency aid measure.
EFF/Financial intermediaries are managed on a commercial basis and make profit driven financing decision. This is met where (a) They are obliged by law or contract to act with the diligence of a professional manager in good faith and avoiding conflicts of interest; best practices and regulatory supervision shall apply; (b) Their remuneration conforms with market practices. The requirement is considered to be met where the manager is selected through an open, transparent and nondiscriminatory call, based on objective criteria linked to experience, expertise and operational and financial capacity; (c) They shall receive a remuneration linked to performance, or shall share part of the investment risks by coinvesting own resources so as to ensure that their interests are permanently aligned with the interest of the public investor; (d) They shall set out an investment strategy, criteria and the proposed timing of investments in energy efficiency projects, establishing the ex-ante financial viability and their expected impact on energy efficiency. (e) A clear and realistic exit strategy shall exist for the public funds invested in the energy efficiency fund or granted to the financial intermediary, allowing the market to finance energy efficiency projects when the market is ready to do so. EFF/financial intermediary will provide support in the form of Endowment Equity Loans Guarantees nominal amount of the loan or guarantee will not exceed 10m and that the maximum amount guaranteed is less than 80% of the loan.
EFF/Financial intermediary will ensure at least the amount of the nominal loan is repaid by building owners. Confirm that EFF/Financial Intermediary will levy in at least 30% of the project amounts from private investment (this can be done at project or fund level). Information about eligible costs Confirm eligibility of supported costs: Overall costs of the energy efficiency project. Information about reporting Confirm that if the aid is above 500,000 you have collected the following information to input (when required) on the Member State database: Name of company receiving the support; The company s identifier; Type of company (SME or large) at time of granting; Region in which the company is located at NUTS II level (annex 2 has a list of NUTS II Areas); Sector of activity at NACE group level a list of NACE codes can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/competition/mergers/cases/index/nace_all.html; Aid amount in sterling; Aid instrument (grant/interest rate subsidy, loan, repayable advances/reimbursable grant, guarantee, tax advantage or exemption, risk finance, other (please specify); Date of granting; Objective of the aid; Granting authority; Reference of the aid measure. Confirm that you have provided contact name and information to state.aid@wales.gsi.gov.uk
Annex 1 E - Investment aid for high-efficiency cogeneration Information about the company/enterprise assisted Confirm size of the enterprise SME or large enterprise Confirm y/n Supporting Evidence Provided Confirm location of the enterprise (see annex 2 for areas) enterprise assisted is NOT in one of the following sectors: enterprise assisted is NOT subject to either of the following: Article 107 3 (a) Article 107 3 (c) Non-assisted Fisheries and aquaculture Processing and marketing of agricultural products where (1) the amount of aid if fixed on the basis of the price or quantity of such products purchased from primary producers or put on the market by the SME concerned or (2) the aid is conditional on being partly or entirely passed on to the primary producers An outstanding order for the recovery of aid which has been declared by the Commission to be illegal and incompatible with the Common market; a firm in difficulty within the meaning of Chapter 2 of the Community guidelines on State aid for rescuing and restructuring firms in difficulty (OJ C 244, 1.10.2004, p.2). Information about the project Confirm that no work started on the project prior to the application. company submitted a written application including the following information before work started on the project: (a) Name and size; (b) Description of the project, including its start and end dates; (c) Location of the project; (d) List of project costs; (e) Form of and amount of public funding needed for the project. support is for a newly installed or refurbished cogeneration unit. If a new cogeneration is supported confirm it makes overall primary energy savings compared to separate production of heat and electricity as provided for by Directive 2012/27/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2012 on energy efficiency, amending Directives 2009/125/EC and 2010/30/EU and repealing Directives 2004/8/EC and 2006/32/EC. http://eurlex.europa.eu/lexuriserv/lexuriserv.do?uri=oj:l:2012:315:0001:0056:en:pdf
If the support is for improvement of an existing cogeneration unit or conversion of an existing power generation unit into a cogeneration it will result in primary energy savings compared to the original situation. Confirm that support is NOT for any of the following activities: following restrictions do not apply Information about the support Export related activities Aid contingent upon the use of domestic over imported goods For the closure of an uncompetitive coal mines exploiting R&D&I results in other Member States Companies are required to have their headquarters in the UK or to be predominantly established in the UK There company is restricted to only exploiting R&D&I results in the UK Confirm type of aid: Confirm eligibility of supported costs: Grant Interest rate subsidies Loan Repayable advance Guarantee Information about eligible costs The extra investment costs for the equipment needed for the installation to operate as a high-efficiency cogeneration installation, compared to conventional electricity or heating installations of the same capacity or the extra investment cost to upgrade to a higher efficiency when an existing installation already meets the high-efficiency threshold. Information about aid intensities Confirm the total level of Small Medium Large ALL public funding 107 80% 70% 60% (including structural funds) (3)(a) awarded and that it is areas within the permitted 107(3)(c) 70% 60% 50% intensity levels areas Nonassisted 65% 55% 45% Information about notification thresholds aid is not more than 10m per undertaking, per investment project. % Information about reporting Confirm that if the aid is above 500,000 you have collected the following information to input (when required) on the Member State database: Name of company receiving the support; The company s identifier; Type of company (SME or large) at time of granting;
Region in which the company is located at NUTS II level (annex 2 has a list of NUTS II Areas); Sector of activity at NACE group level a list of NACE codes can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/competition/mergers/cases/index/nace_all.html; Aid amount in sterling; Aid instrument (grant/interest rate subsidy, loan, repayable advances/reimbursable grant, guarantee, tax advantage or exemption, risk finance, other (please specify); Date of granting; Objective of the aid; Granting authority; Reference of the aid measure. Confirm that you have provided contact name and information to state.aid@wales.gsi.gov.uk
Annex 1 F - Investment aid for the promotion of energy from renewables Information about the company/enterprise assisted Confirm y/n Confirm size of the enterprise SME or large enterprise Supporting Evidence Provided Confirm location of the enterprise (see annex 2 for areas) enterprise assisted is NOT in one of the following sectors: enterprise assisted is NOT subject to either of the following: Article 107 3 (a) Article 107 3 (c) Non-assisted Fisheries and aquaculture Processing and marketing of agricultural products where (1) the amount of aid if fixed on the basis of the price or quantity of such products purchased from primary producers or put on the market by the SME concerned or (2) the aid is conditional on being partly or entirely passed on to the primary producers An outstanding order for the recovery of aid which has been declared by the Commission to be illegal and incompatible with the Common market; a firm in difficulty within the meaning of Chapter 2 of the Community guidelines on State aid for rescuing and restructuring firms in difficulty (OJ C 244, 1.10.2004, p.2). Information about the project Confirm that no work started on the project prior to the application. company submitted a written application including the following information before work started on the project: (a) Name and size (b) Description of the project, including its start and end dates (c) Location of the project (d) List of project costs (e) Form of and amount of public funding needed for the project. Confirm the support is for a new installation (no aid can be paid out after the installation has started operations and aid will be independent from the output). Confirm that if the investment aid is for biofuels, it will only be granted if the aided investment is used exclusively for the production of sustainable biofuels, other than food based biofuels. Investment aid to convert existing food-based biofuel plants advanced biofuel plants can be supported as long as the food-based production would be reduced commensurate to the new capacity.
Confirm that support is NOT for any of the following activities: Information about the support Export related activities Aid contingent upon the use of domestic over imported goods For the closure of an uncompetitive coal mines exploiting R&D&I results in other Member States Biofuels subject to a supply or blending obligation Hydropower installations that do not comply with Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legalcontent/en/txt/?uri=celex:32000l0060 following restrictions do not apply Companies are required to have their headquarters in the UK or to be predominantly established in the UK There company is restricted to only exploiting R&D&I results in the UK Confirm type of aid: Confirm eligibility of supported costs: Grant Interest rate subsidies Loan Repayable advance Guarantee Information about eligible costs The extra investment costs necessary to promote the production of energy from renewable sources. Confirm that costs supported are directly linked to the achievement of a higher level of environmental protection. If the Investment aid is for the production of biofuels confirm that the aided investment is used exclusively for the production of sustainable biofuels, other than food based biofuels. Investment aid to convert existing food-based biofuel plants advanced biofuel plants can be supported as long as the food-based production would be reduced commensurate to the new capacity. Confirm how the eligible costs have been calculated (a) where the costs of investing in the production of energy from renewable sources can be identified in the total investment cost as a separate investment, for instance as a readily identifiable add-on component to a pre-existing facility, this renewable energy-related cost will be the eligible cost; or
(b) where the costs of investing in the production of energy from renewable sources can be identified by reference to a similar, less environmentally friendly investment that would have been credibly carried out without the aid, this difference between the cost of both investments identifies the renewable energy-related cost and will be the eligible cost; (c) for certain small installations where a less environmentally friendly investment cannot be established as plants of a limited size do not exist, the total investment costs to achieve a higher level of environmental protection shall constitute the eligible costs. Confirm the total level of ALL public funding (including structural funds) awarded and that it is within the permitted intensity levels Confirm the total level of ALL public funding (including structural funds) awarded and that it is within the permitted intensity levels Where support is for certain small installations where a less environmentally friendly investment cannot be established as plants of a limited size do not exist, the total investment costs to achieve a higher level of environmental protection shall constitute the eligible costs. Information about aid intensities Small Medium Large 107 80% 70% 60% (3)(a) areas 107(3)(c) 70% 60% 50% areas Nonassisted 65% 55% 45% Small Medium Large 107 65% 55% 45% (3)(a) areas 107(3)(c) 55% 45% 35% areas Nonassisted 50% 40% 30% If the aid will be granted as a result of a clear, transparent and nondiscriminatory competitive bidding process, the aid intensity may % %
reach 100% of the eligible costs. Such a bidding process shall be non-discriminatory and provide for the participation of all interested undertakings. The budget related to the bidding process shall be a binding constraint in the sense that not all participants can receive aid and the aid shall be granted on the basis of the initial bid submitted by the bidder, therefore excluding subsequent negotiations. Information about notification thresholds aid is not more than 15m per undertaking, per investment project. Information about reporting Confirm that if the aid is above 500,000 you have collected the following information to input (when required) on the Member State database: Name of company receiving the support; The company s identifier; Type of company (SME or large) at time of granting; Region in which the company is located at NUTS II level (annex 2 has a list of NUTS II Areas); Sector of activity at NACE group level a list of NACE codes can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/competition/mergers/cases/index/nace_all.html; Aid amount in sterling; Aid instrument (grant/interest rate subsidy, loan, repayable advances/reimbursable grant, guarantee, tax advantage or exemption, risk finance, other (please specify); Date of granting; Objective of the aid; Granting authority; Reference of the aid measure. Confirm that you have provided contact name and information to state.aid@wales.gsi.gov.uk
Annex 1 G Operating aid for the promotion of energy from renewable sources in small scale installations Information about the company/enterprise assisted enterprise assisted is NOT in one of the following sectors: Fisheries and aquaculture Processing and marketing of agricultural products where (1) the amount of aid if fixed on the basis of the price or quantity of such products purchased from primary producers or put on the market by the SME concerned or (2) the aid is conditional on being partly or entirely passed on to the primary producers. Confirm y/n Supporting Evidence Provided enterprise assisted is NOT subject to either of the following: An outstanding order for the recovery of aid which has been declared by the Commission to be illegal and incompatible with the Common market; a firm in difficulty within the meaning of Chapter 2 of the Community guidelines on State aid for rescuing and restructuring firms in difficulty (OJ C 244, 1.10.2004, p.2). Information about the project Confirm that no work started on the project prior to the application. company submitted a written application including the following information before work started on the project: (a) Name and size (b) Description of the project, including its start and end dates (c) Location of the project (d) List of project costs (e) Form of and amount of public funding needed for the project. installation being supported is one of the following Installations with an installed capacity of less than 500kw are eligible. For wind energy, aid can be granted to installations with an installed capacity of less than 3mw or with less than 3 generation units. For biofuels, aid shall be granted to installations with an installed capacity of less than 50,000 tonnes/year. For the purpose of calculating maximum capacities, small scale installations with a
common connection point to the electricity grid will be considered one installation. Confirm that if the support is for biofuels it is for sustainable biofuels, other than food based biofuels. Operating aid to plants producing food-based biofuels that have started operation before 31 December 2013 and are not fully depreciated can be supported. Confirm that support is NOT for any of the following activities: following restrictions do not apply Information about the support Export related activities Aid contingent upon the use of domestic over imported goods For the closure of an uncompetitive coal mines exploiting R&D&I results in other Member States Biofuels subject to a supply or blending obligation Companies are required to have their headquarters in the UK or to be predominantly established in the UK There company is restricted to only exploiting R&D&I results in the UK Confirm type of aid: eligible costs have been calculated in the following way Grant Interest rate subsidies Loan Repayable advance Guarantee Information about eligible costs The aid per unit of energy does not exceed the difference between the total levelized costs of producing energy from the renewable source in question and the market price of the form of energy concerned. The levelized costs will be updated regularly, annually as a minimum. The maximum rate of return used in the levelized cost calculation does not exceed the relevant swap rate plus a premium of 100 basis points. The relevant swap rate will be the swap rate of the currency in which the aid is granted for a maturity that reflects the depreciation period of the installation supported. Aid will only be granted until the
installation has been fully depreciated according to generally accepted accounting principles. Any investment granted to an installation has been deducted from the operating aid. Confirm the total level of ALL public funding (including structural funds) awarded and that it is within the permitted intensity levels Information about aid intensities 100% of eligible costs % Information about notification thresholds aid is not more than 15m per undertaking, per investment project. Information about reporting Confirm that if the aid is above 500,000 you have collected the following information to input (when required) on the Member State database: Name of company receiving the support; The company s identifier; Type of company (SME or large) at time of granting; Region in which the company is located at NUTS II level (annex 2 has a list of NUTS II Areas); Sector of activity at NACE group level a list of NACE codes can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/competition/mergers/cases/index/nace_all.html; Aid amount in sterling; Aid instrument (grant/interest rate subsidy, loan, repayable advances/reimbursable grant, guarantee, tax advantage or exemption, risk finance, other (please specify); Date of granting; Objective of the aid; Granting authority; Reference of the aid measure. Confirm that you have provided contact name and information to stateaid@wales.gsi.gov.uk
Annex 1 H Investment aid for remediation of contaminated sites Information about the company/enterprise assisted Fisheries and aquaculture enterprise assisted is Processing and marketing of agricultural NOT in one of the products where (1) the amount of aid if following sectors: fixed on the basis of the price or quantity of such products purchased from primary producers or put on the market by the SME concerned or (2) the aid is conditional on being partly or entirely passed on to the primary producers enterprise assisted is NOT subject to either of the following: An outstanding order for the recovery of aid which has been declared by the Commission to be illegal and incompatible with the Common market; a firm in difficulty within the meaning of Chapter 2 of the Community guidelines on State aid for rescuing and restructuring firms in difficulty (OJ C 244, 1.10.2004, p.2). Information about the project Confirm that no work started on the project prior to the application. company submitted a written application including the following information before work started on the project: (a) Name and size (b) Description of the project, including its start and end dates (c) Location of the project (d) List of project costs (e) Form of and amount of public funding needed for the project. support is not being paid to the legal or physical person liable for the environmental damage under UK law (without prejudice to European Union Law). site meets the definition of a contaminated site i.e. there is a confirmed presence, caused by man, of hazardous substances of such a level that they pose a significant risk to human health or the environment taking into account current and approved future use of the land. Confirm that support is NOT for any of the following activities: Information about the support Export related activities Aid contingent upon the use of domestic over imported goods For the closure of an uncompetitive coal mines exploiting R&D&I results in other Member
following restrictions do not apply States Companies are required to have their headquarters in the UK or to be predominantly established in the UK There company is restricted to only exploiting R&D&I results in the UK Confirm type of aid: Confirm eligibility of supported costs: Grant Interest rate subsidies Loan Repayable advance Guarantee Information about eligible costs Costs of the remediation of the land less the increase in value of the land. evaluation of the increase in the value of the land resulting from the decontamination will be carried out by an independent expert. Information about aid intensities Confirm the total level of ALL public funding (including structural funds) awarded and that it is within the permitted intensity levels 100% of eligible costs % Information about notification thresholds aid is not more than 20m per undertaking, per investment project. Information about reporting Confirm that if the aid is above 500,000 you have collected the following information to input (when required) on the Member State database: Name of company receiving the support; The company s identifier; Type of company (SME or large) at time of granting; Region in which the company is located at NUTS II level (annex 2 has a list of NUTS II Areas); Sector of activity at NACE group level a list of NACE codes can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/competition/mergers/cases/index/nace_all.html; Aid amount in sterling; Aid instrument (grant/interest rate subsidy, loan, repayable advances/reimbursable grant, guarantee, tax advantage or exemption, risk finance, other (please specify); Date of granting; Objective of the aid; Granting authority; Reference of the aid measure.