Overview   State aid

The European Commission has approved a €54 million Spanish State aid scheme to support agricultural companies facing increased fuel prices due to the Middle East crisis.
The scheme was approved under the Middle East Crisis Temporary State Aid Framework (METSAF) adopted by the Commission on 29 April 2026. The scheme covers higher diesel prices from late March to late June and will run until 31 December 2026.

The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, a €9 billion capacity mechanism for electricity supply for Spain. This aid measure aims to ensure that there is sufficient capacity to produce, store or flexibly consume electricity and that electricity production meets the expected demand.

The European Commission has approved a €15 million French State aid scheme to support agricultural and aquaculture companies facing increased fuel prices due to the Middle East crisis.
The scheme was approved under the Middle East Crisis Temporary State Aid Framework (METSAF) adopted by the Commission on 29 April 2026.

The European Commission has approved a €500 million Spanish State aid scheme to support agricultural companies facing increased fertiliser prices due to the Middle East crisis.
The scheme was approved under the Middle East Crisis Temporary State Aid Framework (METSAF) adopted by the Commission on 29 April 2026.

The European Commission has approved a €13 million French aid scheme to support fishing companies to address the increase in fuel prices due to the Middle East crisis. The scheme was approved under the Middle East Crisis Temporary State Aid Framework (METSAF) adopted by the Commission on 29 April 2026.

The Commission takes note of today’s preliminary ruling delivered by the Court of Justice clarifying that national courts and authorities must disregard national rules allowing, under certain conditions, the suspension of a procedure intended to recover unlawful State aid that is incompatible with the internal market, unless the aid beneficiary is deprived of the competitive advantage linked to that aid.
The Commission will carefully assess the implications of the Judgment.

The Commission takes note of the preliminary ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union concerning the interpretation of Article 25(9) of the Agricultural Block Exemption Regulation (EU) 702/2014 .
In its judgment, the Court clarified that the 50 % aid deduction does not apply when the beneficiary has not subscribed insurance meeting the conditions laid down in Article 25(9) because there was no insurance available on the insurance market.
The referring court is called to apply that interpretation in the context of a national proceeding between Binanrier and Beaudeluc and the Walloon Region.

The European Commission has approved €288 million in German State aid to support the setting up two new facilities in the semiconductor supply chain. The aid consists of a €222 million measure for Carl Zeiss to build a facility for the manufacturing of semiconductor production equipment in Oberkochen, Baden-Württemberg and a €66 million measure for Zadient Materials Europe GmbH to set up a facility for the manufacturing of semiconductor source materials in Bitterfeld, Saxony-Anhalt. The measures will contribute to strengthening the EU's position and autonomy in the semiconductor value chain, in line with the objectives set out in the European Chips Act and the Commission's 2024-2029 Political Guidelines.

The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, a €1.3 billion German State aid scheme to support the production of renewable hydrogen through the European Hydrogen Bank's “Auctions-as-a-Service” tool for the auction that closed in 2026. The scheme will contribute to the objectives of the Clean Industrial Deal to accelerate the decarbonisation of EU industry, the REPowerEU Plan to reduce dependence on Russian fossil fuels, as well as the EU Hydrogen Strategy.

The Commission takes note of today’s judgment of the General Court that dismissed Carpatair’s action for annulment against a 2020 Commission State aid decision concerning a series of measures granted by State-owned Timisoara international airport to Wizz Air and other airlines operating at that airport between 2007 and 2010.

The European Commission has today launched a public consultation inviting all interested parties to comment on its draft revised Guidelines on State aid to the air transport sector. These will replace the existing Guidelines, which were adopted in 2014. Interested parties are invited to respond to the public consultation by 11 June 2026.

The Commission is publishing for consultation the draft Guidelines on State aid to the air transport sector, which will replace the 2014 Guidelines on State aid to airports and airlines.
This consultation will be open to the general public. National authorities, airports, airlines and related associations are in particular welcome to contribute.
Deadline for the submission of contributions is 11 June 2026
See also the European Commission's press release.

The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, a €1.5 billion Spanish scheme to support farmers affected by a series of adverse meteorological events in the regions of Andalusia and Extremadura between 10 November 2025 and 9 February 2026.

The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, a €5 billion German scheme to help companies in industrial sectors decarbonise their production processes. The scheme contributes to achieving Germany's energy and climate targets, as well as the EU's sustainable prosperity and competitiveness objectives.

The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, capital injections worth €813 million and €15 million per year in corporate income tax and dividend payment exemptions in favour of Lithuanian development bank Investicijos į Lietuvos ekonomiką ('ILTE'). The measures are provided by the Lithuanian Ministry of Finance.

The European Commission has adopted a temporary State aid framework to enable Member States to support the EU economy in the context of the Middle East crisis. The Middle East crisis Temporary State aid Framework (METSAF) is a targeted and temporary framework to address the effects of the crisis on some of the most exposed sectors of the economy: agriculture, fishery, transport and energy-intensive industries. The METSAF will be in place until 31 December 2026. During its period of application, the Commission will keep the content, scope and duration of the Framework under review in the light of developments in the Middle East and in the general economic situation.
See also Remarks by Executive Vice-President Ribera at the press conference on the METSAF.

DG Competition will hold on a “Reality Check” to identify good practices on the activities of National Promotional Banks and potential bottlenecks caused by State aid rules.
The Reality Check meeting will take place on Tuesday, 28 April 2026. The representatives from Member States’ national promotional banks, international financial institutions implementing InvestEU and relevant EU associations are invited.

The Commission takes note of the preliminary ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union concerning the scope of 2014 Fisheries de minimis Regulation.
In its judgment, in line with the Commission’s position, the Court clarified that the definition of ‘processing and marketing’ in Article 2(1)(c) of the 2014 Fisheries de minimis Regulation includes the activity of retail of fishery products.
The referring court is called to apply that finding in the context of a national proceeding between Pescheria Il Granchio Blu di JC, the appellant, and the Italian Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy (Ministero delle Imprese e del Made in Italy), the respondent.

The Commission takes note of today’s judgment, in which the Court of Justice confirmed the annulment of our 2020 decision approving the recapitalisation of Lufthansa in the context of the coronavirus outbreak.
We are currently analysing the judgment. This means it is too preliminary to say anything about what will happen now.
The Commission will continue the in-depth investigation into the recapitalisation measure opened in 2024, following the annulment by the General Court. We cannot prejudge the outcome of the investigation.
See also Curia's press release (in PDF format).

The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, a €411 million capital injection by Croatia's government into the national development bank Hrvatska Banka za Obnovu i Razvitak ('HBOR'). The measure will be funded by the Recovery and Resilience Facility ('RRF') and will expand HBOR's remit to support Croatia's sustainable economic growth and competitiveness.