Competition Weekly e-news

The European Commission has approved an up to €24 million Romanian scheme (RON 118,6 million) to support investments in sea and inland ports in the context of Russia's war against Ukraine. The scheme was approved under the State aid Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework, adopted by the Commission on 9 March 2023 to support measures in sectors which are key to accelerate the green transition and reduce fuel dependencies. The new Framework amends and prolongs in part the Temporary Crisis Framework, adopted on 23 March 2022 to enable Member States to support the economy in the context of the current geopolitical crisis, already amended on 20 July 2022 and on 28 October 2022.

The European Commission has approved an around €400 million (BGN 800 million) Bulgarian measure to support the public supplier of natural gas in Bulgaria, Bulgargaz EAD, in the context of Russia's war against Ukraine. The measure was approved under the State aid Temporary Crisis Framework, adopted by the Commission on 23 March 2022, based on Article 107(3)(b) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (‘TFEU'), recognising that the EU economy is experiencing a serious disturbance, as amended on 20 July 2022. Such Temporary Crisis Framework was amended again on 28 October 2022, and replaced by the Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework, adopted by the Commission on 9 March 2023, to support measures in sectors which are key to accelerate the green transition and reduce fuel dependencies.

The European Commission has approved a €100 million Italian scheme to support the production of electrolysers to foster the transition to a net-zero economy, in line with the Green Deal Industrial Plan. The scheme was approved under the State aid Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework, adopted by the Commission on 9 March 2023 to support measures in sectors which are key to accelerate the green transition and reduce fuel dependencies. The new Framework amends and prolongs in part the Temporary Crisis Framework, adopted on 23 March 2022 to enable Member States to support the economy in the context of the current geopolitical crisis, already amended on 20 July 2022 and on 28 October 2022.

The European Commission has approved a €2.5 billion (60 billion CZK) Czech scheme to help manufacturing companies to decarbonise their production processes and improve their energy efficiency to foster the transition to a net-zero economy, in line with the Green Deal Industrial Plan. The scheme was approved under the State aid Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework, adopted by the Commission on 9 March 2023 to support measures in industrial sectors which are key to accelerate the green transition and reduce fossil fuel dependencies. The new Framework amends and prolongs in part the Temporary Crisis Framework, adopted on 23 March 2022 to enable Member States to support the economy in the context of the current geopolitical crisis, already amended on 20 July 2022 and on 28 October 2022.

The European Commission has approved a €1.2 billion (PLN 5.5 billion) Polish scheme to support energy-intensive companies facing increased energy costs in the context of Russia's war against Ukraine. The scheme was approved under the State aid Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework, adopted by the Commission on 9 March 2023 to support measures in sectors which are key to accelerate the green transition and reduce fuel dependencies. The new Framework amends and prolongs in part the Temporary Crisis Framework, adopted on 23 March 2022 to enable Member States to support the economy in the context of the current geopolitical crisis, already amended on 20 July 2022 and on 28 October 2022.

The notification obligation for large concentrations under the Foreign Subsidies Regulation starts to apply as of October 12th. Companies are encouraged to engage with the Commission as early as possible to ensure they comply with this obligation.
For more information on the FSR, you can watch again the Let’s Talk Competition episode "Unpacking the Foreign Subsidies Regulation".

The European Commission has adopted, under the EU Merger Regulation, restorative measures requiring Illumina to unwind its completed acquisition of GRAIL, following the Commission's decision to prohibit the transaction.

The European Commission has decided not to extend the EU legal framework which exempts liner shipping consortia from EU antitrust rules (Consortia Block Exemption Regulation or ‘CBER'). The Commission has concluded that the CBER no longer promotes competition in the shipping sector and therefore it will let it expire on 25 April 2024.
See also Q&A on the Consortia Block Exemption Regulation.

The Commission published the template for the compliance report that designated gatekeepers will need to submit under the Digital Markets Act (‘DMA').
Designated gatekeepers will need to submit compliance reports within six months from designation and update them at least once per year. The gatekeepers designated on 6 September 2023 will need to submit the first reports by 7 March 2024. The Commission will then publish a non-confidential summary of each compliance report.

After the first two episodes in Italy and Austria, DG Competition continues its effort to bring the competition policy debated around the Union to five mid-sized cities in five different EU countries. We are happy to announce that the third debate titled “How can we make markets fairer?” will be held in Salamanca, Spain, on 20 October 2023.
You can register at this following link.