Commission prolongs and amends State aid Temporary Crisis Framework

Measure in Brief

The Commission amended the Temporary Crisis Framework, prolonging all measures until 31 December 2023 and raising ceilings for limited amounts of aid to €250,000 for agricultural firms, €300,000 for fisheries and aquaculture and €2 million for other sectors. The amendment also adds liquidity support flexibility for energy utilities' trading activities, permits in exceptional cases public guarantees exceeding 90% as collateral to central counterparties under strict safeguards, introduces measures to support electricity demand reduction and clarifies recapitalisation criteria requiring necessity, proportionality, adequate remuneration of the State and competition-preserving measures such as bans on dividends, bonuses and acquisitions.

Who Is Affected

Member States may provide support to companies across sectors, with specific provisions for agriculture, fisheries and aquaculture, energy utilities and energy-intensive firms, while sanctioned Russian-controlled entities are excluded from the measures. The Commission also prolonged the possibility to grant investment support under the COVID Temporary Framework until 31 December 2023.

What Comes Next

The Temporary Crisis Framework will remain in place until 31 December 2023 and the Commission will assess at a later stage whether an extension is needed.