Nařízení Komise (EU) 2017/1084 ze dne 14. června 2017, kterým se mění nařízení (EU) č. 651/2014, pokud jde o podporu na přístavní a letištní infrastrukturu, prahové hodnoty oznamovací povinnosti pro podporu na kulturu a zachování kulturního dědictví a pro podporu na sportovní a multifunkční rekreační infrastrukturu a režimy regionální provozní podpory pro nejvzdálenější regiony, a mění se nařízení (EU) č. 702/2014, pokud jde o výpočet způsobilých nákladů (Text s významem pro EHP)

Identifier:: 32017R1084
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Text language:: en

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EU) 2015/1588 of 13 July 2015 on the application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union to certain categories of horizontal State aidOJ L 248, 24.9.2015, p. 1 . , and in particular Article 1(1)(a)(xiv) and Article 1(1)(b) thereof,

After consulting the Advisory Committee on State aid,

OJ L 248, 24.9.2015, p. 1 .

(1) Commission Regulation (EU) No 651/2014Commission Regulation (EU) No 651/2014 of 17 June 2014 declaring certain categories of aid compatible with the internal market in application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty (OJ L 187, 26.6.2014, p. 1 ). declares that certain categories of aid are compatible with the internal market and exempted from the requirement that they must be notified to the Commission before they are granted. Regulation (EU) No 651/2014 announced that the Commission intended to review the scope of that Regulation with a view to including other categories of aid, and in particular aid for port and airport infrastructure, once sufficient case experience had been acquired.

(2) In the light of the experience acquired by the Commission and in order to simplify and clarify the State aid rules, as well as to reduce the administrative burden of notifying straightforward State aid measures and to allow the Commission to focus on the potentially most distortive cases, aid for port and airport infrastructure should be included in the scope of Regulation (EU) No 651/2014.

(3) Investment aid to regional airports with average annual passenger traffic of up to three million passengers can improve both the accessibility of certain regions and local development, depending on the specificities of each airport. Such investment aid therefore supports the priorities of the Europe 2020 strategy contributing to further economic growth and objectives of common Union interest. The experience acquired in the application of the Guidelines on State aid to airports and airlinesOJ C 99, 4.4.2014, p. 3 . shows that investment aid to regional airports does not give

(4) The conditions for the exemption of investment aid from the notification requirement should aim at limiting distortions of competition that would undermine a level playing field in the internal market, in particular by ensuring the proportionality of the aid amount. In order to be proportionate, investment aid should fulfil two conditions. The aid intensity should not exceed a maximum permissible aid intensity, which varies according to the size of the airport. In addition, the aid amount should not exceed the difference between the eligible costs and the operating profit of the investment. For very small airports of up to 200000 passengers per annum, the investment aid should only be required to fulfil one of those conditions. The compatibility conditions should ensure open and non-discriminatory access to the infrastructure. The exemption should not apply to investment aid granted to airports located in the vicinity of an existing airport from which scheduled air services are operated, because aid to such airports entails a higher risk of distortion of competition and should therefore be notified to the Commission, with the exception of aid granted to very small airports with up to 200000 passengers per annum, which is unlikely to result in significant distortion of competition.

(5) Operating aid to very small airports with up to 200000 passengers per annum does not give rise to undue distortion of trade and competition, provided certain conditions are met. The compatibility conditions should, in particular, ensure that the aid amount does not exceed the operating losses and a reasonable profit and that there is open and non-discriminatory access to the infrastructure. In addition, the aid should not be granted under the condition that the airport operator concludes arrangements with one or more airlines relating to airport charges, marketing payments or other financial aspects of the airline's operations at that airport. Arrangements between an airport which has public resources at its disposal and an airline may, under certain circumstances, constitute State aid to the airline concernedSee in particular section 3.5 of the Guidelines on State aid to airports and airlines. , and such aid should remain fully subject to the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty.

(6) Maritime ports are of strategic importance for achieving the smooth functioning of the internal market and the strengthening of economic, social and territorial cohesion, as set out, inter alia, in the Europe 2020 Strategy and in the Commission White Paper Roadmap to a Single European Transport Area — Towards a competitive and resource efficient transport systemCOM(2011) 144. . As highlighted in the Communication Ports: an engine for growthCOM(2013) 295. , the effective operation of ports in all Union maritime regions requires efficient public and private investment. Investments are necessary, in particular, for the adaptation of access infrastructure to ports and of port infrastructure to the increased size and complexity of the fleet, to the use of alternative fuel infrastructure and to stricter requirements on environmental performance. The lack of high quality port infrastructure results in congestion and extra costs for shippers, transport operators and consumers.

(7) The development of inland ports and their integration into multi-modal transport is a major objective of the Union's transport policy. The Union rules explicitly aim at reinforcing transport intermodality and the shift towards more environmentally-friendly modes of transport such as rail and sea/inland waterway transport.

(8) The conditions for the exemption of aid to ports from the notification requirement should aim at limiting distortions of competition that would undermine a level playing field in the internal market, in particular by ensuring the proportionality of the aid amount. In order to be proportionate, the aid should fulfil two conditions. The aid intensity should not exceed a maximum permissible aid intensity, which for maritime ports varies according to the size of the investment project. In addition, the aid amount should not exceed the difference between the eligible costs and the operating profit of the investment, except for very small aid amounts, for which a simplified approach is appropriate in order to reduce the administrative burden. The compatibility conditions should also ensure that any concession or other entrustment to a third party to construct, upgrade, operate or rent aided port infrastructure is assigned on a competitive, transparent, non-discriminatory and unconditional basis, without prejudice to the Union rules on public procurement and concessions, where applicable. Equal and non-discriminatory access to the infrastructure should also be ensured.

(9) Investments included in the work plans of the Core Network Corridors set up by Regulation (EU) No 1315/2013 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilRegulation (EU) No 1315/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 on Union guidelines for the development of the trans-European transport network and repealing Decision No 661/2010/EU (OJ L 348, 20.12.2013, p. 1 ). are projects of common interest with a particular strategic interest for the Union. Maritime ports that are part of those networks constitute the entry and exit points of goods being transported in and out of the Union. Inland ports that are part of those networks are key factors enabling the multimodality of the network. Investments aiming to improve the performance of those ports should therefore benefit from a higher notification threshold.

(10) In the light of the experience acquired in the application of Regulation (EU) No 651/2014 and Commission Regulation (EU) No 702/2014Commission Regulation (EU) No 702/2014 of 25 June 2014 declaring certain categories of aid in the agricultural and forestry sectors and in rural areas compatible with the internal market in application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (OJ L 193, 1.7.2014, p. 1 ). , it is also appropriate to adapt certain provisions of those Regulations.

(11) In particular, as regards regional operating aid schemes for outermost regions, the application of different rules for the compensation of additional transport costs and of other additional costs has proven difficult in practice and not appropriate to address the structural handicaps referred to in Article 349 of the Treaty, remoteness and insularity, small size, difficult topography and climate, economic dependence on a few products, the permanence and combination of which severely restrain their development, and the provisions should therefore be replaced by a method that applies to all additional costs. The implementation of regional investment and operating aid measures in outermost regions which, amongst others, benefit undertakings active in the fishery sector should be in line with the Union's obligations resulting from international agreements to which it is a contracting party. Therefore, such regional investment and operating aid measures should not benefit vessels engaged in illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing or contribute to overfishing or to an increase in the fishing capacity of vessels.

(12) In view of the limited negative effects on competition of aid for culture and heritage conservation and of aid for sport and multifunctional recreational infrastructures, the notification thresholds for aid in those areas should be increased.

(13) In order to simplify the calculation of eligible costs under Regulation (EU) No 651/2014 and Regulation (EU) No 702/2014 for operations that are at least partly financed through a Union fund that allows the use of simplified cost options, the provisions relating to eligible costs should be adapted.

(14) Under the Horizon 2020 SME-instrument as referred in Article 22(2) of Regulation (EU) No 1291/2013 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilRegulation (EU) No 1291/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 establishing Horizon 2020 — the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (2014–2020) and repealing Decision No 1982/2006/EC (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 104 ). , projects can receive a Commission Seal of Excellence quality label. Such projects, given their limited aid amounts of maximum EUR 2,5 million per project and the fact that they are targeting exclusively SMEs, can be exempted from the notification requirement in accordance with the rules of Regulation (EU) No 651/2014.

(15) Regulation (EU) No 651/2014 and Regulation (EU) No 702/2014 should therefore be amended accordingly,

In Article 7(1) of Regulation (EU) No 702/2014 the following sentence is added: The amounts of eligible costs may be calculated in accordance with the simplified cost options set out in Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 of the European Parliament and of the CouncilRegulation (EU) No 1303/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 laying down common provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and laying down general provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 320 ).. , provided that the operation is at least partly financed through the EAFRD and that the category of costs is eligible according to the relevant exemption provision.

Commission Regulation (EU) No 651/2014 of 17 June 2014 declaring certain categories of aid compatible with the internal market in application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty (OJ L 187, 26.6.2014, p. 1 ).

Article 2 Article 2

Article 3 Article 3

Article 12 Article 12 Monitoring 1.In order to enable the Commission to monitor the aid exempted from notification by this Regulation, Member States, or alternatively, in the case of aid granted to European Territorial Cooperation projects, the Member State in which the Managing Authority is located, shall maintain detailed records with the information and supporting documentation necessary to establish that all the conditions laid down in this Regulation are fulfilled. Such records shall be kept for 10 years from the date on which the ad hoc aid was granted or the last aid was granted under the scheme. 2.In the case of schemes under which fiscal aid is granted automatically, such as those based on tax declarations of the beneficiaries, and where there is no ex ante verification that all compatibility conditions are met for each beneficiary, Member States shall regularly verify, at least ex post and on a sample basis, that all compatibility conditions are met, and draw the necessary conclusions. Member States shall maintain detailed records of the verifications for at least 10 years from the date of the controls. 3.The Commission may request, from each Member State, all the information and supporting documentation which the Commission considers necessary to monitor the application of this Regulation, including the information mentioned in paragraphs 1 and 2. The Member State concerned shall provide the Commission with the requested information and supporting documents within a period of 20 working days from receipt of the request or such longer period as may be fixed in the request.;

Article 13 Article 13 Scope of regional aid

Article 15 Article 15 Regional operating aid 1.Regional operating aid schemes in outermost regions, sparsely populated areas and very sparsely populated areas shall be compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled. 2.In sparsely populated areas, the regional operating aid schemes shall compensate for the additional transport costs of goods which have been produced in areas eligible for operating aid, as well as additional transport costs of goods that are further processed in those areas, under the following conditions: (a) the aid is objectively quantifiable in advance on the basis of a fixed sum or per tonne/kilometre ratio or any other relevant unit;(b) the additional transport costs are calculated on the basis of the journey of the goods inside the national border of the Member State concerned using the means of transport which results in the lowest costs for the beneficiary. The aid intensity shall not exceed 100 % of the additional transport costs as set out in this paragraph. 3.In very sparsely populated areas, the regional operating aid schemes shall prevent or reduce depopulation under the following conditions: (a) the beneficiaries have their economic activity in the area concerned;(b) the annual aid amount per beneficiary under all operating aid schemes does not exceed 20 % of the annual labour costs incurred by the beneficiary in the area concerned. 4.In outermost regions, the operating aid schemes shall compensate for the additional operating costs incurred in those regions as a direct result of one or several of the permanent handicaps referred to in Article 349 of the Treaty, where the beneficiaries have their economic activity in an outermost region provided that the annual aid amount per beneficiary under all operating aid schemes implemented under this Regulation does not exceed any of the following percentages: (a) 35 % of the gross value added annually created by the beneficiary in the outermost region concerned;(b) 40 % of the annual labour costs incurred by the beneficiary in the outermost region concerned;(c) 30 % of the annual turnover of the beneficiary realised in the outermost region concerned.;

Article 56a Article 56a Aid for regional airports 1.Investment aid to an airport shall be compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in paragraphs 3 to 14 of this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled. 2.Operating aid to an airport shall be compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in paragraphs 3, 4, 10 and 15 to 18 of this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled. 3.The airport shall be open to all potential users. In the case of physical limitation of capacity, the allocation shall take place on the basis of pertinent, objective, transparent and non-discriminatory criteria. 4.The aid shall not be granted for the relocation of existing airports or for the creation of a new passenger airport, including the conversion of an existing airfield into a passenger airport. 5.The investment concerned shall not exceed what is necessary to accommodate the medium-term expected traffic on the basis of reasonable traffic forecasts. 6.The investment aid shall not be granted to an airport located within 100 kilometres or 60 minutes travelling time by car, bus, train or high-speed train from an existing airport from which scheduled air services, within the meaning of Article 2(16) of Regulation (EC) No 1008/2008, are operated. 7.Paragraphs 5 and 6 shall not apply to airports with average annual passenger traffic of up to 200000 passengers during the two financial years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted if the investment aid is not expected to result in the airport increasing its average annual passenger traffic to above 200000 passengers within two financial years following the granting of the aid. Investment aid granted to such airports shall comply either with paragraph 11 or with paragraphs 13 and 14. 8.Paragraph 6 shall not apply where the investment aid is granted to an airport situated within 100 kilometres from existing airports from which scheduled air services, within the meaning of Article 2(16) of Regulation (EC) No 1008/2008, are operated, provided the route between each of these other existing airports and the airport receiving the aid necessarily involves either a total travelling time by maritime transportation of at least 90 minutes or air transportation. 9.The investment aid shall not be granted to airports with average annual passenger traffic of more than three million passengers during the two financial years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted. The investment aid shall not be expected to result in the airport increasing its average annual traffic to above three million passengers within two financial years following the granting of the aid. 10.The aid shall not be granted to airports with average annual freight traffic of more than 200000 tonnes during the two financial years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted. The aid shall not be expected to result in the airport increasing its average annual freight traffic to above 200000 tonnes within two financial years following the granting of the aid. 11.The investment aid amount shall not exceed the difference between the eligible costs and the operating profit of the investment. The operating profit shall be deducted from the eligible costs ex ante , on the basis of reasonable projections, or through a claw-back mechanism. 12.The eligible costs shall be the costs relating to the investments in airport infrastructure, including planning costs. 13.The investment aid amount shall not exceed: (a) 50 % of eligible costs for airports with an average annual passenger traffic of one to three million passengers during the two financial years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted;(b) 75 % of the eligible costs for airports with average annual passenger traffic of up to one million passengers during the two financial years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted. 14.The maximum aid intensities set out in paragraph 13 may be increased by 20 percentage points for airports located in remote regions. 15.Operating aid shall not be granted to airports with average annual passenger traffic of more than 200000 passengers during the two financial years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted. 16.The amount of operating aid shall not exceed what is necessary to cover the operating losses and a reasonable profit over the relevant period. The aid shall be granted either in the form of periodic instalments fixed ex ante , which shall not be increased during the period for which the aid is granted, or in the form of amounts defined ex post based on the observed operating losses. 17.Operating aid shall not be paid out in respect of any calendar year during which the annual passenger traffic of the airport exceeds 200000 passengers. 18.The granting of the operating aid shall not be made conditional upon the conclusion of arrangements with specific airlines relating to airport charges, marketing payments or other financial aspects of the airlines' operations at the airport concerned.

Article 56b Article 56b Aid for maritime ports 1.Aid for maritime ports shall be compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled. 2.The eligible costs shall be the costs, including planning costs, of: (a) investments for the construction, replacement or upgrade of port infrastructures;(b) investments for the construction, replacement or upgrade of access infrastructure;(c) dredging. 3.Costs relating to non-transport related activities, including industrial production facilities active in a port, offices or shops, as well as for port superstructures shall not be eligible costs. 4.The aid amount shall not exceed the difference between the eligible costs and the operating profit of the investment or dredging. The operating profit shall be deducted from the eligible costs ex ante , on the basis of reasonable projections, or through a claw-back mechanism. 5.The aid intensity per investment referred to in point (a) of paragraph 2 shall not exceed: (a) 100 % of the eligible costs where total eligible costs of the project are up to EUR 20 million;(b) 80 % of the eligible costs where total eligible costs of the project are above EUR 20 million and up to EUR 50 million;(c) 60 % of the eligible costs where total eligible costs of the project are above EUR 50 million and up to the amount laid down in point (ee) of Article 4(1). The aid intensity shall not exceed 100 % of the eligible costs determined in point (b) of paragraph 2 and point (c) of paragraph 2 up to the amount laid down in point (ee) of Article 4(1). 6.The aid intensities laid down in points (b) and (c) of the first subparagraph of paragraph 5 may be increased by 10 percentage points for investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of point (a) of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and by 5 percentage points for investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of point (c) of Article 107(3) of the Treaty. 7.Any concession or other entrustment to a third party to construct, upgrade, operate or rent aided port infrastructure shall be assigned on a competitive, transparent, non-discriminatory and unconditional basis. 8.The aided port infrastructure shall be made available to interested users on an equal and non-discriminatory basis on market terms. 9.For aid not exceeding EUR 5 million, the maximum amount of aid may be set at 80 % of eligible costs, as an alternative to application of the method referred to in paragraphs 4, 5 and 6.

Article 56c Article 56c Aid for inland ports 1.Aid for inland ports shall be compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled. 2.The eligible costs shall be the costs, including planning costs, of: (a) investments for the construction, replacement or upgrade of port infrastructures;(b) investments for the construction, replacement or upgrade of access infrastructure;(c) dredging. 3.Costs relating to non-transport related activities, including industrial production facilities active in a port, offices or shops, as well as for port superstructures shall not be eligible costs. 4.The aid amount shall not exceed the difference between the eligible costs and the operating profit of the investment or dredging. The operating profit shall be deducted from the eligible costs ex ante , on the basis of reasonable projections, or through a claw-back mechanism. 5.The maximum aid intensity shall not exceed 100 % of the eligible costs up to the amount laid down in point (ff) of Article 4(1). 6.Any concession or other entrustment to a third party to construct, upgrade, operate or rent aided port infrastructure shall be assigned on a competitive, transparent, non-discriminatory and unconditional basis. 7.The aided port infrastructure shall be made available to interested users on an equal and non-discriminatory basis on market terms. 8.For aid not exceeding EUR 2 million, the maximum amount of aid may be set at 80 % of eligible costs, as an alternative to application of the method referred to in paragraphs 4 and 5.;

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union .

OJ C 99, 4.4.2014, p. 3 .

See in particular section 3.5 of the Guidelines on State aid to airports and airlines.

COM(2011) 144.

COM(2013) 295.

Regulation (EU) No 1315/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 on Union guidelines for the development of the trans-European transport network and repealing Decision No 661/2010/EU (OJ L 348, 20.12.2013, p. 1 ).

Commission Regulation (EU) No 702/2014 of 25 June 2014 declaring certain categories of aid in the agricultural and forestry sectors and in rural areas compatible with the internal market in application of Articles 107 and 108 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (OJ L 193, 1.7.2014, p. 1 ).

Regulation (EU) No 1291/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 establishing Horizon 2020 — the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (2014–2020) and repealing Decision No 1982/2006/EC (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 104 ).

Regulation (EU) No 1379/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 on the common organisation of the markets in fishery and aquaculture products, amending Council Regulations (EC) No 1184/2006 and (EC) No 1224/2009 and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 104/2000 (OJ L 354, 28.12.2013, p. 1 ).

Council Decision 2010/787/EU of 10 December 2010 on State aid to facilitate the closure of uncompetitive coal mines (OJ L 336, 21.12.2010, p. 24 ).;

In order to enable the Commission to monitor the aid exempted from notification by this Regulation, Member States, or alternatively, in the case of aid granted to European Territorial Cooperation projects, the Member State in which the Managing Authority is located, shall maintain detailed records with the information and supporting documentation necessary to establish that all the conditions laid down in this Regulation are fulfilled. Such records shall be kept for 10 years from the date on which the ad hoc aid was granted or the last aid was granted under the scheme.

In the case of schemes under which fiscal aid is granted automatically, such as those based on tax declarations of the beneficiaries, and where there is no ex ante verification that all compatibility conditions are met for each beneficiary, Member States shall regularly verify, at least ex post and on a sample basis, that all compatibility conditions are met, and draw the necessary conclusions. Member States shall maintain detailed records of the verifications for at least 10 years from the date of the controls.

The Commission may request, from each Member State, all the information and supporting documentation which the Commission considers necessary to monitor the application of this Regulation, including the information mentioned in paragraphs 1 and 2. The Member State concerned shall provide the Commission with the requested information and supporting documents within a period of 20 working days from receipt of the request or such longer period as may be fixed in the request.;

Regulation (EC) No 1008/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 September 2008 on common rules for the operation of air services in the Community (OJ L 293, 31.10.2008, p. 3 ).

This Section shall not apply to:

(a) aid which favours activities in the steel sector, the coal sector, the shipbuilding sector or the synthetic fibres sector;

(b) aid to the transport sector as well as the related infrastructure, and aid for energy generation, distribution and infrastructure, except for regional investment aid in outermost regions and regional operating aid schemes;

(c) regional aid in the form of schemes which are targeted at a limited number of specific sectors of economic activity; schemes aimed at tourism activities, broadband infrastructures or processing and marketing of agricultural products are not considered to be targeted at specific sectors of economic activity;

(d) regional operating aid granted to undertakings whose principal activities fall under Section K Financial and insurance activities of the NACE Rev. 2 or to undertakings that perform intra-group activities whose principal activities fall under classes 70.10 Activities of head offices or 70.22 Business and other management consultancy activities of NACE Rev. 2.;

Council Directive 96/67/EC of 15 October 1996 on access to the groundhandling market at Community airports (OJ L 272, 25.10.1996, p. 36 ).

Directive 2000/59/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2000 on port reception facilities for ship-generated waste and cargo residues (OJ L 332, 28.12.2000, p. 81 ).;

Regional operating aid schemes in outermost regions, sparsely populated areas and very sparsely populated areas shall be compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.

In sparsely populated areas, the regional operating aid schemes shall compensate for the additional transport costs of goods which have been produced in areas eligible for operating aid, as well as additional transport costs of goods that are further processed in those areas, under the following conditions:

(a) the aid is objectively quantifiable in advance on the basis of a fixed sum or per tonne/kilometre ratio or any other relevant unit;

(b) the additional transport costs are calculated on the basis of the journey of the goods inside the national border of the Member State concerned using the means of transport which results in the lowest costs for the beneficiary.

The aid intensity shall not exceed 100 % of the additional transport costs as set out in this paragraph.

In very sparsely populated areas, the regional operating aid schemes shall prevent or reduce depopulation under the following conditions:

(a) the beneficiaries have their economic activity in the area concerned;

(b) the annual aid amount per beneficiary under all operating aid schemes does not exceed 20 % of the annual labour costs incurred by the beneficiary in the area concerned.

In outermost regions, the operating aid schemes shall compensate for the additional operating costs incurred in those regions as a direct result of one or several of the permanent handicaps referred to in Article 349 of the Treaty, where the beneficiaries have their economic activity in an outermost region provided that the annual aid amount per beneficiary under all operating aid schemes implemented under this Regulation does not exceed any of the following percentages:

(a) 35 % of the gross value added annually created by the beneficiary in the outermost region concerned;

(b) 40 % of the annual labour costs incurred by the beneficiary in the outermost region concerned;

Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 laying down common provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and laying down general provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and repealing Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 (OJ L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 320 ).;

Regulation (EU) No 508/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 on the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and repealing Council Regulations (EC) No 2328/2003, (EC) No 861/2006, (EC) No 1198/2006 and (EC) No 791/2007 and Regulation (EU) No 1255/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 149, 20.5.2014, p. 1 ).;

Investment aid to an airport shall be compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in paragraphs 3 to 14 of this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.

Operating aid to an airport shall be compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in paragraphs 3, 4, 10 and 15 to 18 of this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.

The airport shall be open to all potential users. In the case of physical limitation of capacity, the allocation shall take place on the basis of pertinent, objective, transparent and non-discriminatory criteria.

The aid shall not be granted for the relocation of existing airports or for the creation of a new passenger airport, including the conversion of an existing airfield into a passenger airport.

The investment concerned shall not exceed what is necessary to accommodate the medium-term expected traffic on the basis of reasonable traffic forecasts.

The investment aid shall not be granted to an airport located within 100 kilometres or 60 minutes travelling time by car, bus, train or high-speed train from an existing airport from which scheduled air services, within the meaning of Article 2(16) of Regulation (EC) No 1008/2008, are operated.

Paragraphs 5 and 6 shall not apply to airports with average annual passenger traffic of up to 200000 passengers during the two financial years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted if the investment aid is not expected to result in the airport increasing its average annual passenger traffic to above 200000 passengers within two financial years following the granting of the aid. Investment aid granted to such airports shall comply either with paragraph 11 or with paragraphs 13 and 14.

Paragraph 6 shall not apply where the investment aid is granted to an airport situated within 100 kilometres from existing airports from which scheduled air services, within the meaning of Article 2(16) of Regulation (EC) No 1008/2008, are operated, provided the route between each of these other existing airports and the airport receiving the aid necessarily involves either a total travelling time by maritime transportation of at least 90 minutes or air transportation.

The investment aid shall not be granted to airports with average annual passenger traffic of more than three million passengers during the two financial years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted. The investment aid shall not be expected to result in the airport increasing its average annual traffic to above three million passengers within two financial years following the granting of the aid.

The aid shall not be granted to airports with average annual freight traffic of more than 200000 tonnes during the two financial years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted. The aid shall not be expected to result in the airport increasing its average annual freight traffic to above 200000 tonnes within two financial years following the granting of the aid.

The investment aid amount shall not exceed the difference between the eligible costs and the operating profit of the investment. The operating profit shall be deducted from the eligible costs ex ante , on the basis of reasonable projections, or through a claw-back mechanism.

The eligible costs shall be the costs relating to the investments in airport infrastructure, including planning costs.

The investment aid amount shall not exceed:

(a) 50 % of eligible costs for airports with an average annual passenger traffic of one to three million passengers during the two financial years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted;

(b) 75 % of the eligible costs for airports with average annual passenger traffic of up to one million passengers during the two financial years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted.

The maximum aid intensities set out in paragraph 13 may be increased by 20 percentage points for airports located in remote regions.

Operating aid shall not be granted to airports with average annual passenger traffic of more than 200000 passengers during the two financial years preceding the year in which aid is actually granted.

The amount of operating aid shall not exceed what is necessary to cover the operating losses and a reasonable profit over the relevant period. The aid shall be granted either in the form of periodic instalments fixed ex ante , which shall not be increased during the period for which the aid is granted, or in the form of amounts defined ex post based on the observed operating losses.

Operating aid shall not be paid out in respect of any calendar year during which the annual passenger traffic of the airport exceeds 200000 passengers.

The granting of the operating aid shall not be made conditional upon the conclusion of arrangements with specific airlines relating to airport charges, marketing payments or other financial aspects of the airlines' operations at the airport concerned.

Aid for maritime ports shall be compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.

The eligible costs shall be the costs, including planning costs, of:

(a) investments for the construction, replacement or upgrade of port infrastructures;

(b) investments for the construction, replacement or upgrade of access infrastructure;

Costs relating to non-transport related activities, including industrial production facilities active in a port, offices or shops, as well as for port superstructures shall not be eligible costs.

The aid amount shall not exceed the difference between the eligible costs and the operating profit of the investment or dredging. The operating profit shall be deducted from the eligible costs ex ante , on the basis of reasonable projections, or through a claw-back mechanism.

The aid intensity per investment referred to in point (a) of paragraph 2 shall not exceed:

(a) 100 % of the eligible costs where total eligible costs of the project are up to EUR 20 million;

(b) 80 % of the eligible costs where total eligible costs of the project are above EUR 20 million and up to EUR 50 million;

(c) 60 % of the eligible costs where total eligible costs of the project are above EUR 50 million and up to the amount laid down in point (ee) of Article 4(1).

The aid intensity shall not exceed 100 % of the eligible costs determined in point (b) of paragraph 2 and point (c) of paragraph 2 up to the amount laid down in point (ee) of Article 4(1).

The aid intensities laid down in points (b) and (c) of the first subparagraph of paragraph 5 may be increased by 10 percentage points for investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of point (a) of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and by 5 percentage points for investments located in assisted areas fulfilling the conditions of point (c) of Article 107(3) of the Treaty.

Any concession or other entrustment to a third party to construct, upgrade, operate or rent aided port infrastructure shall be assigned on a competitive, transparent, non-discriminatory and unconditional basis.

The aided port infrastructure shall be made available to interested users on an equal and non-discriminatory basis on market terms.

For aid not exceeding EUR 5 million, the maximum amount of aid may be set at 80 % of eligible costs, as an alternative to application of the method referred to in paragraphs 4, 5 and 6.

Aid for inland ports shall be compatible with the internal market within the meaning of Article 107(3) of the Treaty and shall be exempted from the notification requirement of Article 108(3) of the Treaty, provided that the conditions laid down in this Article and in Chapter I are fulfilled.

The eligible costs shall be the costs, including planning costs, of:

(a) investments for the construction, replacement or upgrade of port infrastructures;

(b) investments for the construction, replacement or upgrade of access infrastructure;

Costs relating to non-transport related activities, including industrial production facilities active in a port, offices or shops, as well as for port superstructures shall not be eligible costs.

The maximum aid intensity shall not exceed 100 % of the eligible costs up to the amount laid down in point (ff) of Article 4(1).

The aided port infrastructure shall be made available to interested users on an equal and non-discriminatory basis on market terms.

For aid not exceeding EUR 2 million, the maximum amount of aid may be set at 80 % of eligible costs, as an alternative to application of the method referred to in paragraphs 4 and 5.;

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: