31.7.2010   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 209/24

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declare that, by not taking within the prescribed period all the measures necessary to abolish the State aid scheme found to be unlawful and incompatible with the common market by Commission Decision 2008/854/EC of 2 July 2008 on a State aid scheme (C 1/04 (ex NN 158/03 and CP 15/2003)): Misuse of aid measure N 272/98, Regional Act No 9 of 1998, (notified on 4 July 2008 under No C(2008) 2997 and published in OJ L 302 of 13.11.2008, p. 9), the Italian Republic has failed to fulfil its obligations under Articles 2, 3 and 4 of that decision and under the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union;

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order the Italian Republic to pay the costs.

1.

Decision 2008/854 declares to be incompatible with the common market the aid scheme which results from Ruling No 33/6 of 27 July 2000 of the Sardinian Regional Council, applied in conjunction with Article 2 of Regional Law No 9 of 11 March 1998, because it enables aid to be granted which has no incentive effect. In consequence, the Commission ordered recovery of the aid granted under that scheme (see Articles 2, 3 and 4).

2.

However, it emerges from the voluminous correspondence between the Italian authorities and the Commission, following notification of Decision 2008/854, that at a point almost 2 years on from the adoption of that decision, the Italian authorities still have to recover the unlawful and incompatible aid granted under that scheme, together with interest. Manifestly, therefore, the national procedures which have been followed have not been such as to enable ‘immediate and effective’ recovery and, accordingly, Italy has failed to meet its obligations under Articles 2 and 3 of Decision 2008/854.

3.

It also emerges that none of the information requested was provided by the Italian authorities by the deadline set in Article 4(1) of Decision 2008/854. The inescapable conclusion is that Italy has not complied with Article 4 of the decision.