1999/705/EC: Commission Decision of 20 July 1999 on the state aid implemented by the Netherlands for 633 Dutch service stations located near the German border (notified under document number C(1999) 2539) (Text with EEA relevance) (Only the Dutch version is authentic)

Decision · 6 articles

Data as of 2026-07-04 · Compiled from an official source version. Later amendments or repeals may not be reflected; the official text prevails. · Read the official text ↗

Article 1

The aid which the Netherlands has implemented for 183 service stations located near the German border, amounting to EUR 100000 per service station, is covered by the de minimis rule and does not therefore constitute aid within the meaning of Article 87(1) of the EC Treaty. The service stations concerned are listed below. The numbers correspond to the list of applicants provided in the letter from the Dutch Government dated 7 April 1999. The list is annexed to this decision. (a) Dealer-owned/dealer-operated (Do/Do) service stations: 3, 4, 10, 14, 17, 19, 21, 23, 24, 29, 32, 33, 47, 51, 52, 53, 62, 65, 69, 70, 75, 80, 83, 85, 92, 93, 95, 118, 119, 128, 129, 137, 138, 148, 151, 157, 173, 177, 181, 188, 191, 194, 204, 209, 213, 223, 229, 231, 232, 235, 239, 243, 247, 253, 260, 261, 262, 264, 275, 277, 285, 289, 303, 306, 311, 316, 322, 324, 335, 342, 354, 370, 381, 391, 397, 398, 406, 415, 421, 424, 425, 426, 458, 466, 470, 472, 487, 518, 521, 524, 525, 528, 558, 570, 582, 594, 597, 607, 619, 627, 628, 636, 650, 652, 656, 657, 660 and 750. (b) Company-owned/dealer-operated (Co/Do) service stations: 15, 36, 43, 44, 48, 50, 67, 77, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 110, 132, 133, 139, 140, 141, 144, 146, 163, 186, 189, 192, 193, 197, 199, 215, 219, 251, 278, 290, 292, 294, 302, 304, 305, 312, 313, 317, 326, 330, 336, 338, 341, 343, 358, 361, 384, 388, 400, 413, 430, 437, 439, 445, 448, 453, 462, 482, 492, 493, 496, 537, 559, 562, 563, 574, 603, 622, 647, 756, 757 and 767.

Article 2

The aid which the Netherlands has implemented for 450 service stations located near the German border, amounting to more than EUR 100000 per recipient over a three-year period, is incompatible with the common market and with the functioning of the EEA Agreement. The service stations concerned are listed below. The numbers correspond to the list of applicants provided in the letter from the Dutch Government dated 7 April 1999. The list is annexed to this decision. (a) Service stations for which the Dutch authorities provided no information or insufficient information: "no information": 7, 11, 13, 46, 175, 201, 202, 222, 234, 249, 252, 258, 280, 291, 297, 298, 314, 323, 350, 364, 372, 373, 382, 393, 405, 407, 411, 416, 420, 476, 491, 510, 512, 531, 533, 535, 539, 551, 552, 553, 557, 568, 580, 588, 590, 599, 604, 610, 613, 620, 621, 625, 642, 644, 658, 663, 764, 765 and 766; "insufficient information": 2, 8, 9, 20, 27, 31, 41, 42, 59, 60, 61, 66, 68, 73, 76, 78, 82, 84, 94, 101, 102, 103, 105, 106, 107, 108, 115, 116, 120, 121, 122, 124, 126, 130, 131, 134, 145, 149, 152, 154, 156, 158, 162, 164, 167, 182, 183, 184, 187, 196, 200, 205, 210, 212, 214, 216, 220, 225, 226, 227, 233, 237, 238, 240, 245, 250, 257, 267, 269, 270, 282, 286, 288, 295, 300, 307, 309, 310, 321, 327, 328, 331, 334, 340, 345, 349, 351, 353, 365, 369, 374, 375, 376, 378, 379, 380, 385, 389, 394, 399, 401, 402, 404, 418, 423, 434, 444, 447, 449, 450, 451, 455, 456, 460, 467, 471, 477, 478, 480, 481, 489, 498, 499, 500, 501, 502, 503, 504, 505, 507, 508, 509, 511, 513, 515, 516, 517, 520, 522, 526, 529, 530, 532, 534, 538, 542, 543, 546, 549, 554, 555, 556, 565, 566, 567, 571, 577, 579, 581, 585, 589, 591, 596, 602, 605, 609, 611, 612, 615, 616, 617, 618, 623, 624, 626, 629, 632, 637, 638, 639, 641, 643, 645, 646, 649, 653, 659, 662, 665, 666 and 769. (b) Company-owned/company operated (Co/Co) service stations: "pure": 39, 147, 217, 218, 221, 276, 281, 287, 301, 319, 409, 414, 433, 457, 469, 486, 488, 541, 564, 575, 593, 614, 648, 655, 752, 760, 763 and 768; "de facto": 111, 112, 170, 174, 272, 273, 274, 333, 339, 347, 348, 359, 360, 362, 363, 395, 396, 432, 586, 587 and 754. (c) Dealer-owned/dealer-operated (Do/Do) service stations with a price management system (PMS): 1, 26, 34, 40, 54, 56, 63, 79, 81, 86, 97, 113, 114, 135, 142, 155, 159, 160, 165, 166, 168, 172, 176, 179, 185, 206, 207, 208, 224, 241, 242, 244, 259, 263, 283, 284, 299, 308, 318, 320, 329, 337, 344, 352, 357, 368, 377, 383, 417, 419, 422, 429, 438, 440, 442, 454, 459, 461, 463, 473, 474, 483, 485, 497, 514, 606, 640, 661, 751, 753 and 755. (d) Company-owned/dealer-operated (Co/Do) service stations with a price management system (PMS): 5, 6, 12, 16, 18, 22, 25, 28, 30, 35, 37, 38, 45, 49, 55, 58, 64, 71, 72, 74, 96, 99, 100, 104, 117, 123, 125, 127, 136, 143, 150, 153, 161, 169, 171, 178, 180, 190, 195, 198, 203, 211, 228, 230, 236, 246, 248, 254, 255, 265, 266, 268, 271, 279, 296, 315, 325, 332, 355, 367, 371, 387, 427, 428, 436, 441, 443, 446, 452, 464, 484, 494, 506, 519, 523, 536, 578, 584, 608 and 762. The actual recipients in categories (c) and (d) are the oil companies with which these service stations concluded exclusive purchasing agreements. The annexed list indicates the oil company concerned in each individual case.

Article 3

1. The Netherlands shall take all necessary measures to recover from the recipients the aid referred to in Article 2 and unlawfully made available to them. 2. Recovery shall be effected in accordance with the procedures of national law. The aid to be recovered shall include interest from the date on which it was made available to the recipients until the date of its recovery. Interest shall be calculated on the basis of the reference rate used for calculating the grant equivalent of regional aid.

Article 4

The Netherlands shall inform the Commission, within two months of notification of this Decision, of the measures taken to comply with it.

Article 5

This Decision is addressed to the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Done at Brussels, 20 July 1999. For the Commission Monika WULF-MATHIES Member of the Commission (1) OJ C 307, 7.10.1998, p. 10. (2) OJ C 307, 7.10.1998, p.10. (3) See point 18. (4) According to the legal basis amended by ministerial decree of 15 December 1997, Dutch Official Gazette (Staatscourant) No 241. The original notice stated that service stations located within 10 kilometres of the border would receive NLG 80 (EUR 36) per 1000 litres of light oil supplied and those located between 10 and 20 kilometres from the border would receive NLG 40 (EUR 18) per 1000 litres of light oil supplied. The original decree did not provide for the amount of the aid to be doubled. (5) Article 5 of the temporary aid scheme for service stations near the German border of 21 July 1997, amended by ministerial decree of 15 December 1997. (6) In accordance with the irrevocably fixed exchange rate between the euro and the currencies of the Member States, which entered into force on 1 January 1999. (7) The notification by the Dutch authorities does not tally with the temporary aid scheme for service stations near the German border. Point 6 of the notification states that the subsidy for the total maximum duration of the aid measure (until 30 June 2000) amounts to EUR 100000 per service station, whereas Article 4 of the temporary aid scheme, as published in Dutch Official Gazette (Staatscourant) No 138 of 23 July 1997, states that the subsidy per applicant may not exceed the NLG equivalent of EUR 100000 for the period from 1 July 1997 to 30 June 2000. (8) Commission Regulation (EEC) No 1984/83 of 22 June 1983 on the application of Article 85(3) of the Treaty to categories of exclusive purchasing agreements (OJ L 173, 30.6.1983, p. 5). (9) Agreements between the Ministry of Finance and Senter on implementing the temporary aid scheme for service stations near the German border of 17 June 1998 (ref. ZTD850161.MIM). (10) The Dutch authorities originally notified aid for 624 service stations. However, the list of recipients provided by the Dutch authorities comprised 633 service stations. This decision therefore concerns 633 and not 624 service stations. (11) See point 19. (12) See footnote 9. (13) See footnote 4. (14) See footnote 7. (15) See point 30. (16) See points 83 to 86. (17) See footnote 4. (18) The numbering is the same as that indicated by the Dutch Government. (19) OJ C 68, 6.3.1996, p. 9. (20) See footnote 19. (21) See point 21. (22) See point 39. (23) The Commission does not take the view (Press release IP/86/631 of 19 December 1986) that a discount scheme operated to support the margins of dealers that have to reduce their pump prices in order to compete on their local market involves indirect resale price maintenance. (24) See points 84 and 85.

Supplementary provisions

ANNEXSupplementary provisions

List of applicants under the temporary aid scheme for service stations near the German border. The numbers tally with the list of applicants given in the letter from the Dutch Government dated 7 April 1999 >TABLE>

Source: EUR-Lex (Publications Office of the EU), © European Union, reuse permitted under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.

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