2000/17/EC: Commission Decision of 30 March 1999 on the aid for the project 'Process Integrated Gas Turbine at the Nerefco refinery' which the Netherlands is planning to implement in favour of Nerefco (notified under document number C(1999) 904) (Text with EEA relevance) (Only the Dutch text is authentic)

• Articles: 2

Article 1

The State aid which the Netherlands is proposing to grant to the Nerefco project, in respect of a process-integrated gas turbine, amounting to NLG 15 million, subsequently reduced to NLG 13,91 million, is, pursuant to Article 92(3)(c) of the EC Treaty and Article 61 (3)(c) of the EEA Agreement, compatible with the common market up to a maximum of NLG 11,31 million. The part of the proposed aid that is in excess of NLG 11,31 million is incompatible with the common market and may not be granted.

The granting of this aid measure to an amount of NLG 11,31 million is therefore authorised.

Article 2

This Decision is addressed to the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Done at Brussels, 30 March 1999.

For the Commission

Karel VAN MIERT

Member of the Commission

(1) OJ C 334, 31.10.1998, p. 3.

(2) OJ C 334, 31.10.1998, p. 3.

(3) Parts of this text have been edited to ensure that confidential information is not disclosed; those parts are enclosed in square brackets and marked with an asterisk.

(4) OJ C 72, 10.3.1994, p. 3.

(5) COM(97) 481 final: "Communication from the Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions - Climate Change - The EU Approach for Kyoto"; SEC(1998) 615: Energy policy options for responding to the climate change challenge: towards the definition of a "post-Kyoto energy policy strategy".

(6) To determine the replacement cost, 40 % (the replacement ratio, i.e. the heating capacity of the crude oil of the new installation related to the capacity of the old installation) of the costs of replacement (NLG 15 million) of the capacity of the old installation by a conventional one has been taken into account. Furthermore, 40 % of the extra maintenance costs of the old installation has been taken into account by taking the discount value of the annual amount of the real maintenance costs (NLG 0,56 million) over a period of 15 years with a reference rate of 5,5 % resulting in an amount up to NLG 2,2 million. The Commission considers the latter correction here appropriate, since the old equipment must be maintained as a back-up, partly because of the experimental nature of the integrated gas turbine, resulting in extra maintenance costs. Therefore, the total replacement costs of the ovens can be determined up to NLG 3,8 million (around EUR 1,7 million). The replacement costs of the steam capacity (corresponding with 10 % of the steam production) by a conventional steam unit are NLG 5 million (around EUR 2,26 million). Therefore, total replacement costs are NLG 8,8 million (around EUR 3,9 million).

(7) COM(97) 514 final, Communication of the Commission of 15 October 1997, "A Community strategy to promote combined heat and power (CHP) and to dismantle barriers to its development".

(8) OJ C 72, 10.3.1994, p. 3.