2000/194/EC: Commission Decision of 14 July 1999 on aid granted by Germany to Weida Leder GmbH (Weida), Thuringia (notified under document number C(1999) 3441) (Text with EEA relevance) (Only the German text is authentic)

• Articles: 4

Article 1

The aid which Germany has granted to Weida Leder GmbH, amounting to DEM 23,8 million, and to Abwasserreinigungsanlage Schlossmühlenweg Weida GmbH, amounting to DEM 6,05 million, is incompatible with the common market pursuant to Article 87(1) of the EC Treaty.

Article 2

1. Germany shall take all the necessary measures to recover from the recipients the aid referred to in Article 1 and unlawfully made available to the recipients.

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 3

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

Article 4

This Decision is addressed to the Federal Republic of Germany.

Done at Brussels, 14 July 1999.

For the Commission

Mario MONTI

Member of the Commission

(1) OJ C 256, 14.8.1998, p. 7.

(2) See footnote 1.

(3) Commission Decision 94/266/EC, OJ L 114, 5.5.1994, p. 21.

(4) By its Decision of 7 April 1998 (NN 142/97; letter SG(98) D/4313 of 2 June 1998), the Commission approved the prolongation of the said aid scheme for the years 1997 to 2001; however, because of considerable doubt concerning the compatibility of how this aid scheme was being implemented, the Commission on 4 December 1998 initiated the procedure laid down in Article 88(2) of the EC Treaty; Commission Decision C 69/98; Commission letter SG(98) D/11285 of 4 December 1998.

(5) OJ C 368, 23.12.1994, p. 12.

(6) See Panorama of EU industry 1997, 4-25.

(7) Commission Decision E 15/92; this provides solely for guarantees and loans.

(8) See the Commission notice concerning Iritecna (OJ C 328, 25.11.1994, p. 2), the Commission Decision of 27 July 1994 concerning Air France/CDC-P (OJ L 258, 6.10.1994, p. 26), the judgment of the Court of Justice in Joined Cases C-278/92, C-279/92 and C-280/92 Spain v Commission, [1994] ECR I-4103 (paragraph 67), and Article 6, point 6.1(b) of the GATT Subsidies Agreement (OJ L 336, 23.12.1994, p. 156).

(9) Case C-47/91 Italian Republic v Commission [1994] ECR I-4635 and Case C-301/87 French Republic v Commission [1990] ECR I-0307 confirmed by Joined Cases C-324/90 and C-342/90 Federal Republic of Germany and Pleuger Worthington v Commission [1994] ECR I-1173.