The Gozo Business Chamber has welcomed the introduction of the new EU Commission ‘De Minimis’ Regulation, which has increased the threshold for ‘De Minimis’ aid from € 200,000 to € 300,000 over a period of three years.

The Chamber explained that ‘De Minimis’ Aid refers to small amounts of aid to companies in the EU within a predetermined threshold which do not count as State Aid, and are therefore exempt from being notified to the European Commission.

It also noted with satisfaction the increase in the threshold for De Minimis Aid for Services of General Economic Interest from € 500,000 to € 750,000.

Services of General Economic Interest are those services which are intended to promote social and territorial cohesion within the European Union.

During the INSULEUR (the Network of Insular Chambers of Commerce and Industry of the European Union) General Assembly held on Gozo in October 2019, the Chamber said it had put forward a proposal for revisions to the ‘De Minimis’ State Aid Framework to better target islands’ needs.

The Chamber went on to say that it has “contributed consistently throughout these discussions, both at a national level, and at an EU level through INSULEUR, where it has advocated consistently for an increased threshold to better assist businesses on islands.”

“This is because though aid is given under this framework to better target the difficulties faced by enterprises on islands, such as for example in the area of transport, this eventually precludes them from applying for other forms of aid given at a national level under this framework,” the Chamber said.

Consequently, the Chamber added, “it is more difficult for enterprises on islands such as Gozo to reach the level of competitiveness of other enterprises based on the main land or on the main island, such as in the case of the Maltese archipelago.

In its representation INSULEUR had called for an increased threshold for ‘De Minimis’ aid, and for an increased flexibility when it comes to island territories.

The Chamber said that though the new revised ‘De Minimis’ framework does not specifically tackle islands, the increased threshold increases the possibility for assistance to be provided to enterprises based on islands.

It also includes in the preamble, a reference to the limited effect of enterprises based in island regions on cross border trade, and therefore calls for such considerations to be made when considering whether a measure is distorting competition, the Gozo Business Chamber concluded.

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