Brussels, 10 March 2023
The European Commission has approved amendments to two existing Hungarian schemes, including an overall €6.18 billion (HUF 2.33 trillion) budget increase, to support companies in the context of Russia’s war against Ukraine. The amendments were approved under the State aid Temporary Crisis Framework, adopted by the Commission on 23 March 2022, amended on 20 July 2022 and on 28 October 2022 and further amended and in part prolonged on 9 March 2023 with the adoption of the new Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework.
The Commission approved the original schemes on 20 June 2022 (SA.103089) and 26 October 2022 (SA.104515), and their amendments on 31 August 2022 (SA.104009) and 9 December 2022 (SA.104850). For the first scheme (SA.103089), Hungary notified, among others, the following modifications: (i) an overall budget increase by €2.18 billion (HUF 822 billion); (ii) the appointment of four additional granting authorities; and (iii) a new national legal basis for granting the aid. For the second scheme (SA.104515), Hungary notified the Commission of its intention to increase the budget for the loans with subsidised interest rates measure by €4 billion (HUF 1.51 trillion).
The Commission concluded that the amended schemes remain necessary, appropriate and proportionate to remedy a serious disturbance in the economy of a Member State, in line with Article 107(3)(b) TFEU and the conditions set out in the Temporary Crisis Framework. On this basis, the Commission approved the amendments to the existing schemes under EU State aid rules.
More information on the Temporary Crisis Framework and other actions taken by the Commission to address the economic impact of Russia’s war against Ukraine can be found here. The non-confidential version of the decision will be made available under the number SA.106542 in the State aid register on the Commission’s competition website once any confidentiality issues have been resolved.
Source – EU Commission