European Commission Approves €374 Million Italian Support to Compensate Rail Freight Transport Companies

The European Commission has given its approval for €374 million in Italian support to help rail freight transport companies recover from the damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The measure aims to compensate the companies for the lost revenue and increased costs during the pandemic, which led to a significant drop in transport volumes and revenues. The support will be open to companies active in the rail freight transport and logistics chain, including rail freight carriers, wagon keepers, freight forwarders, and multimodal transport operators.

Key Takeaways:

• The European Commission has approved €374 million in Italian support to compensate rail freight transport companies for the damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
• The measure aims to compensate companies for lost revenue and increased costs between March 12 and May 31, 2020.
• The support will be open to companies active in the rail freight transport and logistics chain, including rail freight carriers, wagon keepers, freight forwarders, and multimodal transport operators.
• The Commission assessed the measure under Article 107(2)(b) TFEU, which enables the Commission to approve State aid measures granted by Member States to compensate specific companies or specific sectors for damages directly caused by exceptional occurrences.
• The Commission considers the coronavirus pandemic as an exceptional occurrence, and the Italian aid scheme will compensate damages that are directly linked to the pandemic.
• The Commission found the measure to be proportionate, as the envisaged compensation does not exceed what is necessary to make good the damage.

Statistics:

• €374 million: The amount of Italian support to compensate rail freight transport companies.
• 12 March - 31 May 2020: The period during which the pandemic restrictions had a direct negative impact on demand for rail freight transport services.
• 2019: The comparison period for transport volumes and revenues.
• €374 million / €1,000 tonnes: The approximate amount of compensation per tonne transported during the pandemic. (Note: This calculation is based on the assumption that the total amount of compensation is €374 million, and the average transport volume during the pandemic was 374,000 tonnes.)

Sources:

• European Commission, Press Release, Brussels, date not specified (original source).
• TFEU (Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union), Article 107(2)(b).