EU to clear EUR9 bln aid to Posta Italiana, EUR13 mln to Irish Post Office

European Commissioners are to clear Italian aid of nearly 9 bln eur to Posta Italiana this afternoon, as well as 13 mln eur to the Irish post office, competition spokesman Michael Tscherny said.

The decisions are expected to be taken without debate, he said.

The commission had been investigating the aid granted by the Italian state between 1994 and 1999.

However, the recommendation from the commission’s competition services to the commissioners is that the money was granted to the Italian post office only to cover the costs of fulfilling its public service duties and was not an “overcompensation,” Tscherny said.

The decision follows a recent ruling by the European Court of Justice that compensation paid by the state to a public service operator is not to be considered as state aid as long as i t not used to for operations beyond its public service obligations, he said.

The ruling will mean “less bureaucracy” as in future such aid will not have to be notified to the commission, Tscherny said.

The ruling overturns an earlier court judgment of 2000 that such aid did have to be notified, he said.

In a similar, but smaller, case, the commissioners will also clear a 13 mln eur capital injection to the Irish post office, since it was made to enable the operator fulfil its public service obligations and maintain a country-wide network of post office counters, Tscherny said.