European Commission approves €106 million to support completion of LNG terminal in Alexandroupolis
The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, a €106 million Greek measure to support the completion of the construction of the Liquefied Natural Gas (‘LNG‘) Terminal in Alexandroupolis. This measure will complement the Greek public support that was approved by the Commission in June 2021 (SA.55526).
The Greek authorities notified the Commission of its plans to grant additional aid to Gastrade SA, the promoter and operator of the new terminal. The measure is aimed at enabling the beneficiary to complete the construction of the terminal as planned by end-2023. The aid will take the form of a direct grant.
The Commission assessed the measure under EU State aid rules, in particular Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU, which allows Member States to support the development of certain economic activities under certain conditions, and the 2022 Guidelines on State aid for climate, environmental protection and energy (‘CEEAG’). The Commission found that the measure is necessary and appropriate to enable to beneficiary to continue with the project as planned. When approving the initial public support, the Commission had already considered that the project is needed to secure gas supply for Greece and the South-Eastern Europe region and that it will contribute to the REPowerEU strategic objective to achieve diversification of energy supplies and end dependence on Russian fossil fuels. The Commission concluded that the positive effects of the measure outweigh any possible negative effects on competition and trade in the EU. On this basis, the Commission approved the Greek measure under EU State aid rules.
The non-confidential version of the decision will be made available under the number SA.105781 in the State aid register on the Commission’s competition website once any confidentiality issues have been resolved.
