Covid-19: EC approves 30M leva Bulgarian state aid scheme
The European Commission said on December 1 that it has approved a Bulgarian state aid scheme, worth 30 million leva or about 15.3 million euro, targeting micro, small and medium-sized coach companies affected by the coronavirus outbreak.
The aim of the measure is to mitigate the sudden liquidity shortages that bus transportation companies are facing given the extent of the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on their operations, the EC said.
It was approved under the EU’s state aid temporary framework, which the bloc put in place after the start of the pandemic to make it easier for member states to counter the economic impact of Covid-19, with the Commission concluding that the measure was “necessary, appropriate and proportionate.”
The assistance would take the form of direct grants that would partially cover the operating costs of the transport of passengers by coach or bus starting February 1 2020 and until six months after the signing of the grant agreement between Bulgaria’s Transport Ministry and the grant recipient.
One of the Commission’s conditions for approving the scheme is that the money is granted no later than June 30 2021. The grants will range from 3000 leva to 450 000 leva.
(Photo: Michal Zacharzewski/sxc.hu)
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