Press Release: State aid: Commission endorses Italian reduced interest rate loan scheme to boost real economy

The European Commission authorised under EC Treaty state aid rules an Italian scheme aimed at firms that encounter financial difficulties as a result of the credit squeeze in the current economic crisis. The measure allows national, regional and local authorities to grant aid in the form of reduced interest rates on loans concluded by 31 December 2010. The scheme meets the conditions of the Commission’s Temporary Framework for state aid measures, which gives Member States additional scope to facilitate access to financing in the present economic and financial crisis. In particular, it is limited in time and only applies to companies that were not in difficulties before 1 July 2008. The scheme is therefore compatible with Article 87(3)(b) of the EC Treaty, which permits aid to remedy a serious disturbance in the economy of a Member State.