On 26 May 2010, the European Commission approved the public financing of the restructuring of SNCB’s freight activities.
In December 2009, the Belgian authorities notified the European Commission about a project to restructure SNCB’s freight operations which are part of SNCB Logistics.
The Belgian State, which is the key shareholder of the SNCB Group, announced a series of industrial and commercial restructuring measures that it will support financially. The aim is to improve the quality of customers’ services and the productivity of freight operations. It will also encourage their development of a network of international routes and boost commercial development.
The financial support, which was not set out by the European Commission, will fund the additional costs of employing permanent staff and cover past losses.
The European Commission examined the aid in regard to the Community Guidelines on State Aid for railway undertakings, adopted in 2008. The Guidelines set out the conditions under which the freight division of a railway company may receive restructuring aid.
On this basis, the European Commission concluded, on 26 May 2010, that the restructuring plan will enable SNCB’s freight operations to become viable once more under the new subsidiary which will be created to separate the freight division from the other operations of the group.
In order to authorize the aid, the Commission imposed compensatory measures, including a substantial reduction of the new subsidiary’s capacity. The Belgian authorities will have to report regularly to the Commission on the implementation of their commitments.
