IP/08/92
Brussels, 25 January 2008
State aid: Commission approves regional tax credit scheme for new investments in the Mezzogiorno of Italy The European Commission has authorised, under EC Treaty state aid rules, the single most important Italian regional aid scheme. The scheme, which foresees aid in the form of automatic tax credits, supports initial investments in the assisted regions of South of Italy. Investment projects for which expenses are incurred after 1 January 2007 and before 31st December 2013 will be eligible for aid under the scheme, for which the estimated budget amounts to €4.5 billion for the whole period 2007-2013. The Commission found the scheme to be compatible with the Single Market, as it meets the requirements of the applicable 2007 Regional Aid Guidelines (see IP/05/1653). Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes commented: "I am pleased that it was possible for the Commission to authorise this important Italian regional aid scheme, which supports regional development in the Mezzogiorno of Italy".
The automatic fiscal support to investments is the single most important regional aid scheme for assisted areas in the South of Italy. The scheme supports initial investment projects in all sectors, except the credit, finance and insurance sectors.
Today's Commission decision will apply to investment expenditure incurred from 1 January 2007 and to 31 December 2013, in line with the validity of the Italian Regional Aid Map 2007-2013 (see IP/07/1779) which was approved by the Commission on 28 November 2007 and entered into force as from 1 January 2007.
The taxpayer, on the basis of this aid scheme, will be entitled to the tax credit for new investment projects resulting in the setting-up of a new establishment, the extension of an existing establishment, the diversification of the output of an establishment into new, additional products or a fundamental change in the overall production process of an existing establishment.
The amount of the tax credit will be established by the taxpayer himself by applying the regional aid ceiling provided in the Italian regional aid map to the amount of the eligible costs carried out in each fiscal year. However, only investment projects for which expenses are incurred after 1 January 2007 will be eligible for aid under the scheme.
The scheme should significantly contribute to the regional development of the South of Italy.
The non-confidential version of the decision will be made available under the case number N 39/ 2007 in the State aid Register on the DG Competition website once any confidentiality issues have been resolved. New publications of state aid decisions on the internet and in the Official Journal are listed in the State Aid Weekly e-News.
