Since the beginning of the pandemic, the Commission has adopted support measures under the state aid Temporary Framework and EU state aid rules. These measures aim to help citizens and companies and mitigate the significant economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic:
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on 22 July 2021, the Commission approved, under EU state aid rules, a €9 million measure to compensate Air Nostrum airline for damages incurred due to the coronavirus outbreak. The support, in the form of a direct grant, represents part of Air Nostrum’s overall net losses between 29 March and 23 May 2020 due of the travel restrictions adopted to limit the spread of the coronavirus. The scheme aims to support the airline, which plays an important role in Spain's international and local connectivity.
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on 19 July 2021, the Commission approved, under EU state aid rules, plans to set up a €1 billion recapitalisation fund to invest through debt and equity instruments in certain companies affected by the coronavirus outbreak. The measure is open to companies established in Spain and active in all sectors except the financial one, with total net yearly revenues of minimum €15 million and up to €400 million on a consolidated basis, and that are now facing capital needs due to the coronavirus outbreak.
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on 22 February 2021, the Commission found the modification of an existing Spanish ‘umbrella’ scheme previously approved in April 2020 to support the economy in the context of the coronavirus outbreak to be in line with the state aid Temporary Framework. The modification allows for limited amounts of aid through financial intermediaries and introduces a new measure to support the uncovered, fixed costs of companies affected by the outbreak. The public support, in the form of direct grants, tax and payment advantages, repayable advances, guarantees, loans and equity is accessible to companies of all sizes active in all sectors excluding the financial one. Its objective is to provide liquidity to companies experiencing a decline in turnover of at because of the coronavirus outbreak.
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on 14 December, the Commission found the modification of a Spanish ‘umbrella' scheme to support economy in coronavirus outbreak to be in line with the Temporary Framework. The existing scheme, providing guarantees on loans to companies and the self-employed affected by the coronavirus outbreak, was approved by the Commission on 2 April 2020. Spain notified modifications that allow final beneficiaries to request some changes to the terms of existing guaranteed loans granted under already authorised schemes: an extension of the initial period for an additional 12 months, and an extension of maturity by a maximum of three years, up to a total of eight years. The aim of the modifications is to ease financing conditions for the final beneficiaries to better address the protracted duration of the crisis.
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on 7 December, the Commission approved, under EU state aid rules, a €500 million Spanish reinsurance scheme to support the trade credit insurance market in the context of the coronavirus outbreak. The scheme aims to make trade credit insurance available to all companies, avoiding the need for buyers of goods or services to pay in advance, therefore reducing their immediate liquidity needs. The scheme was designed to supplement private reinsurance, operators having the possibility to choose a coverage of public re-insurance guarantee of up to 60%.
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on 23 November, the Commission approved, under EU State Aid rules, a €2.55 billion Spanish scheme to compensate self-employed people and companies for damages suffered due to coronavirus outbreak. The compensation will take the form of public guarantees for repayable new loans granted by supervised financial institutions, and new notes issued on the Alternative Fixed-Income Market. Under the scheme, around 15,000 self-employed are to be compensated for damages incurred between 14 March and 20 June 2020 (the period when the Spanish government implemented restrictive measures to limit the spread of the virus).
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on 6 August, under EU State aid rules and in particular the Temporary Framework, the Commission approved amendments to two previously-approved Spanish guarantee schemes. The existing schemes with a total budget of €20 billion, providing guarantees on loans to companies and the self-employed, were approved on 24 March. The amendments to these schemes increase the budgetary allocation by €40 billion, which will be released in different tranches.
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on 31 July 2020 Spanish plans to set up a Solvency Support Fund with a budget of €10 billion that will invest in companies affected by the coronavirus outbreak. The fund, established through the State budget, will provide debt and capital support to strategic enterprises active in Spain in the form of debt and recapitalisation instruments.
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on 24 April 2020, the second Spanish “umbrella” scheme to support the Spanish economy in the context of the coronavirus outbreak. The Spanish umbrella scheme allows for the provision of aid in light of the amendments to the Temporary Framework approved by the Commission on 3 April 2020. More specifically, under this second “umbrella” scheme, public support can be granted in the form of (i) aid for coronavirus relevant research and development, including Seal of Excellence projects relating to coronavirus selected under Horizon 2020; (ii) investment aid for testing and upscaling infrastructures; (iii) investment aid for the production of coronavirus relevant products; (iv) aid in the form of deferrals of tax and/or of social security contributions; and (v) aid in the form of wage subsidies for employees to avoid lay-offs during the coronavirus outbreak.
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on 24 March 2020, two Spanish guarantee schemes for companies and self-employed workers affected by the coronavirus outbreak. The schemes are for new loans and refinancing operations for: (i) self-employed workers and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs); and (ii) larger companies, with the objective to ensure that these companies have liquidity to help them safeguard jobs and continue their activities.
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on 2 April 2020, a Spanish aid scheme to support the Spanish economy in the context of the coronavirus outbreak. This new “umbrella” scheme consists of a National Temporary Framework for State aid, based on which Spanish national, regional, and local authorities will be able to grant aid providing liquidity support to self-employed, SMEs and large companies in the form of direct grants, repayable advances, tax and payment advantages, guarantees on loans and subsidised interest rates for loans. The scheme will help businesses to cover immediate working capital or investment needs.