*available also in Slovenian below

Government provides non-reimbursable grants for businesses to cope with extremely large increases in energy prices

On 10 September 2022, the Law determining the aid to the economy due to high electricity and natural gas prices¹ (“ZPGVCEP”) entered into force. The state will provide non-reimbursable grants to businesses to co-finance the cost of electricity and natural gas. By an amendment of ZPGVCEP enacted on 6 October 2022, the state aid has been further increased.

The measure is temporary (valid until the end of 2022) and is adopted on the basis of the Communication from the Commission Temporary Crisis Framework for State Aid Measures to support the economy following the attack of Ukraine by Russia (“Temporary Crisis Framework“). On 6 October 2022, the National Assembly approved an amendment to ZPGVCEP which has broadened the scope of the state aid and increased it from the original EUR 40 million to EUR 80 million (the “Amendment“)².

In this Client Alert, we provide an overview of the ZPGVCEP with key information on the beneficiaries, the types and the amount of aid as well as the procedural steps necessary for obtaining the aid, including the changes introduced by the Amendment.

Beneficiaries

Beneficiaries are legal or natural persons carrying out an economic activity in the Republic of Slovenia who were registered as companies, sole traders, cooperatives, economic interest groupings, chambers of commerce, representative trade unions, associations or institutions up to and including 30 November 2021. The ZPGVCEP does not mention branch offices of foreign companies (“podružnice“) which are registered in Slovenia. In our view, also branch offices of companies established in an EU Member State should be eligible for the state aid, as the law would otherwise discriminate branch offices from EU Member States. Also, for the purposes of state aid rules, a business is any entity engaged in an economic activity regardless of its status and the manner in which it is financed.³

Businesses are not eligible for aid if:

• bankruptcy proceedings or liquidation proceedings have been initiated against them at the date of submission of the application for aid;
• they have outstanding tax liabilities and unreported and unpaid withholding tax returns for employment expenses for the last year amounting to EUR 1,000 or more;
• they are eligible for a regulated price for natural gas or electricity under other regulations⁴ (in which case they are not eligible for aid for the period from 1 September 2022);
• they have increased the price of their products or services by more than 10 % as a result of increases in electricity and natural gas prices (see our comment in point 4 below);
• they are subject to sanctions adopted by the European Union as a result of Russia’s attack against Ukraine; or
• they are financial institutions or insurance companies.

Eligible period and eligible costs

Companies are eligible to receive co-financing for costs incurred during the period from 1 June 2022 to 31 December 2022 (eligible period) which exceed twice the increase in prices of electricity and natural gas compared to 2021 (eligible costs).

Types of aid and amount of the aid

The ZPGVCEP provides for three types of aid to the economy:

A. Simple aid:

This type of aid is (as set out in Section 2.1 of the Temporary Crisis Framework) intended for companies affected by the Russian attack against Ukraine and/or the sanctions imposed or retaliatory countermeasures taken in response.

Simple aid will be granted in the form of a non-reimbursable grant. It may amount to a maximum of EUR 500,000 per beneficiary during the eligible period, together with other aid received under Section 2.1 of the Temporary Crisis Framework.

The amount of simple aid per month during the eligible period amounts to 50% of the eligible costs in a given month.

B. Specific aid:

Specific aid as set out in point 52 of Section 2.4 of the Temporary Crisis Framework enables companies to receive partial compensation for additional costs resulting from exceptional increases in the prices of natural gas and electricity.

Specific aid will also take the form of non-reimbursable grants. It may amount to a maximum of EUR 2 million per beneficiary during the eligible period, together with other aid received under Section 2.1 and point 52 of Section 2.4 of the Temporary Crisis Framework.

C. Aid for ‘energy-intensive businesses’:

Aid for energy-intensive businesses (as set out in point 53 of Section 2.4 of the Temporary Crisis Framework) is granted in the form of non-reimbursable grants to energy-intensive undertakings⁵, i.e. undertakings whose annual cost of energy and electricity purchased or produced in the course of their activity amounts to at least 3% of the annual production value⁶. An applicant’s status as an energy-intensive undertaking is proven by means of a decision or another form of proof from the tax authority entitling it to a refund of excise duty paid by it or to an exemption from excise duty. The decision or proof must be attached to the application for aid.

The amount of aid per beneficiary may not exceed 50% of eligible costs and may not exceed 80% of the undertaking’s operating losses. It is limited to EUR 2 million. The total amount of aid per beneficiary, taken together with other aid received under Section 2.1 and point 53 of Section 2.4 of the Temporary Crisis Framework, may not exceed EUR 25 million. The amount of aid per beneficiary may be increased to a maximum of 70% of the eligible costs and may amount to a maximum of 80% of the operating losses and may not exceed EUR 2 million and, taken together with other aid received under Section 2.1 and point 53 of Section 2.4 of the Temporary Crisis Framework, may not exceed EUR 50 million per undertaking, if the beneficiary is active in one of the specifically defined sectors (such as, the manufacture of leather clothes, aluminium production, the manufacture of plastics, casting of iron, etc.)⁷.

In calculating the maximum total amount of aid for all three types of aid, any aid received by any subsidiaries and parent undertakings of the beneficiary acting as a single entity with a common source of control is taken into account. In relation to the foregoing, Public Agency SPIRIT, as the competent authority, has clarified that aid received by a foreign affiliate under the EU Temporary Crisis Framework in another Member State will not be taken into account in the calculation of the maximum amount of aid received by an affiliate in Slovenia⁷.

A beneficiary may only claim one of the types of aid for the economy provided for by the ZPGVCEP.

Conditions for eligibility

In addition to the conditions set out under point 1 above, the following conditions must be fulfilled by the beneficiary in order to be eligible for each of the types of aid. The beneficiary must prove that the conditions have been met by means of declarations accompanying the application for aid.

(i) Conditions for obtaining simple aid and specific aid:

• the beneficiary purchases electricity and natural gas from external suppliers as a final consumer,
• the beneficiary has not increased the price of its products or services by more than 10 % as a result of increases in electricity and natural gas prices,
• the beneficiary has not made any profit distributions, purchases of its own shares, payments of management bonuses or performance-related salaries to management in or for the year 2022.

(ii) Conditions for obtaining aid for energy-intensive businesses:

• the beneficiary purchases electricity and natural gas from external suppliers as a final consumer,
• the beneficiary has not increased the price of their products or services by more than 10 % as a result of increases in electricity and natural gas prices,
• the beneficiary has an operating loss where the eligible costs amount to at least 50% of the operating loss for the same period. The operating loss is estimated and subsequently demonstrated by the beneficiary on a monthly basis on the basis of the financial statements.
• the beneficiary has not made any profit distributions, purchases of its own shares, payments of management bonuses or performance-related salaries to management in or for the year 2022.

The condition that the beneficiary must not have increased the price of its products or services by more than 10% is not provided for in the European Temporary Crisis Framework.

Procedural steps for obtaining the aid

The beneficiary will be able to claim the aid by submitting an electronic application to the Public Agency SPIRIT Slovenia between 1 November 2022 and 15 November 2022, whereby the time of submission does not affect the priority of the application.

The deadline for submitting applications is 15 November 2022.

The application shall be signed with a qualified digital signature and submitted by the legal representative of the beneficiary.

In the application, the beneficiary shall specify the data on electricity and natural gas costs on the basis of which the eligible costs will be calculated. For the period June-September 2022, the beneficiary shall provide data on the actual costs and for the months of October, November and December 2022, the beneficiary shall provide data on estimated costs. The beneficiary will then have until 31 January 2023 to submit through the electronic application the data on actual costs of electricity and natural gas which were previously only estimated in the aid application.

The declarations proving the eligibility of the beneficiary will be part of the electronic application and the beneficiary will confirm them when submitting the application.

The companies will receive the aid in two tranches. For eligible costs in the period of June 2022-September 2022, the funds will be paid by 31 December 2022, and for eligible costs in the period October-December 2022, by 15 March 2022.

The total amount of aid the state will provide to the economy is €40 million for payments until the end of December 2022 and €40 million for payments in March 2023.

Supervision and sanctions

The Ministry of Economic Development and Technology is responsible for supervising the implementation of the ZPGVCEP and will verify the accuracy and authenticity of the information provided by the beneficiary in the aid application after the aid has been paid.

If the beneficiary itself subsequently finds out that it was granted or paid too much aid or that it did not meet the conditions for obtaining it, it must notify the Public Agency SPIRIT in writing immediately or at the latest by 15 January 2023.

The aid recipient may not make any profit distributions, purchases of its own shares, payments of management bonuses or performance-related salaries to management in or for the year 2022. Otherwise, it must notify the competent authority (Public Agency SPIRIT) of the above payments and return the funds received.

The sanction for submitting incorrect or inauthentic information is (in addition to the obligation to return the amount of aid unduly received) to be placed on the list of ineligible beneficiaries under the Temporary Crisis Framework. As a result, the beneficiary will not be entitled to receive any payments under the Temporary Crisis Framework unless it proves that it did not submit the incorrect or inauthentic information intentionally.

Should you require any further details regarding the new act or how to obtain the aid, please do not hesitate to reach out to us.

¹ Act determining the aid to the economy due to high electricity and natural gas prices (Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia No. 117/22).

² Act amending the Act determining the aid to the economy due to high electricity and natural gas prices (Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia No. 133/22).

³ Section 2.1, paragraph 7 of the Commission Notice on the notion of State aid as referred to in Article 107(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

⁴ Decree on setting gas prices from the system (Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia No.98/22) and Decree on the determination of electricity prices (Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia No. 95/22 in 98/22).

⁵ As defined under Article 96(2) of the Excise Duty Act (Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia No. 47/16, 92/21 and 192/21).

⁶ Production value equals revenue, including subsidies, related to the price of the product, plus or minus the change in inventories of finished and unfinished products and products and services purchased for resale, minus the purchases of products or services for resale (Article 96(2) of the Excise Duty Act).

⁷ Article 7(4) of the Act determining the aid to the economy due to high electricity and natural gas prices.
Questions and answers regarding the aid to the economy due to high increases in electricity and natural gas prices (7.10.2022), point 46; https://www.spiritslovenia.si/resources-new/vsebine/SPIRIT/Razpisi/392/Vprasanja_in_odgovori_7.10.2022.pdf.

Državna pomoč podjetjem v času energetske krize

Vlada podjetjem zagotavlja nepovratna sredstva za soočanje z izjemno visokimi povišanji cen energentov

10 septembra 2022 je začel veljati Zakon o pomoči gospodarstvu zaradi visokih povišanj cen električne energije in zemeljskega plina¹ (“ZPGVCEP”). Država bo podjetjem zagotovila nepovratna sredstva za sofinanciranje stroškov električne energije in zemeljskega plina. Z novelo ZPGVCEP, ki je bila sprejeta 6. oktobra 2022, se je državna pomoč še povečala.

Ukrep je začasne narave (velja do konca leta 2022) in je sprejet na podlagi Sporočila Komisije Začasni okvir za krizne ukrepe državne pomoči v podporo gospodarstvu po agresiji Rusije proti Ukrajini (“Začasni krizni okvir”). Državni zbor je 6. oktobra 2022 potrdil novelo ZPGVCEP, ki je razširila obseg državne pomoči in jo povečala iz prvotnih 40 milijonov na 80 milijonov EUR (“Novela“)².

V tem Client Alert-u podajamo pregled ZPGVCEP s ključnimi informacijami o upravičencih, vrstah in višini zneska pomoči ter postopku za uveljavljanje pomoči, vključno s spremembami, ki jih je prinesla Novela.

Upravičenci

Upravičenci do pomoči so pravne ali fizične osebe, ki opravljajo gospodarsko dejavnost v Republiki Sloveniji in so bile registrirane kot gospodarske družbe, samostojni podjetniki, zadruge, gospodarska interesna združenja, gospodarske zbornice, reprezentativni sindikati, društva ali zavodi do vključno 30. novembra 2021. ZPGVCEP ne omenja podružnic tujih podjetij, ki so registrirane v Sloveniji. Po našem mnenju bi morale biti do državne pomoči upravičene tudi podružnice podjetij s sedežem v državi članici EU, saj bi zakon sicer diskriminiral podružnice iz držav članic EU. Prav tako je za namene pravil o državnih pomočeh podjetje vsak subjekt, ki opravlja gospodarsko dejavnost, ne glede na njegov status in način financiranja³.

Podjetja do pomoči niso upravičena, če:

• je na dan oddaje vloge zoper njih začet stečajni postopek ali postopek likvidacije;
• imajo neporavnane dospele davčne obveznosti in nepredložene in neporavnane obračune davčnih odtegljajev za odhodke iz delovnega razmerja za zadnje leto v višini 1.000 evrov;
• so upravičene do regulirane cene zemeljskega plina oziroma električne energije na podlagi drugih uredb⁴ (v tem primeru niso upravičene do prejema pomoči za obdobje od 1. septembra 2022 dalje);
• so ceno svojih proizvodov oziroma storitev zaradi dviga cen električne energije in zemeljskega plina dvignila za več kot 10 odstotkov (glejte naš komentar v točki 4 spodaj);
• zanje veljajo sankcije, ki jih je sprejela Evropska unija zaradi ruske agresije nad Ukrajino; ali
• so finančne institucije ali zavarovalnice.

Upravičeno obdobje in upravičeni stroški

Podjetja so upravičena do sofinanciranja stroškov, ki so nastali v obdobju od 1. junija 2022 do 31. decembra 2022 (upravičeno obdobje) in presegajo dvakratnik dviga cen električne energije in zemeljskega plina glede na leto 2021 (upravičeni stroški).

Vrste pomoči in višina zneska pomoči

ZPGVCEP ureja tri vrste pomoči za gospodarstvo:

A. Enostavna pomoč

Ta vrsta pomoči (ki sledi omejitvam iz 2.1 oddelka Začasnega kriznega okvira) je namenjena podjetjem, ki jih je prizadela ruska agresija proti Ukrajini in/ali naložene sankcije oziroma povračilni protiukrepi, sprejeti kot odziv.

Pomoč se dodeli v obliki nepovratnih sredstev. Ta lahko v upravičenem obdobju skupaj z drugimi pomočmi, prejetimi v skladu 2.1. oddelkom Začasnega kriznega okvira znašajo največ 500.000 eurov na upravičenca.

Višina enostavne pomoči za posamezni mesec v upravičenem obdobju znaša 50 odstotkov upravičenih stroškov v danem mesecu.

B. Posebna pomoč

Posebna pomoč, ki sledi omejitvam iz 52. točke 2.4 oddelka Začasnega kriznega okvira, podjetjem nudi izplačilo delnega nadomestila za dodatne stroške, ki so posledica izjemnega povišanja cen zemeljskega plina in električne energije.

Tudi posebna pomoč se dodeli v obliki nepovratnih sredstev. Ta lahko v upravičenem obdobju skupaj z drugimi pomočmi, prejetimi v skladu z 2.1. oddelkom in 52. točko 2.4. oddelka Začasnega kriznega okvira znašajo največ 2 milijona eurov na upravičenca.

Višina posebne pomoči za posamezni mesec v upravičenem obdobju znaša 30 odstotkov upravičenih stroškov v danem mesecu.

C. Pomoč za ‘energetsko intenzivna podjetja’.

Pomoč za energetsko intenzivna podjetja (ki sledi omejitvam iz 53. točke 2.4 oddelka Začasnega kriznega okvira) se dodeli v obliki nepovratnih sredstev za energetsko intenzivna podjetja⁵, to so podjetja, katerih letni strošek nabave energentov in električne energije, nabavljen ali proizveden v okviru dejavnosti, znaša najmanj 3 % letne proizvodne vrednosti⁶. Vlagateljev status kot energetsko intenzivno podjetje se dokazuje z odločbo ali drugim dokazilom davčnega organa, s katerim je bil upravičen do vračila plačane trošarine ali oproščen plačila trošarine. Odločbo oziroma dokazilo mora priložiti k vlogi za uveljavljanje pomoči.

Višina pomoči na upravičenca ne sme presegati 50 odstotkov upravičenih stroškov in znaša največ 80 odstotkov izgub iz poslovanja podjetja in ne sme presegati 2 milijona eurov. Skupna višina pomoči na upravičenca skupaj z drugimi pomočmi, prejetimi v skladu z 2.1. oddelkom in 53. točko 2.4. oddelka Začasnega kriznega okvira ne sme presegati 25 milijonov eurov. Višina pomoči na upravičenca se lahko poveča na največ 70 odstotkov upravičenih stroškov in lahko znaša največ 80 odstotkov izgube iz poslovanja in ne sme presegati 2 milijona eurov pomoči, skupaj z drugimi pomočmi, prejetimi v skladu z 2.1. oddelkom in 53. točko 2.4. oddelka Začasnega kriznega okvira pa ne sme presegati 50 milijonov eurov na podjetje, če gre za upravičenca, ki je dejaven v katerem izmed posebej določenih sektorjev (na primer proizvodnja usnjenih oblačil, proizvodnja aluminija, proizvodnja plastike, litje železa itd.)⁷.

Pri izračunu najvišje skupne višine pomoči za vse tri vrste pomoči velja, da se upoštevajo tudi pomoči, ki so jih na podlagi Začasnega kriznega okvira prejela tudi vsa podrejena in nadrejena podjetja upravičenca, ki delujejo kot en subjekt s skupnim virom nadzora. Agencija SPIRIT kot pristojni organ je v povezavi z zgoraj navedenim pojasnila, da se pomoč, ki jo je tuje povezano podjetje upravičenca prejelo pa Začasnem kriznem okviru EU v drugi državi članici, ne upošteva pri izračunu najvišjega zneska pomoči, prejete v Sloveniji⁸.

Upravičenec lahko uveljavlja le eno izmed vrst pomoči za gospodarstvo, ki jih ureja ZPGVCEP.

Pogoji za pridobitev pomoči

Poleg pogojev, navedenih pod točko 1 zgoraj, mora upravičenec za pridobitev posamezne vrste pomoči izpolnjevati še naslednje pogoje. Izpolnjevanje pogojev upravičenec dokazuje z izjavami, ki jih priloži vlogi za dodelitev pomoči.

(i) Pogoji za pridobitev enostavne pomoči in posebne pomoči:

• upravičenec nabavlja električno energijo in zemeljski plin pri zunanjih dobaviteljih kot končni odjemalec,
• upravičenec ni dvignil cen svojih proizvodov ali storitev zaradi dviga stroškov električne energije in zemeljskega plina za več kot 10 odstotkov,
• upravičenec v letu 2022 ali za leto 2022 ni izvedel izplačila dobička, nakupov lastnih delnic ali lastnih poslovnih deležev, izplačil nagrad poslovodstvu oziroma dela plač za poslovno uspešnost poslovodstvu.

(ii) Pogoji za pridobitev pomoči za energetsko intenzivna podjetja:

• upravičenec nabavlja električno energijo in zemeljski plin pri zunanjih dobaviteljih kot končni odjemalec,
• upravičenec ni dvignil cen svojih proizvodov ali storitev zaradi dviga stroškov električne energije in zemeljskega plina za več kot 10 odstotkov,
• upravičenec ima izgubo iz poslovanja, pri čemer upravičeni stroški znašajo najmanj 50 odstotkov izgube iz poslovanja v istem obdobju. Podjetje izgubo iz poslovanja oceni in naknadno dokazuje mesečno na podlagi računovodskih izkazov.
• upravičenec v letu 2022 ali za leto 2022 ni izvedel izplačila dobička, nakupov lastnih delnic ali lastnih poslovnih deležev, izplačil nagrad poslovodstvu oziroma dela plač za poslovno uspešnost poslovodstvu.

Evropski Začasni krizni okvir pogoja, da upravičenec ni dvignil cen za več kot 10 % zaradi zvišanja cen električne energije in zemeljskega plina, ne določa.

Postopek za uveljavljanje pomoči in izplačilo pomoči

Upravičenec bo lahko pomoč uveljavljal tako, da bo preko elektronske aplikacije pri Javni agenciji SPIRIT Slovenija oddal e-vlogo v obdobju od 1. 11. 2022 do 15. 11. 2022, pri čemer čas oddaje vloge ne vpliva na prednostno obravnavo.

Rok za oddajo vloge je 15. november 2022.

Vloga mora biti podpisana s kvalificiranim digitalnim podpisom in vložena s strani zakonitega zastopnika upravičenca.

Upravičenec mora v vlogi opredeliti podatke o stroških električne energije in zemeljskega plina, na podlagi katerih bodo izračunani upravičeni stroški. Za obdobje od junija do septembra 2022 naj upravičenec navede podatke o dejanskih stroških, za mesece oktober, november in december 2022 pa naj navede ocenjene stroške. V elektronski aplikaciji bo nato upravičenec do 31. januarja 2023 vnesel podatke o dejanskih stroških, ki jih je prej v vlogi zgolj ocenil.

Izjave o izpolnjevanju pogojev za pridobitev pomoči bodo del elektronske aplikacije in jih bo upravičenec ob oddaji vloge potrdil v aplikaciji.

Podjetja bodo prejela pomoč v dveh tranšah. Za upravičene stroške v obdobju junij 2022 – september 2022 bodo sredstva izplačana do 31. 12. 2022, za obdobje oktober – december 2022 pa do 15. 3. 2022.

Nadzor in sankcije

Za nadzor nad izvajanjem ZPGVCEP je pristojno Ministrstvo za gospodarski razvoj in tehnologijo, ki bo po izplačilu pomoči preverilo pravilnost in verodostojnost podatkov, navedenih v vlogi.

Prejemnik pomoči ne sme izvesti izplačila dobička, nakupov lastnih delnic ali lastnih poslovnih deležev, izplačil nagrad poslovodstvu oziroma dela plač za poslovno uspešnost poslovodstvu v letu 2022 oziroma za leto 2022. V nasprotnem primeru mora o zgoraj navedenih izplačilih obvestiti Javno agencijo SPIRIT in vrniti prejeta sredstva.

Če upravičenec sam naknadno ugotovi, da mu je bila odobrena oziroma izplačana previsoka pomoč ali da ni izpolnjeval pogojev za njeno pridobitev, mora o tem nemudoma oziroma najkasneje do 15. januarja 2023 pisno obvestiti Javno agencijo SPIRIT.

Sankcija za predložitev nepravilnih ali neverodostojnih podatkov je (poleg obveznosti vračila zneska neupravičeno prejete pomoči) uvrstitev upravičenca na seznam neupravičenih prejemnikov pomoči po Začasnem kriznem okviru. Upravičenec tako ne bo upravičen do nikakršnih izplačil po Začasnem kriznem okviru, razen če dokaže, da nepravilnih ali neverodostojnih podatkov ni predložil naklepno.

Če bi potrebovali bolj podrobne informacije glede novega zakona in uveljavljanja pomoči za gospodarstvo, smo z veseljem na voljo.

¹ Zakon o pomoči gospodarstvu zaradi visokih povišanj cen električne energije in zemeljskega plina (Uradni list RS, št. 117/22)
² Zakon o spremembah in dopolnitvah Zakona o pomoči gospodarstvu zaradi visokih povišanj cen električne energije in zemeljskega plina (Uradni list RS, št. 133/22)

³ 7 odstavek Oddelka 2.1 Obvestila Komisije o pojmu državne pomoči po členu 107(1) Pogodbe o delovanju Evropske unije

⁴ Uredba o določitvi cen zemeljskega plina iz plinskega sistema (Uradni list RS, št. 98/22) in Uredba o določitvi cene električne energije (Uradni list RS, št. 95/22 in 98/22)

5 4 Kot jih opredeljuje 2. odstavek 96. člena Zakona o trošarinah (Uradni list RS, št. 47/16, 92/21 in 192/21)

⁶ Proizvodna vrednost pomeni prihodke, vključno s subvencijami, povezanimi s ceno izdelka, povečano ali zmanjšano za spremembo zalog končnih in nedokončanih izdelkov ter blaga in storitev, nabavljenih za nadaljnjo prodajo, zmanjšano za nabave blaga ali storitev za nadaljnjo prodajo (2. odstavek 96. člena Zakona o trošarinah).

⁷ 4 odstavek 7. člena Zakona o pomoči gospodarstvu zaradi visokih povišanj cen električne energije in zemeljskega plina

⁸ Vprašanja in odgovori v zvezi s pomočjo gospodarstvu zaradi visokih povišanj cen električne energije in zemeljskega plina (7. 10. 2022), točka 46; https://www.spiritslovenia.si/resources- new/vsebine/SPIRIT/Razpisi/392/Vprasanja_in_odgovori_7.10.2022.pdf