The European Commission has determined that the grant of the Republic of Croatia in the amount of HRK 88.5 million is intended for the state-owned airline Croatia Airlines in accordance with EU rules on state aid.

The measure aims to compensate for losses directly caused by the coronavirus pandemic and travel restrictions imposed by Croatia and other destinations to limit the spread of coronavirus between 19 March and 30 June 2020. Therefore, the Croatian airline had to cancel most scheduled flights, which led to large losses.

Public support will take the form of a direct grant. The Commission has assessed the measure in accordance with Article 107 (2) (b) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), which allows the Commission to approve State aid measures granted by Member States to compensate certain undertakings or certain sectors for direct damage. extraordinary events such as the coronavirus pandemic.

The independent audit firm will check whether the amount exceeds the damage suffered in the period from March 19 to June 30, 2020. After the audit, any public aid received by Croatia Airlines that exceeds the actual damage suffered will have to be repaid to Croatia. Therefore, there is no risk of overcompensation.

The Commission also found that the measure was proportionate because the compensation did not exceed the amount required for compensation. On this basis, the Commission concluded that the Croatian measure complied with EU state aid rules. More information will be available on the Commission's competition website in the public case register under case number SA.55373, once possible confidentiality issues have been addressed.