The European Commission on Monday approved an aid scheme worth 610,000 euros (approximately three million lei) launched by the Romanian authorities to support companies active in the independent cultural sector in Bucharest, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, informs a press release of the EC Executive.
The measure was approved under the State aid Temporary Framework.
According to the scheme, the aid will take the form of direct subsidies. The purpose of the scheme is to alleviate the lack of liquidity faced by the beneficiaries, due to the restrictive measures that the Romanian Government had to implement in order to limit the spread of the virus.
The public support will cover certain costs borne by the beneficiaries in the period August - December 2020: rental expenses for the headquarters / operational office, up to a maximum amount of 4,020 euros (20,000 lei) per month; expenditures on public utilities (heat, electricity, water, sewerage, waste, natural gas); salaries and contributions for a maximum of three employees, capped at the national minimum monthly salary.
The Commission found that the Romanian scheme is in line with the conditions set out in the State aid Temporary Framework: the support will not exceed 1.8 million euros per beneficiary, and the aid will be granted by 31 December 2021 at the latest.
The EC Executive has concluded that the measure is necessary, appropriate and proportionate to remedy the serious disturbances in the economy of a member state, in accordance with Article 107 (3) (b) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and the conditions of the Temporary Framework. On this basis, the Commission approved the measure in accordance with EU state aid rules.