Onderzoek naar staatssteun aan Pools postbedrijf Poczta Polska (en)

The European Commission has opened a formal investigation into public support for Poland's universal postal service provider. The compensation for Poczta Polska for providing the universal postal service will be examined under EC Treaty rules on state aid, in order to verify whether the company will be overcompensated for the provision of the universal postal service. EC Treaty state aid rules require Member States not to grant aids or subsidies which distort or threaten to distort competition within the EU's Single Market.

Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes i commented, "The aid proposed by the Polish authorities can be wholly compatible with EU rules, but only if it is limited to the additional costs of providing the universal postal service and does not cross-subsidise the competitive activities of Poczta Polska. If the aid goes beyond what is necessary, Polish citizens will lose out twice - first by having their tax monies spent unnecessarily, and secondly by having a less competitive market for liberalised postal services"

The state aid investigation concerns the aid that Polish authorities intend to grant to Poczta Polska, both as a compensation for the losses incurred by the company in providing the universal postal service and as a compensation for the investments exclusively related to the provision of the universal postal service.

The Commission has doubts whether Poczta Polska has correctly applied the proper cost allocation principles in evaluating the cost of the universal postal service. It also has doubts whether this evaluation prevents an over-compensation of the universal postal service, which could therefore be used to finance Poczta Polska's competitive activities. The Commission's formal investigation will allow Poland and third parties to submit comments in order to verify these points.