The European General Court has annulled the European Commission's approval of Swedish state aid scheme for biomethane following an action brought by the German biomethane trader Landwärme GmbH (Case T-626/20 - Landwärme v. Commission).
Sweden grants aid for the usage of biogas for heating and as fuel. These state aid schemes were approved by the European Commission on 29 June 2020. The Swedish schemes allow for a cumulation with support granted by other EU Member States. In the view of Landwärme, this leads to an overcompensation of the beneficiaries and a distortion of competition when, for example, Danish biomethane is imported into Sweden. According to the ruling of the European General Court, the European Commission was obliged to take into account the competitive impact of a cumulation of subsidies granted by several EU member states and did not comply with this requirement when approving the Swedish state aid scheme.
Hengeler Mueller represented Landwärme in the proceeding. The team included partner Jan Bonhage (Berlin/Brussels) and senior associate Malte Frank (Berlin) (both State Aid and Subsidies).