Browsing by Author "Dahlfors, Jessica"

The State aid regime has developed into a tool that can be used for assisting the achievement of environmental and energy objectives under the European Green Deal. This tool must however be properly used, to enable an achievement of these objectives. That is, State aid decision-making must be conducted based on complete information, to be able to support the achievement of these objectives. Subsequently, it has been assessed in this thesis, if complete information is gathered by the Commission, before adopting a final State aid decision. This assessment has resulted in the finding that the limited participation rights during the State aid procedure, and the limited possibilities to be allowed to enjoy these rights, could result in the Commission basing its decisions on incomplete information regarding the aid measure in question. The importance of ensuring complete information has been concluded to be of especially high importance when granting aid for measures supporting the clean energy transition, as it is a complex area, under constant development. Correspondingly, broader public participation during the administrative State aid procedures has in this thesis been suggested to assist the gathering of complete information that, in turn, enables aid measures to be designed to provide a positive contribution, instead of undermining, the clean energy transition. In conclusion, not allowing members of the public to substantially participate in the State aid procedures under Article 108(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, is not in line with the ambitions of the European Green Deal.