What does the decision of the European Court mean for Larko

Of Thanks to Floudopoulos

The decision of the European Court of Justice in the Larco case is highly expected, which sentences our country to a one-time fine of 5.5 million euros as well as an additional fine of 4.368 million euros for each semester that Greece does not proceeds to recover illegal state aid to industry.

According to competent sources, the decision does not affect the double sale process, which is in progress, by the HRDH and the special manager for the Larymna industrial complex and the private mines respectively.

The same government sources point out that as soon as the first HRDH tender for the lease of the Larymna industrial complex closes, then the six-month fine will cease to apply.

When will this happen? The competition is in the first phase of the event of non-binding interest and three groups participate in it, including two Greek groups (GEK TERNA and Mytilineos).

The existing plan speaks of submitting binding offers at the end of February, although in order for the tender to proceed, the landscape must first be clarified in relation to the fate of the approximately 1500 employees in the industry.

This is because the European Commission argues that there should be a shutdown of the company and therefore the sale should be made without employees, regardless of what the new owner will decide to do after the competition.

In any case, as soon as the first tender for the sale of the Larymna industrial complex closes, the fine is expected to cease to apply.

As for the price that will be collected, in the first phase it will be used to repay the costs that have arisen so far from the period of special management. It is recalled that from March 2020 until today, about 52 million euros have been given in order to ensure the continuation of the operation of the company.

Then if and if the price to be collected is higher, then it will be used to recover the illegal state aid, amounting to about 136 million euros.

In any case, the government maintains that the completion of the two tenders for the sale of Larco’s public and private property, respectively, is imminent, and in this sense the European Court of Human Rights ruling does not change the overall picture around the much-praised case of the state nickel industry.