EC makes state aid exception for Portuguese shipyard

EC makes state aid exception for Portuguese shipyard    The European Commission has made an exception to the EC Treaty state aid rules on shipbuilding and decided that Portuguese shipbuilders Estaleiros Navais de Viana do Castelo should be awarded the 9 percent contract-related operating aid for building two product/chemical tankers.
   Shipbuilding contracts signed before the abolition of operating aid in 2000 had to be executed at the latest by the end of 2003 in order to benefit from aid, which could amount to up to 9 percent of the contract value. The vessels were originally due to be delivered in October and November 2003.
   Shipbuilding Regulation (Council Regulation 1540/98), which was in force at that time, stipulated that the EC could grant an extension of the three-year delivery limit when found justified by the technical complexity of the shipbuilding project or by delays resulting from unexpected disruptions.
   An EC investigation concluded that the extension on the ships being built with state aid was allowed due to the technical complexity of the construction.