No L 241/16 Official Journal of the European Communities 25. 8. 87 COMMISSION DECISION of 31 July 1987 approving aid from Spain to the coal industry during 1987 (Only the Spanish text is authentic) (87/454/ECSC) THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community, Having regard to Commission Decision No 2064/86/ ECSC of 30 June 1986 establishing Community rules for State aid to the coal industry (), Whereas : I In its communications of 3 October 1986, 14 November © 1986, 22 December 1986 and 19 May 1987, the Spanish Government informed the Commission, pursuant to Article 9 (2) of Decision No 2064/86/ECSC, of the finan- cial measures it intends to take directly or indirectly for the benefit of current production in the coal industry in 1987. Whereas the following measures are submitted for the approval of the Commission under the above Deci- sion : (Ptas million) — aid to cover operating losses 371172 "~ — investment aid 405,0 — aid to promote innovation - 150,0 — aid to cover the difference between effective and normal social charges 526,0 — compensatory payment of Ofico 8 400,0 The aid totalling Ptas 37 117 200 000 to cover operating losses will be granted to the Hunosa, Figared, Hullasa and La Camocha undertakings for a volume of together 4956 000 tonnes of production in order to cover the difference for each tonne produced, between foreseeable average costs and the foreseeable average revenue. The aid will not exceed the anticipated operating losses and hence complies with the conditions of Article 3 (1) of the Deci- sion. The aid to cover operating losses is aimed at preventing premature pit closures. In accordance with the third indent of Article 2 (1), this contributes to solving the social and regional problems related to developments in the coal industry. ‘ The investment aid of Ptas 405 million is proposed for investment projects in mines of different undertakings. The aid will cover 20 % of the total investment which amounts to Ptas 2 000 million Ptas. The aid complies with the provisions of Article 5 (1) and § (2) of the Deci- sion for every coal entreprise. In relation to the Community’s policy on coal, the invest- ment aid for 1987 is to be regarded as beneficial since it will help to improve the competitiveness of the coal () OJ No L 177, 1. 7. 1986, p. 1. industry in accordance with the first indent or Article 2 (1) of the Decision. The Spanish Government envisages granting in the course of 1987 an aid to promote innovation in the coal industry. This aid, amounting to Ptas 150 million, is shared among the following coalfields : la Central Astu- riana, Bierzo Villablino, Narcea, Léon, Aragon, Cataluna and the Baleares. This aid is intended to ensure that research results find practical applications in production as quickly as possible. The aid has to be notified to the Commission under Article 9 (2) and Annex 2 b to the Decision as ‘other measures. Such measures have to be assessed in accor- dance with Article 10 (2) of the Decision on the basis of Article 67 of the ECSC Treaty. The Commission has undertaken the examination provided under Article 67 of the ECSC Treaty and has reached the conclusion that the aid to promote innova- tion does not confer to the Spanish coal industry any particular competitive advantage contrary to the common market. The measure will help to improve competitiveness in accordance with the first indent of Article 2 (1) of the Decision. The notifications submitted to the Commission by the Spanish Government on measures to finance social bene- -fits in the coal-mining industry show that State contribu- tions to the social security systems of the coal-mining industry make the effective social charges of coal underta- kings lower than the standard changes the undertakings would have to bear in accordance with Article 7 of the Decision. The difference for the coal-mining industry amounts to Ptas 526 million. Accordingly, the limits drawn in Article 7 of the Decision are exceeded by this amount, which must be therefore regarded as indirect aid to current production. The production costs of underta- kings are artificially reduced through low social charges (Ptas 21 per tonne = 0,1 % of total production costs). The State contributions to the social security systems of the coal-mining industry constitute a general measure under Article 67 of the ECSC Treaty. Compared with the other coal producers in the Community, reducing the production costs by 0,1 % does not represent any parti- cular competitive advantage for the Spanish coal-mining industry taking into account the relation existing between revenue and production costs. Exceeding the limits set in Article 7 of the Decision by Ptas 526 million can there- fore be approved as a general measure under Article 67 of the ECSC Treaty on the condition that such a measure shall be applied to cover losses. The measure also helps to ease the social problems referred to in the third indent of Article 2 (1) of the Decision.