These grants are intended to compensate operators for the costs caused by works on the General Interest Railway Network
MADRID, 5 Ene. (EUROPA PRESS) -
The National Commission for Markets and Competition (CNMC) has issued a report in which it proposes improving aid for rail freight transport due to extraordinary disturbances in traffic.
In its report, issued at the request of the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and the Urban Agenda, the CNMC analyzes the draft order approving the regulatory bases for the granting of aid for extraordinary traffic disturbances in rail freight transport.
The objective of this standard is to compensate railway freight operators for the costs caused by works on the General Interest Railway Network.
The organization recalls that the granting of public aid constitutes "a very relevant form of public intervention in the economy" and points out that, for it to be effective, "it must be avoided that it alters the efficient functioning of the markets and that it introduces distortions that harm the free competition and the general economic interest.
In its report, the CNMC underlines that, among the adverse effects that freight operators face due to traffic disturbances, are monetary and material extra costs, which may mean replacing the railway with other modes of transport.
In this sense, the organization recalls that the modal share of freight transport in Spain is among the lowest in the European Union. In fact, the Ministry of Transport's Merchandise 30 initiative aims to increase it to 10% by 2030.
The proposed aid does not affect the entire Spanish railway infrastructure, but rather the General Interest Railway Network, that is, the part of the railway network that is of state interest to satisfy the demand for transport. The eligibility period of the activity subject to aid will be from January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2026.
The CNMC report includes a series of recommendations for improvement to the draft ministerial order. First of all, remember that public aid should not discourage railway operators or the railway infrastructure manager (Adif) from developing efficient behaviors.
For this reason, it insists that the aid system support Adif's efforts to minimize disturbances in rail traffic and improve incident planning by notifying rail operators early.
The CNMC suggests expanding the scope of application of the aid, including new cases that, by their analogy, it is understood that they should be eligible, such as, for example, having suffered delays when completing the itinerary.
In addition, it recommends that, exceptionally, the requirement to recover canceled or suppressed rail traffic can be made more flexible. However, it advises eliminating the reference to works due to unforeseeable incidents "that are not provided for in the corresponding Network Statement", since these interventions must also be published in the Network Statement as soon as they are known.
It also proposes to modify the requirements of the beneficiaries of the aid, since they only contemplate operators established in the European Union, without taking into account other operators that could be equally affected.
Likewise, the CNMC is committed to streamlining the processes and making certain adjustments related to the documentation that must be submitted and the deadlines for it, and recalls that railway companies may request aid even if they have already filed a property claim. In addition, it proposes to include the maximum amount that is granted in each call and provide mechanisms for updating the costs.
Similarly, the CNMC has recalled the importance of notifying the measure to the European Commission as State aid, if it has not been carried out, so that it can assess its compatibility with the internal market.
