In a lawsuit concerning partially illegal state aid for the construction of a fixed link between Germany and Denmark across the Fehmarn Belt, the Eastern High Court decided on Wednesday to refer questions to the EU Court of Justice.
The questions are intended to provide further legal clarification.
It is the shipping company Scandlines that has filed the case against the Danish state and against Femern Belt A/S.
The company's ferries operate between Denmark and Germany and are therefore competitors to the fixed link.
The claim is that the state should collect 1.4 billion kroner in so-called illegality interest.
In the case, the state demands acquittal due to the statute of limitations, but in the process, it is now necessary to approach the EU Court of Justice, as stated in Wednesday's ruling.
The focal point is loans of 7.4 billion kroner granted in November and December 2018 to Femern A/S.
Later, in March 2020, the commission determined that overall, there was legal state aid for the project, but the terms had been too favourable.
Thus, part of the already provided state aid is illegal.
And this is where Scandlines has come into play with its claim against the state. The case was filed in 2023 at the Copenhagen City Court and then referred to the Eastern High Court because it is of principle.
Regarding the issue of so-called preliminary rulings for the EU Court of Justice, the state has argued that the timing is wrong. It is too early to ask the questions.
However, the judges are following the demand from Scandlines' lawyers.
One of the questions concerns whether the Danish state is obliged to collect the 1.4 billion kroner.
Furthermore, there are two other cases pending at the EU Court of Justice regarding state support for the construction of the fixed link.
Both the state and Scandlines have appealed the commission's decision from 2020. These cases have not yet been finally decided.
In the Danish lawsuit, both the German and Danish versions of the shipping company have taken action. Both Scandlines Deutschland GmbH and Scandlines Danmark Aps.
There is not only a claim for the state's collection of 1,429,680,000 kroner plus procedural interest from Femern Bælt A/S.
The shipping companies also demand that the Danish state acknowledges being liable for any loss the shipping companies may suffer as a result of the state providing illegal state aid.
/ritzau/
