Spain faces fine over illegal state aid

Commission says Spain should be penalised for not recouping aid to kitchenware firm.

The European Commission today recommended that Spain be fined for failing to claw back all €113.5m of illegal state aid given to Magefesa, a kitchenware manufacturer. The aid was ruled illegal by the European Court of Justice in 2002.

The Commission said that it would ask the ECJ to impose a daily penalty payment on Spain of €131,136 until it recoups the aid.

The Commission will also ask the court to hit Spain with a lump-sum fine calculated against the number of days between the ECJ’s ruling in 2002 and the ruling that it will now make in response to the Commission’s request. The fine is expected to reach €40m.