The Notice on the Notion of State Aid and Public Procurement Law

Abstract

The Commission Notice on the notion of State aid includes elaboration on the relationship between State aid law and public procurement law. To begin with, the article examines some of the reasons why the relationship between State aid law and public procurement law is surrounded by legal uncertainty. Then the elaborations made in the Notice on the notion of aid concerning the relation between the two areas of law are analysed and discussed, in particular, first, the question whether adhering to the procurement procedures laid down in the public procurement directives will eliminate the risk of granting State aid and, second, the issues rising from State aid control of in-house situations. It is concluded that even though the Notice on the notion of aid brings some needed clarity that fosters coherence between State aid law and public procurement law, the existing legal uncertainty is not even remotely evaporated. Keywords: Notion of Aid; Public Procurement Law; In-House Award; Undertaking; Distortion of Competition; Legal Uncertainty.