The European Commission today published the much-anticipated 2023 State Aid Scoreboard, a comprehensive analysis shedding light on the state aid expenditure across the European Union for the year 2022.
In 2022, Member States collectively reported approximately €228 billion in state aid expenditures, encompassing a myriad of objectives. This amount, equivalent to 1.4% of the EU's GDP for 2022, marks a significant 34.8% decrease from the €349.7 billion spent in 2021.
Of the total state aid expenditure, 33.6% (€76.65 billion) was allocated to support companies affected by the pandemic, while 17% (€39.33 billion) was directed through the Temporary Crisis Framework (‘TCF') towards mitigating the adverse effects of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.
The reduction in state aid expenditure in 2022 can be attributed largely to the gradual phasing out of pandemic-related measures. Environmental aid remains by far the main policy focus of Member States, accounting for around 37% of the State aid expenditure for non-crisis measures.
In 2022, the share of block-exempted measures continued increasing (1,901 new measures under the GBER, 284 under the Agricultural Block Exemption Regulation (ABER), and 18 under the Fishery Block Exemption Regulation (FIBER)). These measures correspond altogether to 84% of the total number of new state aid measures, underscoring the increasing reliance on block-exempted schemes.
For further information: see the 2023 State aid Scoreboard