The Wolfson Centre for Bulk Solids Handling Technology

EU Commission’s distortive subsidies efforts acknowledged

(Posted on 06/05/21)

The European fertilizer industry has acknowledged the Commission’s proposal to add a new instrument in their toolbox to tackle distortions caused by foreign subsidies. At a time when the EU fertilizer industry is engaged in the Green Deal decarbonisation transformation, it is important that fair competition conditions prevail especially on the EU’s Single Market. Fertilizers Europe acknowledges strengthening of the EU anti-subsidy capabilities with regards to the European Commission’s new proposal on foreign subsidies in the Single Market.

Fertilizers Europe represents the majority of fertilizer producers in Europe and is recognized as the dedicated industry source of information on mineral fertilizers.

The organisation believes it can foresee this proposal as a contribution to both strengthening EU competition law and, in part, a contribution to the EU’s strategic trade policy direction of ‘Open Strategic Autonomy’.

The Director General of Fertilizers Europe, Jacob Hansen, commented, “over the past years, the EU fertilizer industry has employed trade defence instruments to correct injurious dumping and subsidy campaigns often based on subsidised non-market gas costs in competitor countries exporting to the EU. Given that the EU anti-dumping and anti-subsidy instruments cannot address every particular market distortion situation arising, this new instrument might have potential corrective powers.”

For the European fertilizer producers, distortions arising from foreign subsidies which impact the general Single Market situation or acquisitions on the Single Market are the most relevant new channels set down in the European Commission’s proposal for a new regulation. “On paper, this new instrument will help the EU to effectively tackle foreign subsidies that harm the level playing field in the Single Market. However, the true workability and effectiveness of this proposal will need to be proven in practice,” said Jacob Hansen. The new tool is also expected to help deliver on the update EU Industrial Strategy.

Jacob Hansen stated, “At a time when the EU fertilizer industry is engaged in the Green Deal decarbonisation transformation, it is all the more important to ensure a level playing field, allowing European industry to stay competitive and fit to invest in low carbon technologies.”