€47.5 MILLION SPANISH SCHEME TO SUPPORT DIGITALISATION OF FREIGHT TRANSPORT SERVICES
On 11 April, the European Commission approved, under EU State aid rules, a €47.5 million Spanish scheme to support the digitalisation of freight transport services. The scheme will be funded through the Recovery and Resilience Facility ('RRF'), following the Commission's positive assessment of the Spanish Recovery and Resilience Plan and its adoption by Council.
The scheme, which will run until 31 December 2025, shall promote the digitalisation and optimisation of logistics processes at ports and railway terminals, the implementation of technologies for the identification and traceability of rolling stock and intermodal transport units, and the overall optimisation of freight transport through data technologies, data governance and artificial intelligence.
The scheme is open to all freight transport operators and terminal operators active in Spain. Under the scheme, the support will take the form of direct grants. The Commission assessed the measure under EU State aid rules and found that the scheme is necessary and proportionate to enhance transport coordination by ensuring a full-scale digital interoperability between the different freight transport networks, as well as among the individual entities involved in freight transport. Furthermore, the Commission found that the aid will have an 'incentive effect' as the beneficiaries would not carry out the investments without public support. The non-confidential version of the decision will be made available under the case number SA.62987 in the State aid register on the Commission's competition website once any confidentiality issues have been resolved.
Source: European Commission