The European Commission has approved €960 million in Dutch state support for Invest-NL under EU state aid rules, including a €900 million capital increase for its impact investment subsidiary and the continuation of a €10 million annual subsidy for its development subsidiary until 2032.
Invest-NL was set up as the Netherlands’ national promotional bank in 2019, when the Commission also cleared a €2.5 billion capital injection for its impact investment arm and the same €10 million yearly subsidy for its development arm, the Commission noted in a release on Friday.
Invest-NL provides financing where the market does not supply enough funding — known as “market failures” — including in energy, sustainability, mobility, food and the digitalisation of industry, as well as areas such as healthcare, security and education.
The Dutch government told the Commission it wanted to raise Invest-NL’s capital due to higher capital needs and to allow it to continue addressing market failures.
Broader sector focus
Invest-NL plans to broaden its focus to include biotechnology, water technology and artificial intelligence, the Commission said.
It assessed the measures under Article 107(3)(c) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, which allows certain aid that supports the development of economic activities.
It concluded the measures were necessary and appropriate, limited to the minimum needed, and had a limited impact on competition and trade between EU member states.
A non-confidential version of the decision will be published later in the Commission’s state aid register under case number SA.124350, once confidentiality issues have been resolved.
