State aid: Payment continues for September floods – Clarifications on land capital

 The state aid to businesses affected by natural disasters in the last period has expand to include also agricultural holdings, in order to respond to the great needs created in the primary sector after natural disasters and to cover fields that were previously covered by the framework of State Financial Aid, but also fields that are not covered by that framework, such as own capital.

Regarding the floods of September of 2023 in Thessaly and in other areas, the farms, as well as businesses, which affected by the aforementioned flooding phenomena, according to the relevant decision of the Deputy Minister of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection (B΄7393), Mr. Christos Triandopoulos, it is recalled that they can submit applications for the carriage of an autopsy and the grant of the state aid (of Law 4797/2021), until January 12, 2024, while during the next period they have the possibility to present the prescribed documents and other information to complete the file.

How to apply for state aid

It should be noted that applications from businesses are submitted to the relevant Regional Unit, while applications from agricultural holdings and livestock units are submitted – for the convenience of farmers – through the correspondents of ELGA and then forwarded to the relevant Regional Unit. The claims exclusively concern damage to productive elements of the agricultural holding and the livestock unit for which the competent body is the Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection (such as stored products, fixed equipment, land capital, etc.) and do not concern damage to crop production and livestock covered by ELGA.

It is noted that both businesses and agricultural holdings and livestock units, in order to complete the damage assessment process, should provide the relevant Regional Units with all the necessary supporting documents, such as:

• photographic and video material
• purchase or repair invoices
• but also a list of the damages they have suffered with an estimated cost and
• any other appropriate means of assessing the damage

It is recalled that, according to the relevant recommendation of the Governmental State Aid Committee, the grant amounts to 70% of the estimated damage, as it results from the work of the State Aid Committees of the Region after control, autopsy and damage assessment. This is the largest percentage determined to date for a grant after a natural disaster, with the grant relating to damages to business assets, in particular damages:

• in mechanical equipment
• in raw materials
• on goods and damaged vehicles of the business and
• in land capital

What applies to the capital capital

Especially, with regard to damages to the land capital of agricultural holdings, these are covered if the plot of land belongs to the agricultural holding as private property or there is a lease or usufruct between spouses and parents – children, which was concluded on a date prior to the occurrence of the floods. It should be noted that in the case of a lease or utility loan, the grant is paid on the condition that the beneficiary will repair the damage to the land capital, for the determination of which a relevant audit is carried out by the State Aid Committees of the Region. In the event of non-compliance with the obligation to restore the part of the grant that concerns the damage to the land capital is returned to the Greek State as an amount unduly paid, with interest.

For the subsidy for damage to land capital and if the plot of land is under lease or usufruct, submission of the following supporting documents to the relevant Regional Units is required:

• Yresponsible declaration of the beneficiary – lessee / user that he is committed to the restoration of the damage to the land capital and that he has taken note of and agrees with the terms and conditions of the grant.
• Responsible declaration by the owner that he consents to the payment of the subsidy to the lessee-user of the plot with the obligation to restore and to carry out the works to restore the damage, that he is not compensated by another body for the said damage and that there is no insurance policy.
• If there is an insurance policy, it must be presented.
• For agricultural holdings that are not covered by ELGA’s compulsory insurance, the electronic submission of the lease contract to AADE or the utility loan is required.
• For agricultural farms that are subject to ELGA’s compulsory insurance if the lease – the utility loan results from the proof of submission of a single aid application to the IACS of the year of the year, no additional proof is required.

It should be noted that, with regard to plant capital, has been activated – within the framework of the work of the Governmental State Aid Committee – the scheme of state aid to cover the losses in plant capital of agricultural holdings affected by the extreme flooding phenomena of September 2023 in Thessaly and other areas, which until recently whether or not they were covered by the State Financial Aid framework. This is a scheme which is implemented by the Directorate of State Aid of the Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection in collaboration with ELGA and the Ministry of Rural Development and Food.

The General Secretariat for the Rehabilitation of Natural Disasters and State Aid undertakes all the interventions that are necessary and continues at an intense pace the cooperation with ELGA and the Regions, so that the procedures for subsidizing the agricultural holdings affected by the extreme floods of September 2023 are completed in a timely and efficient manner and that both the advance payment and the final grant under the state aid of the Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection.

The implementation of the framework of state aid to agricultural holdings and livestock units is proceeding in a framework of cooperation with the Region of Thessaly, but also the Region of Central Greece, with the State Aid Committees of the Region continuing the project. The project, as far as Thessaly is concerned, is estimated to be intensified in the next period with:

• (b) the increase in the number of (two-member) State Aid Levels after and the relevant provision of the relevant legislative framework, and
• (c) the restructuring of the project promotion structure by the Committees and Levels of State Aid, as well as the competent services of the Region of Thessaly

The General Secretariat for the Rehabilitation of Natural Disasters and State Aid undertakes all the interventions that are necessary and continues at an intense pace the cooperation with ELGA and the Regions, in order to complete the procedures in a timely and effective manner for the subsidy of agricultural holdings affected by the extreme floods of September 2023 and to be granted, both the advance payment and the final grant within the framework of the state aid of the Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection.