Target group
The seminar is designed for officials from central and regional ministries and/ or other authorities dealing with state aid and environmental protection issues and managers from public or private enterprises who may be involved in the formulation and implementation of environmental state aid schemes.

Description
The primary objective of State aid control in the field of environment and energy is to ensure that public funding leads to a higher level of environmental protection than without aid. The positive effects of the aid have to outweigh negative effects in terms of distortions of competition. The European Commission is working at the moment on the revision of EU Guidelines on State aid for environment and energy, which are expected to be presented at the end of 2013 or at the beginning of 2014. This two-day seminar presents the different conditions and procedures under which state aid for environmental protection and sustainable energy measures can be granted and the objectives and developments of the European Union’s policy in this field. The seminar will go into the details of specific issues which are covered by the present and future guidelines, e.g. eco-tax, eco-innovation, renewable energy and the relation between state aid and the new trading period under the emissions trading directive. It will also offer a forum for open discussions with Commission representatives and outside experts on the application of the balancing test in relation to state aid for environmental protection.

Learning methodology
The seminar will use a mixture of training methods. The lectures are given by EIPA experts, Commission officials, Member States representatives and other experts. The speakers will have different backgrounds so as to provide a variety of views and perspectives. Each speaker will prepare comprehensive documentation for distribution to the participants. EIPA will provide the participants with the relevant background material and documentation.

Objectives
By the end of the seminar, participants will have improved their practical knowledge on how to design state aid schemes in the field of environment and energy. They will be up-to-date with the ongoing discussions in Brussels and know about the expected changes in the near future that will have repercussions on national state aid policies.