EC Clears State Aid for Samsung SDI Investment in Hungary

The European Commission on Tuesday said it cleared EUR 89.6 million in state support for a EUR 1.2 billion expansion of Samsung SDI's electric vehicle battery plant on the outskirts of Budapest, according to a report by state news wire MTI.

The funding is in line with European Union rules on state aid, the EC said.

In its assessment, the EC found the project would not have been carried out in Hungary or any other EU country without public funding. The state aid is limited to "the minimum necessary" to incentivize Samsung to SDI to carry out the investment in Hungary, and the investment will contribute to job creation, economic development, and the competitiveness of a disadvantaged region, it added.

The EC concluded that the positive effects of the project on regional development "clearly outweigh" any distortion of competition brought about by the state aid.

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