L 21/12 Official Journal of the European Communities 23.1.2001 COMMISSION COMMISSION DECISION of 20 September 2000 authorising France to grant aid to the coal industry for 2000 (notified under document number C(2000) 2923) (Only the French text is authentic) (Text with EEA relevance) (2001/58/ECSC) THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, Having regard to Commission Decision 3632/93/ECSC of 28 December 1993 establishing Community rules for State aid to the coal industry ('), in particular Article 2(1) and Article 9 thereof, Having regard to Commission Decision 95/465/ECSC of 19 July 1995 approving the French coal industry's plan for the reduction of activity (), Whereas: (1) By letter of 26 October 1999, France notified the Commission, in accordance with Article 9(1) of Decision No 3632/93/ECSC, of the financial aid it proposes to grant to the coal industry for 2000. By letter of 26 May 2000, France also notified the Commission of an adjust- ment to this financial aid. (2) In accordance with Decision No 3632[93/ECSC, the Commission is required to take a decision for 2000 on the following financial aid: — aid for the reduction of activity amounting to FRF 2381 million to cover operating losses for 2000, — aid for the reduction of activity amounting to FRF 220 million. This aid is intended to cover the interest due for 2000 on the part of the loan issue floated by Charbonnages de France in 1997, 1998 () O] L 329, 30.12.1993, p. 12. () O] L 267, 9.11.1995, p. 46. and 1999 to cover the balance of the operating losses for those years which are not covered by direct subsidies and capital injections, — aid to cover exceptional losses for 2000 amounting to FRF 4 071 million. The financial measures envisaged by France for its coal industry are covered by Article 1 of Decision No 3632/ 93/ECSC and must therefore be approved by the Commission in accordance with Article 9, which refers in particular to the general objectives and criteria laid down in Article 2 and the specific criteria set out in Articles 4 and 5 of the Decision. In its assessment, the Commission checks, in accordance with Article 9(6) of the Decision, whether the measures are in conformity with the plans for the reduction of activity which have been approved by the Commission. The sum of FRF 2381 million which France is proposing to grant to the coal industry under Article 4 of Decision No 3632/93/ECSC is intended to cover the difference between the production cost and the selling price of coal freely agreed between the contracting parties in the light of the prevailing conditions on the world market for coal of similar quality from third countries. This aid forms part of the plan for the reduc- tion of activity by the company, which plans to cease all mining activities in 2005. In view of the exceptional social and regional consequences of the reduction of activity by the company, the French Government, in agreement with the two sides of industry, has decided to stagger the closures up to 2005.