L 83/72 Official Journal of the European Communities 27.3.1999 COMMISSION DECISION of 29 July 1998 on aid granted by the Land of Lower Saxony (Germany) to Georgsmarienhiitte GmbH (notified under document number C(1998) 2556) (Only the German text is authentic) (Text with EEA relevance) (1999/227/ECSC) THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community, and in particular Article 4(c) thereof, Having regard to Commission Decision No 2496/96/ ECSC establishing Community rules for State aid to the steel industry ('), and in particular to Article 3 thereof, Having, in accordance with Article 6(5) of the abovemen- tioned Decision, given notice to interested parties to submit their comments, Whereas: On 15 July 1997, the Commission decided to initiate proceedings pursuant to Article 6(5) of Decision No 2496/96/ECSC in respect of DEM 61,64 million paid by the Land of Lower Saxony to Georgsmarienhtitte GmbH (hereinafter referred to as ‘GMH’) for the removal of industrial dust. Interested parties were informed by publication of a notice in the Official Journal of the European Communities (). Comments were sent by Neue Maxhiitte Stahlwerke, the UK Steel Association and the United Kingdom Permanent Representation to the European Union. The German authorities sent their initial comments by letter dated 13 October 1997 and their observations on the third parties’ comments by letter dated 13 March 1998. On 13 July 1998, Germany sent a further letter setting out its final position on the case. IT GMH was formed through a management buy-out opera- tion in April 1993, when Klockner Edelstahl GmbH, Duisburg, a subsidiary of Kléckner Werke AG, was sold. () OJ L 338, 28. 12. 1996, p. 42. () OJ C 323, 24. 10. 1997, p. 4. Klockner Werke AG had applied for composition proceedings (Vergleichsverfahren) on 11 December 1992, and these were formally initiated on 5 May 1993. On 15 June 1993, the Court approved the final composition arrangement, which led to a reduction of the company’s indebtedness by 40 % (approximately DEM 1,46 billion). The new management of GMH decided, as part of its restructuring, to replace the old blast furnace and converter by an electric arc furnace. In July 1993 Germany notified an aid plan covering R&D aid of DEM 32,5 million. The aid was intended to cover part of the research costs of examining how old dust could be recycled economically in an electric arc furnace. At present, in such cases or when the level of zinc is too high for it to be re-injected into the sinter installations (blast furnace production process), blast furnace dust is stored, for example, in disused mines. In proceedings pursuant to Article 6(4) of Commission Decision No 3855/91/ECSC of 27 November 1991 estab- lishing Community rules for aid to the steel industry (%), initiated in November 1993 (*), aid of DEM 15,243 million was approved by the Commission by Decision 95/437/ECSC in February 1995 (°). In that Decision, the Commission refused as eligible costs the cost of construc- tion of the electrical arc furnace and de-dusting installa- tion (DEM 62,7 million). III GMH produces steel, including special steels and quality steels. Up until September 1994 the crude steel produc- tion was carried out in a blast furnace/converter plant. Filter dust, containing ferrum, zinc, carbon and various heavy metals, was collected from the waste air of the converter. Since September 1994 the company has been producing steel using an electric arc furnace. () OJ L 362, 31. 12. 1991, p. 57. % OJ C 71, 9. 3. 1994, p. 5. () OJ L 257, 27. 10. 1995, p. 37.