Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
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527. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he has made an application for state aid exemption for runway works at Ireland West Airport Knock; the date it was submitted; the expected date for approval; and the details of the works. [31009/17]

Shane Ross (Dublin Rathdown, Independent)
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​The maximum level of grant aid that is permitted under the 2014 EU Guidelines on State aid to airports and airlinesfor capital projects at qualifying airports is 75% of the 'funding gap', i.e. the net present value of the difference between the positive and negative cash flows (including investment costs) over the lifetime of the project.

However, the EU Guidelines provide that, in certain limited circumstances, an aid rate exceeding 75% of the funding gap may be justified in exceptional circumstances for airports with traffic volume below 1 million passengers per annum. In such a scenario, the EU Commission have indicated that a business case, justifying the proposed higher aid rate, would have to be approved by them. Clearly, the EU Commission view any support above the 75% level as an exception, rather than the norm.

The airport authorities at Knock have indicated that, even at the maximum 75% level of capital support allowed for under the EU Guidelines, they believe that it will be difficult for them to finance the proposed project to upgrade and resurface the runway at the airport and they are seeking a 90% State aid contribution towards this project.

The final business case for this project that has been prepared by the airport authorities in Knock was received by my Department only last week and the relevant officials are currently engaging with their counterparts in the EU Commission as to how best to advance this application for approval for the higher funding rate.