Under the auspices of the Hellenic Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the Hellenic Competition Commission organized, on the 10th and 11th of April 2014 the «European Competition Day», a two-days international conference dedicated to European competition law and State Aid.
Speakers at the conference, which took place at Zappeion Megaro in Athens, were senior European Commission and National Competition Authorities officials, judges and representatives of professional and consumer organizations, academics and experts in competition law, economics of competition policy and state aid law. The Coordinator of the State Aid Unit (MoKE) of CIEEL, Mrs. E. Mouameletzi, and MoKE executive, Mrs. E. Sgouridou, attended the conference.
At the opening session of the conference, keynote and welcome speeches were addressed by the Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for Competition Policy Mr. Joachim Almunia, the Greek Minister of Finance, Mr. Yannis Stournaras, the Minister for Development and Competitiveness, Mr. Kostis Chatzidakis, and the Chairman of the Hellenic Competition Commission, Mr. Dimitrios Kiritsakis.
The first day of the conference was dedicated to the enforcement of competition rules. In particular, the first session, coordinated by Mr. Alexander Italianer (Director General at DG Competition, European Commission) analyzed a number of novel issues in the retail sector and defined the range of potential activities of Competition Authorities. The speakers of this session were Mr. Andreas Mundt, Chairman of the German Competition Authority; Mr. Giovanni Pitruzzella, Chairman of the Italian Competition Authority; Mr. Juhani Jokinen, Director General of the Finnish Competition Authority; and Mrs. Lukia Christodoulou, Chairperson of the Commission for the Protection of Competition of the Republic of Cyprus.
At the second session of the first day selected topics, pertaining to judicial review and the interplay between procedural guarantees and the effectiveness of the national Competition Authorities’ action, were presented. The session was moderated by Mr. Phillis Arnaoutoglou, Vice-President of Hellenic Council of State, while speakers included Mr. Marc van der Woude, President of Chamber of the General Court of the European Union; Peter Roth, President of the Competition Appeal Tribunal in the United Kingdom; Jacqueline Riffault-Silk, Judge at the Commercial Chamber of Cour de Cassation, France; and Felix Ronkes-Agerbeek, Member of the Legal Service of the European Commission Competition Team.
The last session of the first day, coordinated by Mrs. Chryssovalantou Milliou, Assistant Professor at Athens University of Economics and Member of the Hellenic Competition Commission, addressed the issue of using economic tools in order to detect and assess collusive behaviour. This session’s speakers were Mr. William Kovacic, Professor and Director of the Competition Law Centre, George Washington University and non-executive Member of the British Competition Authority; Mr. Peter Davis, Visiting Professor at University College London and Executive Vice-President of Compass Lexecon; Mr. António Ferreira Gomes, Chairman of the Portuguese Competition Authority; and Mr. Sean Ennis, Senior Economist at the OECD. The first day was completed with the closing remarks by the Vice-Chairman of the Hellenic Competition Commission, Mr. Dimitris Loukas.
The second day of the conference, co-hosted by the Central State Aid Unit (KeMKE) of the Greek Ministry of Finance, was dedicated to State Aid developments. Keynote speakers for the opening session were Mr. Gert Jan Koopman, Deputy Director – General for State Aids at DG Competition, European Commission and Mr. Dimitrios Vartzopoulos, Director of Strategic Planning Bureau at the General Secretariat of the Prime Minister. During the first of the two following sessions, moderated by Mr. Andrea Biondi, Professor and Director of the Centre for European Law at King^27s College London, the proper use of state aid as an effective tool for the promotion of economic growth was analyzed. The speakers were Mr. Vincent Verouden, Deputy Chief Economist on State Aid issues at DG Competition, European Commission; Bertrand Jehanno, Member of the French General Secretariat for European Affairs; and Mr. Pekka Timonen, Director General of the Labour and Trade Department of the Finnish Ministry of Employment and the Economy.
During the last session of the second day, the focus was placed at the techniques and the interaction between State Aid policy and privatisation of state owned enterprises (SOEs). The relevant issues were discussed by Mr. Koen Van de Casteele, Head of the State Aid Case Support Unit at DG Competition, European Commission; Mihalis Kekelekis, Officer at the Competition and State Aid Directorate of EFTA Surveillance Authority; and Mr. Andreas von Bonin, Partner at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer law firm. The session was coordinated by Mr. Piet Jan Slot, Professor of European and Economic Law at Leiden University.
The closing remarks of the two-days conference were presented by Mrs. Matina Charalambopoulou, Director of the Central State Aid Unit of the Greek Ministry of Finance.