Hang on a minute. FR did win the case. However, the Court did NOT say that there was no unlawful state aid. It merely said that the Commission had misapplied the private investor principle. The issue is still open with Charleroi, as it is with Angouleme and Dortmund.

Yes, a business has a right to negotiate fees but the issue is whether the transactions are the kind that could reasonably be expected to have been entered into by a private investor. If they are, then fine. If not, then there could be illegal state aid. The question is still open in these three cases and the Commission has not yet taken a decision. Ultimately, I guess it will hover around the size of the discounts. If they are within the range that looks commercially sensible, that will be OK. If they are excessive, we will be in state aid territory.