The European Commission Monday cleared a Lithuanian scheme to provide short-term export credit insurance to companies struggling to get coverage in the private insurance market.
“The Lithuanian scheme provides export firms with the insurance cover they need and, at the same time, the top-up mechanism and the level of premium ensure that private market players can’t be crowded out and thus distortions of competition are minimized,” said Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes.
Under the scheme, Lithuanian state-owned company INVEGA will provide additional short-term export credit insurance coverage to financially sound companies established in Lithuania. INVEGA’s share of the cover won’t exceed 50% of the total cover and the exporters will have to retain the responsibility for at least 20% of the underlying risk, the commission said.