The European Commission ruled on 5 October 2026 that the public funding proposed by Poland for the expansion of MAN's Niepołomice plant, in the Małopolska region, is incompatible with EU state aid rules. Warsaw will therefore be unable to implement a support package worth around PLN 116 million (approximately €26 million) for MAN Trucks' Polish subsidiary. Most of the package consisted of tax relief: PLN 105.6 million (around €23.7 million) in corporate income tax exemptions, alongside a direct grant of PLN 10.7 million (approximately €2.4 million). The Polish authorities notified Brussels of the measures in 2024 and, as the Commission clarified in July 2025, had decided to grant the aid while suspending its implementation pending EU approval. The aid was therefore never implemented.
The procedure moved to an in-depth investigation on 28 July 2025. In its preliminary assessment, the Commission acknowledged that the project, which was expected to create around 1,400 jobs, would support economic development and employment in a less-developed EU region, and that Małopolska was eligible for regional aid. However, it raised concerns about compliance with the regional state aid guidelines, particularly the proportionality of the amount and its incentive effect. Brussels wanted to establish whether the aid had influenced the decision to expand the plant or whether MAN would have made the investment in the same area without public support.
In its statement following the investigation, the Commission explained that Poland had failed to demonstrate that the aid was decisive in MAN's decision to locate the investment in the country, as required under the guidelines. The evidence did not show that the company would have invested at another location without public funding. Warsaw also failed to establish that the amount represented the minimum necessary and was therefore proportionate. On these two grounds, the Commission concluded that the aid lacked a genuine incentive effect for Małopolska and could not be implemented. The decision concerns only the public funding and does not affect operations at the plant or the expansion already completed. MAN's investment programme announced in 2026 falls outside the scope of the Commission's investigation.
That programme was formalised on 15 July 2026, when MAN and the Polish Government signed a memorandum of understanding covering investments of approximately €1.2 billion through to 2038, during a visit to Niepołomice by Finance and Economy Minister Andrzej Domański. Priorities through to 2030 include expanding the plant to introduce body-in-white production and painting operations, increasing cab assembly capacity, preparing for the next generation of commercial vehicles based on the Traton Modular System and expanding overall production capacity. Once the projects are completed, the plant's floor area will increase from 130,000 to around 270,000 square metres. With production of the eTGL light-duty electric truck starting in mid-July, alongside the medium-duty eTGM, Niepołomice will become MAN's second electrified production plant after Munich.
P.R.
