Marseille’s Administrative Court of Appeal has annulled five public service contracts awarded by the Collectivité de Corse to Corsica Linea and La Méridionale, following appeals by Corsica Ferries.
The rulings, issued on 19 October, concern Marseille services to Ajaccio, Bastia and L’Île-Rousse for 2019–2020, and to Ajaccio and Bastia for 2021–2022. They overturn earlier judgments by Bastia’s Administrative Court.
According to France 3 Corse ViaStella, the court found that the arrangements constituted unlawful State aid and ordered the Collectivité de Corse to recover all payments made under the annulled contracts and their amendments. The judgments specify no repayment total. France 3 cited an unnamed source close to the case suggesting the amount could exceed EUR 100 million.
Jean-Félix Acquaviva, President of Corsica’s Transport Office, said the annulments arose from failures to notify, or delays in notifying, the arrangements to the European Commission. He stressed that the court had recognised the underlying public service need. The Corsican authorities are preparing a possible appeal to the Conseil d’État.
In a separate judgment issued the same day, the court upheld the rejection of Corsica Ferries’ EUR 2.75 million compensation claim concerning its exclusion from the award procedure for the Marseille–Porto-Vecchio and Marseille–Propriano services for 2020.
Acquaviva said the rulings would not affect services under the current public service contracts. The European Commission approved compensation for the current framework in November 2024.
