EU gives $35 million to German shipbuilder

BRUSSELS, Feb. 16 (UPI) -- The European Union has approved $35 million (27 million euros) in state aid to help shipbuilding in Germany, EU officials announced Wednesday.

"Economic growth and higher employment will only result if we improve innovation in all areas of the Single Market," said Neelie Kroes, EU competition commissioner. "The aid proposed here by the German Government is exactly the kind of focused, innovation-based aid that can bring real benefits to the European economy."

The state aid will help shipbuilders' support and implement industrial applications to make sure Germany maintains the EU's state of the art shipbuilding industry. The aid can be used pay up to 20 percent of expenditures related to innovation.