Durability of operations

1.   The Member State shall repay the contribution from the Funds to an operation comprising investment in infrastructure or productive investment, if within 5 years of the final payment to the beneficiary or within the period of time set out in State aid rules, where applicable, that operation is subject to any of the following:
(a)
a cessation or transfer of a productive activity outside the NUTS level 2 region in which it received support;
(b)
a change in ownership of an item of infrastructure which gives to a firm or a public body an undue advantage;
(c)
a substantial change affecting its nature, objectives or implementation conditions which would result in undermining its original objectives.
The Member State may reduce the time limit set out in the first subparagraph to 3 years in cases concerning the maintenance of investments or jobs created by SMEs.
Repayment by the Member State due to non-compliance with this Article shall be made in proportion to the period of non-compliance.
2.   Operations supported by the ESF+ or by the JTF in accordance with points (k), (l) and (m) of Article 8(2) of the JTF Regulation shall repay the support when they are subject to an obligation for maintenance of investment under State aid rules.
3.   Paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply to programme contributions to or by financial instruments or to any operation which undergoes cessation of a productive activity due to a non-fraudulent bankruptcy.