KBA, which released its preliminary results for 2009 at the end of last week, said its management was "deeply concerned that other companies appear to be using state aid to preserve excess capacities by building for [sic] inventory and selling off stock at deep discounts".

Despite not naming Heidelberg explicitly in its official statement, Klaus Schmidt, KBA senior-vice president for marketing and communications, told PrintWeek that he believed Heidelberg was using these funds to sell discounted stock to the point where customers were buying new presses below the prices they were paying two years ago.

He argued that this damaged the market by reducing the asset value, not just of new purchases, but also of existing equipment, making it more difficult for printers to finance any purchase.

Referencing Heidelberg's €850m of state funding, Schmidt pointed out that KBA had rebalanced its books without the need for such government help, additional debt or drawing on credit lines.

"When you can buy a press for 30% to 40% less than a year ago, you have an advantage," he said. "But you have no security on existing equipment."

Heidelberg declined to comment on the accusations, but said that the continued improvement of its net debt position over the past year (30 Sept 2008-09) from €721m to €675m, along with a reduction in customer financing, was not in line with KBA's accusation.

KBA's preliminary results statement added that state aid given "to individual companies can distort competition for the rest of the field. Jobs secured at the tax-payer's expense are ultimately lost elsewhere".

Schmidt said that reducing staff levels at KBA had been "very painful".

"We are fighting for our people," he added. "All those very skilled, young people... Why should we accept that the tax payer kills us, but our competitor carries on?"