Order;Information — ECLI:EU:C:2023:1000
Date: 2023-12-14
Language of the case: French
Court formation: Sixth Chamber
Subject matter: State aids;Competition
Procedure: Action for annulment;Appeal - unfounded;Appeal - inadmissible
Origin: France

Order of the Court (Sixth Chamber) of 14 December 2023 – CAPA and Others v Commission (Case C‑742/21 P) (1) ( Appeal – Article 181 of the Rules of Procedure of the Court of Justice – State aid – Individual aid measures for the operation of offshore wind farms – Obligation to purchase electricity at a price higher than the market price – Preliminary investigation procedure – Decision not to raise any objections – Action for annulment – Dismissal as inadmissible – Article 1(h) of Regulation (EU) 2015/1589 – Status of interested party – Fisheries undertakings – Construction of wind farms in fishing grounds – Competitive relationship – Likelihood that granting the aid at issue will have an effect on the interests of fisheries undertakings – Lack of effective judicial review – Incorrect findings – Distortion of the clear sense of evidence – Errors in the characterisation of the facts – Incorrect application of Article 39 TFEU – Failure to state reasons ) 1. Appeal – Grounds – Incorrect assessment of the facts – Inadmissibility – Review by the Court of Justice of the assessment of the facts put before the General Court – Possible only where the facts or evidence have been distorted (Art. 256(1), second subpara., TFEU, Statute of the Court of Justice, Art. 58, first para.; Rules of Procedure of the Court of Justice, Art. 168(1)(d)) (see paragraphs 36, 49, 125) 2. Action for annulment – Natural or legal persons – Acts that are of direct and individual concern to them – Commission decision finding State aid compatible with the internal market without opening the formal investigation procedure – Action by parties concerned within the meaning of Article 108(2) TFEU – Admissibility – Conditions (Arts 108(2) and 263, fourth para., TFEU; Council Regulation 2015/1589, Art. 1(h)) (see paragraphs 63-67) 3. Aid granted by a Member State – Examination by the Commission – Administrative procedure – Party concerned within the meaning of Article 108(2) TFEU – Concept – Fisheries undertakings relying on the adverse impact of the operation of the offshore wind farms in receipt of aid on coexisting fishing activities – No use of the same raw material – No competitive relationship – Effects caused by decisions to construct wind farms and maritime resource management decisions – No link between those effects and the aid award mechanism – No likelihood that the granting of the aid in question will have a specific effect on the interests of fishermen – No status as interested party (Art. 108(2) TFEU; Council Regulation 2015/1589, Art. 1(h)) (see paragraphs 68-79, 92-98) 4. Aid granted by a Member State – Examination by the Commission – Compatibility of aid with the internal market – Discretion – Compliance with the coherence between the provisions governing State aid and other provisions of the Treaty – Fishery sector – No real or potential effect of the aid in question on fishing – No obligation for the Commission to verify the compatibility of that aid with Article 39 TFEU (Arts 39, 107 and 108 TFEU) (see paragraphs 105-109) 5. Judicial proceedings – Statement of reasons for judgments – Scope – Reliance by the General Court on implied reasoning – Whether permissible – Conditions (Art. 296, second para., TFEU; Statute of the Court of Justice, Art. 36) (see paragraph 122) Operative part 1. The appeal is dismissed as being manifestly inadmissible in part and manifestly unfounded in part. 2. The Coopérative des artisans pêcheurs associés (CAPA), Mr Jean Derosière, Mr Fabien Hagneré, Mr Flavien Hagneré, 2F SARL, Mr Florian Laurent, Mr Arnaud Anquier, Mr Julien Tréhorel, L’Intrépide SARL, Mr David Bourel, Mr Sylvain Gallais and L’Entêté SARL shall pay the costs incurred by the European Commission and by Ailes Marines SAS, Éoliennes Offshore des Hautes Falaises SAS, Éoliennes Offshore du Calvados SAS, Parc du Banc de Guérande SAS, Éoliennes en Mer Dieppe Le Tréport SAS and Éoliennes en Mer Îles d’Yeu et de Noirmoutier SAS. 3. The French Republic shall bear its own costs. 1 OJ C 64, 7.2.2022.