1995R1554 — EN — 01.09.1998 — 002.001 — 1
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►B COUNCIL REGULATION (EC)No 1554/95
of 29 June 1995
laying down the general rules for the system of aid for cotton and repealing Regulation (EEC)No
2169/81
(OJ L 148, 30.6.1995, p. 48)
Amended by:
Official Journal
No page date
►M1Council Regulation (EC) No 1584/96 of 30 July 1996 L 206 16 16.8.1996
►M2Council Regulation (EC) No 1419/98 of 22 June 1998 L 190 4 4.7.1998
NB: This consolidated version contains references to the European unit of account and/or the ecu, which from 1 January 1999
should be understood as references to the euro — Council Regulation (EEC) No 3308/80 (OJ L 345, 20.12.1980, p. 1) andCouncil Regulation (EC) No 1103/97 (OJ L 162, 19.6.1997, p. 1).
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▼B
COUNCIL REGULATION (EC)No 1554/95
of 29 June 1995
laying down the general rules for the system of aid for cotton and
repealing Regulation (EEC)No 2169/81
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,
Having regard to the Act of Accession of Greece, and in particular
paragraph 9 of Protocol 4 on cotton, as last amended by Regulation(EC) No 1553/95 (
1),
Having regard to the proposal by the Commission (2),
Whereas Protocol 4 of the Act of Accession of Greece and Council
Regulation (EEC) No 1964/87 of 2 July 1987 adjusting the system ofaid for cotton introduced by Protocol 4 annexed to the Act of Accessionof Greece (
3) have been amended by Regulation (EC) No 1553/95;
whereas Council Regulation (EEC) No 2169/81 of 27 July 1981 layingdown the general rules for the system of aid for cotton (
4) should
accordingly be amended; whereas the significance of the adjustmentsthat need to be made to Regulation (EEC) No 2169/81 and the largenumber of amendments already made to it make it appropriate to recastthis Regulation for the purposes of clarity and transparence; whereasRegulation (EEC) No 2169/81 should therefore be repealed;
Whereas, pursuant to paragraph 9 of the Protocol, it is necessary to lay
down the rules of procedure and sound management for its application,the general rules of the system of production aid, the criteria fordetermining the world market price and the rules concerning thefinancing of the measures envisaged;
Whereas, in order to facilitate the management and control of the aid
system, provision should be made for a procedure establishing closecooperation between the Member States and the Commission within aManagement Committee; whereas it is advisable to use the ManagementCommittee forFlax and Hemp as pr ovided forin Council Regulation(EEC) No 1308/70 of 29 June 1970 on the common organization of themarket in flax and hemp (
5);
Whereas, in accordance with Article 2 of Regulation (EEC) No 1964/
87, the aid shall be altered by adjustments yet to be determined wherethe Community production exceeds a quantity fixed in advance;whereas, in consequence, the amount of aid to be granted cannot bedetermined until the actual quantity produced is itself known; whereas,to offset the adverse effects of late payment of aid for the partiesinvolved, provision should be made for the part of the aid to be paid inadvance;
Whereas, pursuant to the third subparagraph of paragraph 3 of the
Protocol, the aid is determined on the basis of the difference between aguide price for unginned cotton and the world market price; whereas,since there is no international trade in unginned cotton, and there aretherefore no offers or quotations, provision should be made to enable aworld market price for this product to be determined; whereas this pricemay be established on the basis of the historical relationship betweenthe price agreed for ginned cotton and that calculated for unginnedcotton;
(1) See page 45 of this Official Journal.
(2) OJ No C 94, 14. 4. 1995, p. 6.
(3) OJ No L 184, 3. 7. 1987, p. 14.
(4) OJ No L 211, 31. 7. 1981, p. 2. Regulation as last amended by Regula-
tion (EEC) No 1554/93 (OJ No L 154, 25. 6. 1993, p. 23).
(5) OJ No L 146, 4. 7. 1970, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation
(EC) No 3290/94 (OJ No L 349, 31. 12. 1994, p. 105).
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Whereas, when calculating the price of ginned cotton, account should
be taken of the offers made on the world market and of the quotationson those exchanges that are important for international trade; whereasthe price on the world market must be calculated using the mostfavourable offers and quotations on that market among those that areconsidered representative of the real market trend;
Whereas, for the aid system to operate correctly, the world market price
must be recorded for a Community frontier crossing point; whereas, infixing this point, account should be taken of the extent to which it isrepresentative for imports of the products in question; whereas, there-fore, in the case of multiple origins the ports of Northern Europe shouldbe chosen and in the case of a limited number of origins, offers orquotations recorded on an exchange outside Europe the port of Piraeusshould be chosen, whereas, in the latter case the offers and quotationsadopted will need to be adjusted if they relate to some other frontiercrossing point;
Whereas such adjustments should also be made to the offers and quota-
tions adopted in order to compensate for any variation from the presen-tation and quality taken as a basis forfixing the guide pr ice;
Whereas the producer Member States should be required to set up the
control arrangements necessary to ensure that the aid system operatescorrectly;
Whereas, with a view to subjecting the Community expenditure on
applying the planned measure to financial and monetary rules andappropriate procedures, Council Regulation (EEC) No 729/70 of 21April 1970 on the financing of the common agricultural policy (
1),
should apply mutatis mutandis to the matters dealt with herein, as
should the Regulations relating to the value of the unit of account andthe exchange rates to be applied within the framework of the commonagricultural policy;
Whereas the provisions of this Regulation should apply as from the
1995/96 marketing year so that the adjustments to the system providedforin Regulation (EC) No 1553/95 may be implemented by that date;
Whereas the adjustments to the system as laid down in this Regulation
must be implemented as smoothly as possible; whereas provisionalmeasures may therefore be necessary,
HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1
Forthe pur poses of this Regulation:
(a) ‘unginned cotton' means the fruit of the cotton plant Gossypium )
which has reached maturity and has been harvested, and whichcontains pod waste, leaves and earthy matter;
(b) ‘ginned cotton' means the cotton fibres (other than linters and
waste), neither carded nor combed, from which the seeds and mostof the pod waste, leaves and earthy matter have been removed.
Article 2
The guide price for unginned cotton of a specified quality shall remain
applicable throughout a given marketing year; the marketing year shallrun from 1 September to 31 August.
Article 3
1. The world market price for unginned cotton shall be determined
by taking account of the historical relationship between the worldmarket price for ginned cotton and that calculated for unginned cotton.
(1) OJ No L 94, 28. 4. 1970, p. 13. Regulation as last amended by Regula-
tion (EEC) No 2048/88 (OJ No L 185, 15. 7. 1988, p. 1).
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▼B
It shall be determined periodically on the basis of the world market
price recorded for ginned cotton.
2. If the world market price for unginned cotton cannot be deter-
mined in accordance with paragraph 1, this price shall be established onthe basis of the most recent price determined.
Article 4
1. The world market price for ginned cotton shall be determined on
the basis of a grade 5 (white middling) product with a fibre length of 28mm (1-3/32 /primedbl1), account being taken of the offers made on this market
and of the quotations on one or more European exchanges that areimportant for international trade. This price shall be determined usingthe most favourable offers and quotations among those that are consid-ered representative of the real market trend.
2. For the purposes of the above calculation, an average shall be
established of the offers and quotations on one or more Europeanexchanges for a product delivered cif at a port in Northern Europe andcoming from the various supplier countries considered the most repres-entative in terms of international trade.
However, where the world market price cannot be determined in
accordance with the preceding subparagraph, it shall be determined:
— on the basis of a limited number of the most representative offers
and quotations for a product delivered cif at Piraeus recorded on theLiverpool exchange, or on another European exchange, or
— on the basis of the offers and quotations on a non-European
exchange either by calculating an average of the offers and quota-tions for a product delivered cif at Piraeus coming from varioussupplier countries that are considered the most representative interms of international trade, or by using a limited number of themost representative offers and quotations for a product delivered cifat Piraeus.
3. Where the offers and quotations recorded do not satisfy the
requirements referred to in the preceding paragraphs, the necessaryadjustments shall be made.
Article 5
1. Without prejudice to Article 2 (3) and (4) of Regulation (EEC) No
1964/87, when the world market price determined in accordance withArticle 3 is below the guide price, aid equal to the difference betweenthese two prices shall be granted for unginned cotton harvested in theCommunity.
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M1
2. The amount of the aid to be paid shall be the amount applicable onthe day the application foraid is made.
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M2
3. Entitlemnt to the aid shall be acquired when the cotton is ginned.However, aid may be paid in advance from 16 October following thestart of the marketing year when the unginned cotton enters the cottonginning undertaking, provided that an adequate security has beenlodged. The amount of the advance shall be calculated in accordancewith paragraph 3a.
Any aid balance outstanding shall be paid once the actual quantity
produced has been determined and any adjustment to the aid referred toin Article 2 of Regulation (EEC) No 1964/87 has been made (
1). It shall
be paid before the end of the marketing year, at the latest.
3a. The level of the advance per100 kg of unginned cotton shall be
equal to the guide price minus the world price and reduced further by an
(1) OJ L 184, 3. 7. 1987, p. 14. Regulation as last amended by Regulation
(EC) No 1553/95 (OJ L 148, 30. 6. 1995, p. 45).
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▼M2
amount calculated using the method provided for in Article 6, butreplacing actual production by the estimated production of unginnedcotton fixed in accordance with Article 8(1) plus 15 %.
From 16 December following the start of the marketing year, the
amount of the aid referred to in the first subparagraph shall be replacedby a revised amount calculated using the same method but based on therevised production estimate for unginned cotton fixed in accordancewith Article 8(2), plus at least 7,5 %. Advances paid between 16October and 15 December shall be increased accordingly, except wherethe difference between the two amounts is less than ECU 1/100 kg.
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B
4. The aid shall be paid by the pr oducerMemberState on whoseterritory ginning takes place.
5. The aid shall only be paid fora pr oduct of sound, fairand
merchantable quality.
6. If the quantity of ginned cotton is less than orequal to 33 % of the
quantity of unginned cotton that has entered the cotton ginning under-taking, aid shall be granted for the quantity of cotton ginned, multipliedby 100 and divided by 32.
If the quantity of ginned cotton exceeds 33 % of the quantity of
unginned cotton that has entered the cotton ginning undertaking, aidshall be granted for the quantity of unginned cotton, multiplied by 33and divided by 32.
The quantity of ginned cotton eligible forthe aid shall be calculated on
the basis of its weight, adjusted where necessary for any differencebetween:
— the representative percentage of recorded impurities compared to the
representative percentage for grade 5, and
— the percentage moisture content recorded compared to that repres-
entative of marketed fibre.
The representative percentages referred to in the above indents shall be
determined in accordance with the procedure referred to in Article 11(1).
Article 6
The reduction in the guide price referred to in Article 2 (3) of Regula-
tion (EEC) No 1964/87 shall be established as follows:
(a) if the actual production in Spain or Greece exceeds the guaranteed
national quantity (GNQ), the excess in each MemberState shall becalculated as a percentage of the GNQ and the guide price shall bereduced by a percentage equal to half the percentage excess;
(b) in other cases, the actual production in excess of the guaranteed
maximum quantity (GMQ) shall be calculated as a percentage ofthe GNQ of the Member State concerned, and the guide price shallbe reduced by a percentage equal to half the percentage excess.
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M2
Article 7
1. Without prejudice to paragraph 2, aid shall be granted only to
those cotton ginning undertakings which apply for it and which:
(a) have submitted a contract stipulating payment to the producer of a
price at least equal to the minimum price referred to in Article 8a ofProtocol 4 and containing a clause specifying that:
— where Article(s) 2(3) and/or 2(4) of Regulation (EEC) No 1964/
87 is applied, the agreed price will be adjusted in consequenceof the effect of the application of that Article upon the aid,
— where there is a difference between the quality of the cotton
delivered and the standard quality, as referred to in paragraph 8of Protocol 4, the price agreed will be adjusted proportionallyby common consent between the contracting parties;
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(b) keep stock amounts on ginned and unginned cotton that satisfy
requirements to be laid down, so that entitlement to the aid can bechecked;
(c) provide the other supporting documents needed for checking entitle-
ment to the aid;
(d) furnish proof that the cotton delivered under the contract is the
subject of the declaration of area sown referred to in Article 8.
2. Aid shall be granted to those cotton ginning undertakings which
apply forit and which gin cotton on behalf of an individual pr oducerora producer group meeting the criteria laid down in the third subpara-graph of paragraph 4 of Protocol 4, provided such undertakings:
(a) satisfy the conditions referred to in paragraphs 1(b) and (c);
(b) have submitted a statement giving details of the conditions under
which the ginning is carried out and how the aid is administered;
(c) undertake to pass on the aid to the individual producers or, where
applicable, the producer groups concerned;
(d) furnish proof that the cotton referred to in the statement referred to
in (b) has been the subject of the declaration of area sown referredto in Article 8;
(e) furnish proof that producer groups are obliged to provide for and
comply with a clause equivalent to that in paragraph 1(a) and anundertaking by such groups to keep and produce supporting docu-ments concerning payment of the minimum price.
3. Failure to comply with the clause or undertaking referred to in
paragraph 2(e) by a producer group having ginning carried out on itsbehalf shall be considered a failure to meet the criteria referred to in thethird subparagraph of paragraph 4 of Protocol 4.
Article 8
1. Before 1 October, the estimated production of unginned cotton
referred to in the first subparagraph of Article 5(3a) shall be drawn upusing the procedure referred to in Article 11(1), account being taken ofcrop estimates.
In order to draw up these estimates, a system of declarations of the
areas sown shall be established.
2. Before 1 December, the revised estimate of production of
unginned cotton and the percentage increase referred to in the secondsubparagraph of Article 5(3a) shall be drawn up using the procedurereferred to in Article 11(1), account being taken of the progress of theharvest.
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B
Article 9
Actual production in each marketing year shall be determined before the
end of June of that same year using the procedure referred to in Article11 (1), account being taken in particular of the quantities for which aidhas been requested.
Article 10
The pr oducerMemberStates shall set up a system of contr ols to:
— ascertain the quantity of unginned Community cotton which has
entered each cotton ginning undertaking,
— ascertain the quantity of unginned Community cotton which has
been ginned,
— ascertain the quantity of ginned cotton obtained in each cotton
ginning undertaking from the quantity referred to in the first indent,
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— ensure that the minimum price is complied with.
Article 11
1. Detailed rules for the application of this Regulation shall be deter-
mined in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 12 ofRegulation (EEC) No 1308/70.
These detailed rules shall, in particular, concern any necessary control
measure; these measures may use certain elements provided under theintegrated system.
2. If it proves necessary to introduce transitional measures in order to
facilitate implementation of the adjustments to the system as laid downby this Regulation, such measures shall be adopted in accordance withthe procedure provided for in paragraph 1. They shall apply until theend of the 1995/96 marketing year at the latest.
Article 12
1. Regulation (EEC) No 2169/81 is hereby repealed.2. References made to the repealed Regulation or to any Articles
thereof shall be construed as being made to this Regulation or to thecorresponding Articles hereof.
Article 13
The provisions of the Regulations relating to the value of the unit of
account and the exchange rates to be applied in connection within thecommon agricultural policy, and those of Regulation (EEC) No 729/70shall apply mutatismutandis to the matters dealt with in this Regulation.
Article 14
This Regulation shall enterinto for ce on the day of its publication in the
Official Journal of the European Communities .
It shall apply from the 1995/96 marketing year. However, Article 11 (2)
shall apply as from the date of entry into force of this Regulation.
This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in
all MemberStates.