JUDGMENT OF THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE (Fifth Chamber, Extended Composition)

16 October 2003

((State aid – Compensatory levy – Method of financing aid – Community aid scheme for cotton – Action for annulment – Admissibility – Acts which may be challenged – Commission's refusal to continue infringement proceedings – Principle of independent legal remedies)) In Case T-148/00, The Panhellenic Union of Cotton Ginners and Exporters, established in Thessaloniki (Greece), represented by K. Adamantopoulos, V. Akritidis and J. Gutiérrez Gisbert, lawyers, with an address for service in Luxembourg, applicant, v Commission of the European Communities, represented by M. Condou and D. Triantafyllou, acting as Agents, with an address for service in Luxembourg, defendant, supported byHellenic Republic, represented by I. Chalkias and C. Tsiavou, acting as Agents, with an address for service in Luxembourg, intervener, APPLICATION for the partial annulment of Commission Decision 2000/206/EC of 20 July 1999 on an aid scheme applied in Greece to cotton by the Greek Cotton Board (OJ 2000 L 63, p. 27),



THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES (Fifth Chamber, Extended Composition),



composed of: R. García-Valdecasas, President, P. Lindh, J.D. Cooke, P. Mengozzi and H. Legal, Judges, Registrar: J. Plingers, Administrator, having regard to the written procedure and further to the hearing on 27 February 2003,

gives the following

Judgment

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─ the special charge also applied to products imported from other Member States;

─ according to the case-law, the financing of a State aid by a compulsory charge was an essential element of that aid and, when assessing that aid, the Commission had to examine in the light of Community law both the aid and its financing;

─ even if the aid is compatible in form and objectives, it is clear that in accordance with the case-law ... the fact that it is financed by charges also applied to ... products imported from other Member States and European Economic Area countries has a protective effect going beyond the actual aid itself;

─ even if the aid financed by the Greek Cotton Board [conferred] some benefit in the case of imported products, the fact [remained] that it [did] not result in equality of advantage to all parties since in practice the aid was by its nature more favourable to Greek operators, as the results sought and the measures taken [proceeded] from national specialisation, requirements and shortcomings;

─ the imposition of an additional requirement (actual payment of the parafiscal charge) not provided for in the Community regulations for the release of the security [constituted] an infringement of Regulation ... No 2169/81;

─ the application of the special charge contravened Article 5 of Protocol 4 annexed to the Act of Accession of Greece and Article 12 of the EC Treaty (now, after amendment, Article 25 EC).

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─ declare the action admissible;

─ annul Article 1 of the contested decision in so far as it only declares Article 30(3) of Law 2040/92 ..., and not Article 30(1) [of the same law] as well, as incompatible with the common market;

─ order the Commission to pay the costs.

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─ dismiss the action as inadmissible;

─ alternatively, dismiss the action as unfounded;

─ order the applicant to pay the costs.

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─ dismiss the action as inadmissible;

─ alternatively, dismiss the action as unfounded.

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On those grounds,

THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE (Fifth Chamber, Extended Composition)

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García-Valdecasas Lindh Cooke Mengozzi Legal

H. Jung P. Lindh