4

The background to the dispute is set out at paragraphs 2 to 19 of the judgment under appeal as follows: ‘2 The applicant, Usha Martin Ltd, is a company governed by Indian law which manufactures steel wire ropes and exports them, inter alia, to the European Union. The applicant and the Wolf company established a joint undertaking, Brunton Wolf Wire & Ropes, established in Dubai (United Arab Emirates). Brunton Wolf Wire & Ropes also manufactures steel wire ropes and cables which it exports to the European Union. 3 On 12 August 1999, the Council of the European Union adopted Regulation (EC) No 1796/1999 imposing a definitive anti-dumping duty, and collecting definitively the provisional duty imposed, on imports of steel ropes and cables originating in the People’s Republic of China, Hungary, India, Mexico, Poland, South Africa and Ukraine and terminating the anti-dumping proceeding in respect of imports originating in the Republic of Korea (OJ 1999 L 217, p. 1). … 5 The individual rate of the anti-dumping duty imposed on the applicant in recital 86 of Regulation No 1796/1999 and in Article 1(2) thereof was 23.8%. Under Article 2 of Regulation No 1796/1999, steel ropes and cables exported by the companies from which price undertakings had been accepted by the European Commission, including the applicant, were exempted from the anti-dumping duties at issue. 6 In its undertaking offered in accordance with Article 8(1) of the basic regulation, the applicant undertook inter alia to apply the minimum prices fixed for exports of steel wire ropes to the European Union, in order to eliminate the injurious effects of dumping. 7 The applicant also undertook to ensure that any sale of the product concerned was covered by an invoice which complied with the undertaking (“the Undertaking Invoice”) showing the information described in Annex VI to the undertaking (paragraph 4.1 of the undertaking). Under paragraph 4.2 of the undertaking, the applicant undertook not to issue Undertaking Invoices for “products not covered by the undertaking”. According to paragraph 4.3 of the undertaking, the applicant “is aware that where it appears that it has issued Undertaking Invoices which were not in conformity with the terms of [the said] undertaking, the Commission may declare the declaration of conformity made by [it] on the Undertaking Invoices concerned invalid, and accordingly inform the competent customs authorities of the Member States. This would not prevent the Community institutions from taking any action warranted pursuant to Section 8 of [the said] undertaking”. 8 The applicant also undertook to notify the Commission, in detailed quarterly reports, in accordance with the required technical specifications, of all its sales of steel wire ropes in the European Union, including the sale of steel wire ropes not covered by the undertaking, and to cooperate with the Commission by providing any information considered relevant by the Commission to ensure fulfilment of the undertaking (paragraph 5 of and Annexes II, III, IV and V to the undertaking). 9 In addition, under paragraph 6 of the undertaking, the applicant undertook not to circumvent the provisions of the undertaking by, for example, making compensatory arrangements, either directly or indirectly, with customers in the European Union. 10 Finally, so far as concerns breach of the undertaking, Section 8, entitled “Breaches or withdrawals”, provides: “The [applicant] is aware that, without prejudice to paragraph 8.3: — circumvention of this undertaking or failure to cooperate with the … Commission in monitoring this undertaking shall be considered as a breach of this undertaking. This shall include failure to submit the reports required under paragraph 5 within the prescribed time-limits except in the cases of force majeure; — the … Commission may, where it has reason to believe that the undertaking is being breached, immediately impose a provisional anti‑dumping duty on the basis of best information available pursuant to Article 8(10) of the basic regulation; — pursuant to Article 8(9) of the basic regulation, where the undertaking has been breached, or withdrawn either by the … Commission or by the [applicant], a definitive anti-dumping duty may be imposed on the basis of the facts established within the context of the investigation which led to the undertaking, provided that the [applicant], except in the case of withdrawal of the undertaking by the [applicant] itself, has been given an opportunity to comment.” … 12 By its Decision 1999/572/EC of 13 August 1999 accepting undertakings offered in connection with the anti-dumping proceedings concerning imports of steel wire ropes and cables originating in the People’s Republic of China, Hungary, India, the Republic of Korea, Mexico, Poland, South Africa and Ukraine (OJ 1999 L 217, p. 63), the Commission inter alia accepted the applicant’s undertaking. 13 In the context of an investigation to verify compliance with the undertaking, in accordance with paragraphs 5.1 and 5.4 of the undertaking, the Commission visited the applicant’s premises in both India and the United Arab Emirates in January and February 2005. 14 By letter of 12 May 2005, the Commission informed the applicant that, following the investigation, it considered that the applicant had infringed the undertaking on three occasions, and that it was therefore proposing to withdraw acceptance of the undertaking. 15 By letters of 20 May 2005, 29 August 2005 and 6 September 2005, the applicant submitted its comments on the finding of a breach of the undertaking and on the withdrawal envisaged by the Commission. 16 On 8 November 2005, the Council adopted Regulation (EC) No 1858/2005 imposing a definitive anti-dumping duty on imports of steel ropes and cables originating in the People’s Republic of China, India, South Africa and Ukraine following an expiry review pursuant to Article 11(2) of the basic regulation (OJ 2005 L 299, p. 1). By Regulation No 1858/2005, the Council decided that the anti‑dumping measures applicable to imports of the product concerned originating in, inter alia, India, established by Regulation No 1796/1999, should be extended for a further five years. 17 By the [contested] [d]ecision, the Commission decided to withdraw its acceptance of the undertaking relating to imports of steel ropes and cables offered by the applicant and, therefore, to amend Decision 1999/572 accepting the undertaking. At the same time, the Commission submitted to the Council a proposal for a regulation withdrawing acceptance of the undertaking and imposing definitive anti-dumping duties on the applicant (document COM(2005) 541 final). 18 In the contested decision, the Commission found three infringements. First, examination of the applicant’s accounting records showed that significant volumes of the product concerned not covered by the undertaking had not been included in the quarterly sales reports submitted by the applicant to the Commission, contrary to the provisions of paragraph 5.2 of and the first paragraph of Annex IV to the undertaking. Secondly, the Commission found that the goods in question had been sold by the applicant, in infringement of paragraphs 4.2 and 4.3, to its related importers in the United Kingdom and Denmark and included on Undertaking Invoices. Thirdly, the verification at the premises of Brunton Wolf Wire & Ropes in Dubai revealed that some steel ropes had been exported from the United Arab Emirates to the European Union and declared as having United Arab Emirates origin, although they were in fact of Indian origin. 19 On 23 January 2006, the Council therefore adopted [the contested] [r]egulation. Under Article 1 of the contested regulation, the applicant was withdrawn from the list of companies exempt from definitive anti-dumping duties. Consequently, the definitive rate of 23.8% imposed on the applicant under recital 86 and Article 1(2) of Regulation No 1796/1999 and extended by Article 1(2) of Regulation No 1858/2005 was applicable for the products concerned manufactured by the applicant and exported to the European Union.’