Case T-3/01: Action brought on 4 January 2001 by Eerste Nederlandse Cement Industrie (ENCI) NV against the Commission of the European Communities
Date: 2001-03-24
Institutions: Court of First Instance
Subjects: European Commission, Netherlands, action for annulment (EU), cement, fine, interest

C 95/16

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

24.3.2001

Infringement of the right to put forward a proper defence: if
an undertaking on which the Commission has wrongly
imposed a fine is not entitled to claim lost interest, it is in
effect not in a position to mount a full defence against
decisions wrongly addressed to it by the Commission.

Pleas in law and main arguments

The pleas in law and main arguments are the same as in Case
T-2/01.

Unjustified enrichment.

Since there exists no generally applicable rate of interest, the
applicant bases its calculation of the interest on the percentage
charged by the Commission when fixing the amount to be
paid by undertakings which have delayed paying a justified
fine.

Action brought on 4 January 2001 by Eerste Nederlandse
Cement Industrie (ENCI) NV against the Commission of
the European Communities

(Case T-3/01)

(2001/C 95/31)

(Language of the Case: Dutch)

An action against the Commission of the European Communi-
ties was brought before the Court of First Instance of the
European Communities on 4 January 2001 by Eerste Neder-
landse Cement Industrie (ENCI) NV, established at ’s-Hertogen-
bosch (Netherlands), represented by M.B.W. Biesheuvel and
R. Wesseling, of The Hague Bar, with an address for service in
Luxembourg at the Chambers of M. Loesch, 11 Rue Goethe.

The applicant claims that the Court should:

— annul the Commission’s decision of 23 November 2000
refusing to pay ENCI interest on the fine improperly
imposed on it;

— order the Commission to pay to ENCI interest at the rate
of 8,75 %, or at
least at an appropriate rate, on
7 316 000 euro for the period from 3 May 1995 to
23 November 2000, together with interest at the rate of
6,23 % on that sum for the period from 23 November
2000 until payment of the interest by the Commission to
ENCI;

Action brought on 4 January 2001 by Istituto Nazionale
Istruzione Professionale Agricola — I.N.I.P.A. and Others
against Commission of the European Communities

(Case T-5/01)

(2001/C 95/32)

(Language of the case: Italian)

An action against the Commission of the European Communi-
ties was brought before the Court of First Instance of the
European Communities on 4 January 2001 by the Istituto
Nazionale Istruzione Professionale Agricola — I.N.I.P.A. and
Others, represented by Giovanni Pesce and Filippo Brunetti,
with an address for service in Luxembourg.

The applicants claim that the Court should:

— uphold the application and order the defendant to pay

the costs.

Pleas in law and main arguments

The present application is directed against the decision con-
tained in the letter dated 27 October 2000 (D13118), signed
by the Director General of the European Commission, Direc-
torate-General for Health and Consumer Protection, by which
the applicant consortium of undertakings was informed that
they had been excluded from the tendering procedure relating
to the information campaign on food safety in Member States
for 2000 and 2001.

The rejection at issue is based on the lack of evidence of:

— at least three years’ of experience in cooperation with a

consumer organisation; and

— ability to involve the consumer organisations in the

campaign.

— order the Commission to pay the costs.

In support of its arguments, the applicant consortium alleges: