Commission Regulation (EC) No 939/2001 of 14 May 2001 laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 104/2000 as regards the grant of flat-rate aid for certain fishery products
Date: 2001-05-14
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU aid, administrative check, fishery product, non-marketing premium, producer organisation, terms for aid

L 132/10

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

15.5.2001

COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 939/2001

of 14 May 2001

laying down detailed rules for the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 104/2000 as regards
the grant of flat-rate aid for certain fishery products

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 104/2000 of 17
December 1999 on the common organisation of the markets
in fishery and aquaculture products (1), and in particular Article
24(8) thereof,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

Article 24 of Regulation (EC) No 104/2000, which
repealed Council Regulation (EEC) No 3759/92 (2) with
effect from 1 January 2001, provides for flat-rate aid to
be granted under certain conditions to producer organ-
isations which withdraw from the market products listed
in Annex IV to that Regulation.

In the interests of harmonisation and simplification, the
procedures required in the context of flat-rate aid should
be the same as those which apply to financial compensa-
tion and carry-over aid, as set out in Commission Regu-
lation (EC) No 2509/2000 of 15 November 2000 laying
down detailed rules for the application of Council Regu-
lation (EC) No 104/2000 as regards granting financial
compensation for withdrawals of certain fishery prod-
ucts (3) and Commission Regulation (EC) No 2814/2000
of 21 December 2000 laying down the detailed rules for
the application of Council Regulation (EC) No 104/2000
as regards the grant of carry-over aid for certain fishery
products (4). The conditions for granting flat-rate aid
should therefore be established on that basis and
Commission Regulation (EEC) No 4176/88 of 28
December 1988 laying down detailed rules of applica-
tion for the granting of flat-rate aid for certain fisheries
products (5), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No
3516/93 (6), should be repealed.

Article 6(1) of Council Regulation (EC) No 2406/96 of
26 November 1996 laying down common marketing
standards for certain fishery products (7), as last amended
by Regulation (EC) No 2578/2000 (8), provides that
products that are classified as category B are ineligible
for the financial assistance granted in respect of with-
drawal as provided for in the common market organ-
isation. Given that only Extra, ‘E’ and ‘A’ quality prod-
ucts are eligible for the flat-rate aid described in Article
24 of Regulation (EC) No 104/2000, the calculation of
the quantities eligible for this aid should be based on
these categories of products only.

(1) OJ L 17, 21.1.2000, p. 22.
(2) OJ L 388, 31.12.1992, p. 1.
(3) OJ L 289, 16.11.2000, p. 11.
(4) OJ L 326, 22.12.2000, p. 34.
(5) OJ L 367, 31.12.1988, p. 63.
(6) OJ L 320, 22.12.1993, p. 10.
(7) OJ L 334, 23.12.1996, p. 1.
(8) OJ L 298, 25.11.2000, p. 1.

(4)

(5)

(6)

(7)

(8)

The conditions to be satisfied by producer organisations
in the context of the flat-rate aid scheme should be
determined.

The flat-rate aid may be paid only at the end of the
fishing year. However, provision should be made for the
possibility of granting advances subject to the lodging of
a security.

The Member States should be authorised to fix the
standard value used in calculating the flat-rate aid
broken down according to the destination of the prod-
ucts withdrawn as provided for in Commission Regula-
tion (EEC) No 1501/83 of 9 June 1983 on the disposal
of certain fishery products which have been the subject
of measures to stabilise the market (9), as amended by
Regulation (EEC) No 1106/90 (10).

In order to help guarantee product quality and the
disposal of these products on the market, the minimum
conditions applicable to processing, and the conditions
relating to storage and the re-release onto the market of
the processed products should be determined.

The recipients of aid should keep a stock record
containing the figures for releases onto the market, with-
drawals from the market and amounts carried over each
month (in kilograms) to increase the efficiency of checks
and should supply this information to the Member State.
It is sufficient for the purposes of good management of
the mechanism to require stock records during the
minimum storage periods.

(9)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in
the Management
accordance with the opinion of
Committee for Fishery Products,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

CHAPTER I

General provisions

Article 1

To qualify for flat-rate aid, producer organisations shall send
the competent authorities in the Member State the list of
products broken down by category and the autonomous with-
drawal price referred to in Article 24(1) of Regulation (EC) No
104/2000 before the start of the fishing year.

(9) OJ L 152, 10.6.1983, p. 22.
(10) OJ L 111, 1.5.1990, p. 50.

15.5.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

L 132/11

Producer organisations may apply an autonomous withdrawal
price exceeding the maximum level referred to in Article
24(1)(a) of Regulation (EC) No 104/2000 for one or more
product categories. However, they shall lose the right to flat-
rate aid for the category or categories for which the maximum
level

is exceeded.

Article 2

Flat-rate aid shall be paid to the producer organisation
concerned only once the competent authorities in the Member
State in question have satisfied themselves that the quantities in
respect of which the aid is applied for do not exceed the limit
given in Article 24(5) of Regulation (EC) No 104/2000.

CHAPTER II

Conditions for granting the flat-rate aid referred to in
Article 24(2) of Regulation (EC) No 104/2000 (hereinafter
referred to as ‘flat-rate compensation’)

Article 3

The requirements set out in Articles 1 to 4 and Article 7 of
Regulation (EC) No 2509/2000 shall apply mutatis mutandis to
the grant of flat-rate compensation.

Article 4

The Member States shall fix the standard value to be used in
calculating the flat-rate compensation and the advances relating
thereto, broken down according to the destination of the prod-
ucts withdrawn as referred to in Article 1(b), (c), and (d) of
Regulation (EEC) No 1501/83.

The standard value shall be fixed at the beginning of the fishing
year and shall be identical for all the producer organisations
recognised by the Member State concerned, using as a basis the
average receipts from disposal via the outlets for the Member
States concerned over the six months preceding the fixing of
that value. That level shall be amended if significant and lasting
changes in receipts are noted on the market of the Member
State concerned.

CHAPTER III

Conditions for granting the flat-rate aid referred to in
Article 24(4) of Regulation (EC) No 104/2000 (hereinafter
referred to as ‘flat-rate premium’)

Article 5

1.
The amount of the flat-rate premium shall be fixed before
the beginning of each fishing year in accordance with the
procedure referred to in Article 38(2) of Regulation (EC) No
104/2000. The amount shall be fixed per unit weight, to be
applied to the net weight of each product listed in Annex IV to
that Regulation.

2.
The amount of the flat-rate premium shall be calculated
on the basis of the real technical and financial costs of opera-
tions required for the stabilisation and storage of the products

in question as recorded in the Community during the previous
fishing year.

3.

The following shall be considered as technical costs:

(a) energy costs;

(b) labour costs relating to storage and release from storage;

(c) cost of materials for direct packaging;

(d) processing costs (ingredients);

(e) cost of

transport

from place of

landing to place of

processing.

4.
The financial costs shall be a flat-rate sum of EUR 10 per
tonne for 2001. Thereafter the flat-rate sum shall be adjusted
each year using the interest rate set annually in accordance
with Article 5 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 1883/78 (1).

5.
The level of the flat-rate premium fixed for the fishing
year concerned shall apply to products entering storage during
that year,

irrespective of the end of the storage period.

Article 6

Article 3(1) and (2) and Article 4 of Regulation (EC) No 2814/
2000 shall apply mutatis mutandis to the grant of the flat-rate
premium.

Article 7

The flat-rate premium shall be paid to the producer organ-
isation concerned only once the competent authorities in the
Member State concerned have satisfied themselves that the
quantities in respect of which the premium is applied for have
been either processed and stored, or preserved, and subse-
quently placed back on the market, in accordance with Article
4 of Regulation (EC) No 2814/2000.

CHAPTER IV

Final provisions

Article 8

Applications for payment of the flat-rate aid shall be
1.
submitted by the producer organisation concerned to the
competent authorities of the Member State not later than four
months after the end of the fishing year concerned. They shall
include at least the information set out in the Annex.

2.
Advance payments shall be granted each month at the
request of the producer organisation concerned for the quant-
ities withdrawn or carried over, on condition that it lodges a
security of at least 105 % of the amount advanced.

3.
The amount of the advance payment or payments shall
be determined on the basis of the provisional ratio of the
quantities withdrawn to the quantities put up for sale during
the period concerned. The calculation of the amount shall be
adjusted two months after the month concerned on the basis
of the transactions actually carried out and reported using the
model set out in the Annex.

(1) OJ L 216, 5.8.1978, p. 1.

L 132/12

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Official Journal of the European Communities

15.5.2001

The national authorities shall pay the flat-rate aid within
4.
eight months of the end of the fishing year at the latest. Each
Member State shall notify the other Member States and the
Commission of the name and address of the body designated
to pay the flat-rate aid.

Article 9

1.
The Member States shall introduce a system of checks to
verify that the information given in applications for payment
corresponds to the quantities actually put up for sale and
withdrawn from the market by the producer organisation
concerned.

2.
Producer organisations shall ensure that the beneficiaries
of the aid keep a stock record in accordance with the model set
out in the Annex.

Producer organisations

3.
shall communicate the date,
species and quantity of products withdrawn or carried over to
the Member State each month.

Article 10

The Member States shall inform the Commission of the meas-
ures taken under this Regulation as soon as they are adopted,
and in any case before 1 July 2001. They shall
inform the
Commission of the existing measures in the field covered by
Article 9(1) before 1 July 2001.

Article 11

Regulation (EEC) No 4176/88 is repealed.

Article 12

This Regulation shall enter into force on the seventh day
following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the
European Communities.

It shall apply from 1 June 2001.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels, 14 May 2001.

For the Commission

Franz FISCHLER

Member of the Commission

STOCK RECORD: MONTHLY FIGURES FOR RELEASES ONTO THE MARKET, WITHDRAWALS FROM THE
MARKET AND AMOUNTS CARRIED OVER EACH MONTH FOR SPECIES

ANNEX

Amount put up for sale

Monthly withdrawals
Portion for which flat-rate compensation is paid

Month

During the month

Cumulative total

Autonomous withdrawal
prices by category

Amounts withdrawn
by category

Total — all categories (a)

(kilograms)

Quantities attracting
the flat rate premium by
category (b)

Total for flat-rate aid
Withdrawal and carry-over (c)

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

(6) = (4) + (5)

January

February

March

April

year

Notes

(a) Quantities exceeding 5 % of the annual quantities put up for sale (first subparagraph of Article 24(5) of the basic Regulation) are excluded from flat-rate aid.
(b) Depending on the type of processing chosen.
(c) Quantities exceeding 10 % of the annual quantities put up for sale (second subparagraph of Article 24(5) of the basic Regulation) are excluded from flat-rate aid.

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