2001/477/EC: Council Decision of 19 June 2001 on the granting of exceptional national aid by the Government of the French Republic for the distillation of certain wine sector products
Date: 2001-06-19
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: France, State aid, distillation, viticulture

L 171/10

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

26.6.2001

II

(Acts whose publication is not obligatory)

COUNCIL

COUNCIL DECISION

of 19 June 2001

on the granting of exceptional national aid by the Government of the French Republic for the
distillation of certain wine sector products

(2001/477/EC)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European
Community, and in particular Article 88(2), third subpara-
graph, thereof,

Having regard to the request made by the Government of the
French Republic on 20 April 2001,

Whereas:

on a case-by-case basis at the request of Member States
with the adoption of prices that differ according to the
requests, on the basis of the details provided by the
French Government, it has emerged that in France —
despite crisis distillation of 800 000 hectolitres at a price
of EUR 1 914 per % vol per hectolitre and national aid
authorised by the Council under Decision 2000/
810/EC (2), bringing the price of wine up to EUR 3,7
per % vol per hectolitre within the limit of 1 million
hectolitres — there is still market stagnation with excep-
tionally large stocks, rising from 10,8 million hectolitres
in August 1999 to 14,1 million hectolitres in August
2000.

(1)

(2)

(3)

Article 29 of Council Regulation (EC) No 1493/1999 of
17 May 1999 on the common organisation of
the
market in wine (1) allows Community support for the
distillation of wines in order to support the wine market
facilitate the continuation of
and, as a consequence,
supplies of wine distillate.

(5)

Article 30 of the above Regulation allows a crisis distilla-
tion measure if there is an exceptional case of wine
market disturbance caused by serious surpluses and/or
problems of quality.

The 2000/2001 wine-growing year has shown that the
introduction of distillation under Article 29 of Regula-
tion (EC) No 1493/1999 as from 1 September 2000
handicapped
in which
harvesting had not begun by that date; it can also be
seen from an examination of contract applications by
the closing date of 30 November 2000 that access was
not available to all vineyards.

vineyards,

French

some

To deal with the situation, the French Government is
planning, within the 1,5 million hectolitre quota unani-
mously approved on 7 June 2001 by the Management
Committee for Wine set up by Article 74 of Regulation
(EC) No 1493/1999 on a proposal from the Commis-
sion, to grant exceptional national aid to producers who
supply wine for the distillation referred to in Article 30
of that Regulation, so as to bring the price of the wine
supplied up from EUR 1,914 per % vol per hectolitre to
to a
EUR 3,05 per % vol per hectolitre,
maximum cost of
this national measure of EUR 19
million.

subject

(4)

Following a detailed examination of the effects on the
market of the operation of distillation and its practice by
jobbing distillers and of the crisis distillation introduced

(6)

Exceptional circumstances therefore exist, making it
possible to consider such aid, by way of derogation and
to the extent strictly necessary to remedy the imbalance
which has arisen, to be compatible with the common
market on the terms specified in this Decision,

(1) OJ L 179, 14.7.1999, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regula-

tion (EC) No 2826/2000 (OJ L 328, 23.12.2000, p. 2).

(2) OJ L 328, 23.12.2000, p. 52.

26.6.2001

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

L 171/11

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

Exceptional aid by the French Government for the distillation of 1 500 000 hectolitres of wine on French
territory, totalling not more than EUR 19 million, for the amount necessary to bring the price of wine up
to EUR 3,05 per % vol per hectolitre in the context of the implementation of crisis distillation under
Article 30 of Regulation (EC) No 1493/1999, shall be considered compatible with the common market.

This Decision is addressed to the French Republic.

Article 2

Done at Luxembourg, 19 June 2001.

For the Council

The President

M. WINBERG