Commission Regulation (EC) No 81/2004 of 16 January 2004 opening public sales of wine alcohol for use as bioethanol in the Community
Date: 2004-01-16
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: auction sale, ethanol, intervention agency, motor fuel

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Official Journal of the European Union

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COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 81/2004

of 16 January 2004

opening public sales of wine alcohol for use as bioethanol in the Community

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Com-
munity,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 1493/1999 of 17
May 1999 on the common organisation of the market
in
wine (1), and in particular Article 33 thereof,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1623/2000 of 25 July
2000 laying down detailed rules for implementing Regu-
lation (EC) No 1493/1999 on the common organisation
of the market in wine with regard to market mechan-
isms (2), lays down, among other things, detailed rules
for disposing of stocks of alcohol obtained from distilla-
tion pursuant to Articles 27, 28 and 30 of Regulation
(EC) No 1493/1999 and held by the intervention agen-
cies.

Public sales of wine alcohol for use in the fuel sector in
the Community should be organised in accordance with
Articles 92 and 93 of Regulation (EC) No 1623/2000
with a view to reducing Community stocks of wine
alcohol and to some extent ensuring supplies to firms
approved in accordance with Article 92 of Regulation
(EC) No 1623/2000. The wine alcohol of Community
origin in storage in the Member States consists of quan-
tities produced from distillation in accordance with Arti-
cles 35, 36 and 39 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 822/
87 of 16 March 1987 on the common organisation of
the market in wine (3), and in accordance with Articles
27, 28 and 30 of Regulation (EC) No 1493/1999.

Since 1 January 1999, in accordance with Council Regu-
lation (EC) No 2799/98 of 15 December 1998 estab-
lishing agrimonetary arrangements for the euro (4), the
selling price and securities must be expressed, and
payments made, in euro.

Given that there are risks of fraud by substitution of
alcohol, checks on the final destination of the alcohol
should be reinforced and the intervention agencies
should be allowed to call on the help of international
control agencies and to check the alcohol sold by means
of nuclear magnetic resonance analyses.

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

Article 1

Four lots of alcohol (references 26/2003 EC, 27/2003 EC,
1.
28/2003 EC and 29/2003 EC) comprising 50 000 hectolitres,
100 000 hectolitres, 30 000 hectolitres and 30 000 hectolitres
respectively at 100 % vol are hereby put up for public sale for
use in the fuel sector within the Community.

2.
The alcohol concerned was produced from distillation in
accordance with Article 35 of Regulation (EEC) No 822/87 and
Articles 27 and 30 of Regulation (EC) No 1493/1999 and is
held by the French and Italian intervention agencies.

3.
The location and references of the vats making up the
lots, the quantity of alcohol in each vat, the alcoholic strength
and the characteristics of the alcohol are as set out in the
Annex to this Regulation.

The lots shall be awarded to firms approved in accord-

4.
ance with Article 92 of Regulation (EC) No 1623/2000.

Article 2

All communications concerning this public sale shall be sent to
the following Commission department:

Commission of the European Communities
Directorate-General for Agriculture, Unit D.4
Rue de la Loi/Wetstraat 200
B-1049 Brussels
Fax: (32-2) 295 92 52
E-mail: agri-d4@cec.eu.int

Article 3

The public sales shall take place in accordance with Articles 92,
93, 94, 95, 96, 98, 100 and 101 of Regulation (EC) No 1623/
2000 and Article 2 of Regulation (EC) No 2799/98.

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

lation (EC) No 1795/2003 (OJ L 262, 14.10.2003, p. 13).

(2) OJ L 194, 31.7.2000, p. 45. Regulation as last amended by Regu-

lation (EC) No 1710/2003 (OJ L 243, 27.9.2003, p. 98).

(3) OJ L 84, 27.3.1987, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation

(EC) No 1677/1999 (OJ L 199, 30.7.1999, p. 8).

(4) OJ L 349, 24.12.1998, p. 1.

Article 4

The price of the alcohol for public sale shall be EUR 19 per
hectolitre of alcohol at 100 % vol.

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Article 5

The alcohol must be removed no more than eight months after
the date of notification of the Commission's decision to award
the sale.

Article 6

The performance guarantee shall be EUR 30 per hectolitre of
alcohol at 100 % vol. Unless a standing guarantee is provided,
before removing any alcohol and by the day of issue of the
removal order at the latest, the firms awarded the lots shall
lodge a performance guarantee with the intervention agency
concerned to ensure that the alcohol
in question is used as
bioethanol in the fuel sector.

Article 7

Against payment of EUR 10 per litre and within 30 days of
the publication of the notice of public sale, the firms approved
in accordance with Article 92 of Regulation (EC) No 1623/
2000 may obtain samples of the alcohol put up for sale from
the intervention agency concerned. After that date, samples
may be obtained in accordance with Article 98(2) and (3) of

issued to the
Regulation (EC) No 1623/2000. Samples
approved firms shall amount to not more than five litres per
vat.

Article 8

The intervention agencies in the Member States in which the
alcohol put up for sale is stored shall carry out appropriate
checks to verify the nature of the alcohol at the time of end-
use. To that end, they may:

(a) apply Article 102 of Regulation (EC) No 1623/2000,

mutatis mutandis;

(b) carry out checks on samples using nuclear magnetic reso-
nance analysis to verify the nature of the alcohol at the
time of end-use.

The costs shall be borne by the firms to which the alcohol is
sold.

Article 9

This Regulation shall enter into force on the day of its publica-
tion in the Official Journal of the European Union.

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

Done at Brussels, 16 January 2004.

For the Commission

Franz FISCHLER

Member of the Commission

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ANNEX

PUBLIC SALES OF WINE ALCOHOL FOR USE AS BIOETHANOL IN THE COMMUNITY

Nos 26/2003 EC, 27/2003 EC, 28/2003 EC and 29/2003 EC

I.

Place of storage, quantity and characteristics of the alcohol put up for sale

Member State and lot
number

Location

Vat number

Quantity
(hectolitres of
alcohol at
100 % vol)

Reference to
Regulations
(EEC No 822/
87 and (EC) No
1493/1999
(Articles)

Type of alcohol

9

1

1

A6

D1

D1B

503

506

506

603

604

FRANCE
Lot No 26/2003 EC

Onivins-Port-la-Nouvelle
Avenue Adolphe-Turrel, BP 62
F-11210 Port-la-Nouvelle

Total

FRANCE
Lot No 27/2003 EC

Deulep-PSL
13230 Port-Saint-Louis-du-Rhône

Onivins chez LBC-PSL
F-13230 Port-Saint-Louis-du-Rhône

FRANCE
Lot No 27/2003 EC

Deulep
Boulevard Chanzy
F-30800 Saint-Gilles-du-Gard

ITALY
Lot No 29/2003 EC

Neri Srl-Faenza

CAVIRO S.c.a.r.l.-Faenza

Total

Total

Total

3 000

46 810

190

50 000

7 970

85 950

6 080

100 000

9 010

2 040

6 840

8 830

3 280

30 000

21 412,11

2 113,69

6 474,20

30 000

27

27

35

27

27

30

27

30

30

27

27

27

30

27

raw

raw

raw

raw

raw

raw

raw

raw

raw

raw

raw

raw

raw

raw

Firms approved
pursuant to
Article 92 of
Regulation (EC)
No 1623/2000

Bioetanol Galicia
SA

Ecocarburantes
españoles SA

Sekab
Etanolkemi AB)

(Svensk

Altia Corporation

II. The address of the French intervention agency is:

Onivins-Libourne, Délégation nationale, 17 avenue de la Ballastière, boîte postale 231, F-33505 Libourne Cedex (Tel.
(33-5) 57 55 20 00; Telex 57 20 25; Fax (33-5) 57 55 20 59).

III. The address of the Italian intervention agency is:

AGEA, via Palestro 81, I-00185 Roma (Tel. (39) 06 49 49 991; Telex 62 00 64/62 06 17/62 03 31; Fax (39) 06
445 39 40/445 46 93).