Case C-195/04: Action brought on 29 April 2004 by the Commission of the European Communities against the Republic of Finland
Date: 2004-07-10
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: European Commission, Finland, action for failure to fulfil an obligation, administrative transparency, award of contract, household electrical appliance, public contract, purchase

C 179/4

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

10.7.2004

Reference for a preliminary ruling by the Rechtbank 's-
Gravenhage by order of 22 April 2004 in the case of
Nederlandse Vereniging Diervoederindustrie Nevedi v
Produktschap Diervoeder

sented by K. Wiedner and M. Huttunen, acting as Agents, with
an address for service in Luxembourg.

The Commission claims that the Court should:

(Case C-194/04)

(2004/C 179/07)

Reference has been made to the Court of Justice of the Euro-
pean Communities by order of 22 April 2004 of the Rechtbank
's-Gravenhage (Local Court, The Hague), which was received at
the Court Registry on 27 April 2004, for a preliminary ruling
in the case of Nederlandse Vereniging Diervoederindustrie
Nevedi v Produktschap Diervoeder on the following questions:

1. Declare that the Republic of Finland has failed to fulfil its
obligations under Article 28 EC, since Senaatti-kiinteistöt,
when procuring institutional kitchen equipment,
infringed
fundamental provisions of the EC Treaty, in particular the
principle of non-discrimination, which includes the obliga-
tion of publicity, and

2. Order the Republic of Finland to pay the costs.

Pleas in law and main arguments

1. Are Article 1(1)(b) of Directive 2002/2 (1) and/or Article
1(4) of Directive 2002/2, to the extent to which it amends
Article 5c(2)(a) of Directive 79/373 by requiring percentages
to be listed, invalid by reason of:

Although the Community directives concerning public procure-
ment do not apply to contracts whose value is less than their
the EC
threshold of application,
Treaty must be complied with,
in particular the principle of
non-discrimination, which includes the obligation of publicity.

fundamental provisions of

(a) the absence of a legal basis in Article 152(4)(b) EC;

(b) infringement of fundamental rights, such as the right to
freely to exercise a trade or

property and the right
profession;

(c) infringement of the principle of proportionality?

2. If the conditions are satisfied under which a national court
of a Member State is entitled to suspend implementation of
a contested measure of the Community institutions, in par-
ticular also the condition that the question concerning the
validity of the contested measure has already been referred
by a national court of that Member State to the Court of
Justice, are the competent public authorities of the other
judicial
Member States themselves also entitled, without
intervention, to suspend the contested measure until such
time as the Court of
Justice has given a ruling on the
validity of that measure?

(1) OJ L 63 of 6 March 2002, pp. 23 to 25.

the procurement directives,

Justice has held that, even though certain
The Court of
contracts concerning public procurement are outside the scope
of
the procurement authorities
which conclude them must nevertheless comply with the
fundamental provisions of the Treaty. Even though the Com-
munity legislature considered that the detailed procedures laid
down in the directives concerning public procurement are not
regarded as applicable to public contracts below the threshold
values in accordance with those provisions, that alone does not
mean, however, that such procurement contracts do not fall
within the scope of Community law.

The case-law clearly shows that a procurement must be made
public to a reasonable extent and that that obligation of publi-
city must be complied with even in the case of contracts whose
estimated values are below the threshold of application of the
EC procurement directives.

Action brought on 29 April 2004 by the Commission of
the Republic of
the European Communities against

Action brought on 4 May 2004 by the Commission of the
European Communities against the United Kingdom

Finland

(Case C-195/04)

(2004/C 179/08)

An action against the Republic of Finland was brought before
the Court of Justice of the European Communities on 29 April
2004 by the Commission of the European Communities, repre-

(Case C-199/04)

(2004/C 179/09)

An action against the United Kingdom was brought before the
Court of Justice of the European Communities on 4 May 2004
by the Commission of the European Communities, represented
by Ms Claire-Françoise Durand and Ms Florence Simonetti,
acting as agents, assisted by Miss Anneli Howard, Barrister,
with an address for service in Luxembourg.