Judgment of the Court of First Instance of 8 July 2004 in Joined Cases T-67/00, T-68/00, T-7100 and T-78/00: JFE Engineering Corp and Others v Commission of the European Communities (Cartels — Market in seamless steel tubes and pipes — EFTA — Powers of the Commission — Infringement — Fines)
Date: 2004-09-25
Institutions: Court of First Instance
Subjects: EFTA, European Commission, action for annulment (EU), fine, piping, restriction on competition, restrictive trade practice, steel, trade restriction, tube

25.9.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 239/13

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE

of 8 July 2004

of 8 July 2004

in Case T-50/00: Dalmine SpA v Commission of

the

European Communities (1)

in Joined Cases T-67/00, T-68/00, T-7100 and T-78/00: JFE
the
Engineering Corp and Others v Commission of

European Communities (1)

(Competition — Cartels — Markets for seamless steel pipes
and tubes — Duration of the infringement — Fines)

(Cartels — Market in seamless steel tubes and pipes —
EFTA — Powers of the Commission — Infringement —
Fines)

(2004/C 239/26)

(Language of the case: Italian)

(2004/C 239/27)

(Language of the case: English)

In Case T-50/00: Dalmine SpA, established in Dalmine (Italy),
represented by M. Siragusa and F. Moretti,
lawyers, with an
address for service in Luxembourg, against Commission of the
European Communities (Agents: M. Erhart and A. Whelan,
assisted by A. Dal Ferro, lawyer, with an address for service in
Luxembourg) — application for annulment of Commission
Decision 2003/382/EC of 8 December 1999 relating to a
procedure under Article 81 of the EC Treaty (Case IV/E-1/
35.860-B — Seamless steel tubes) (OJ 2003 L 140, p. 1) or,
alternatively, for a reduction in the amount of the fine imposed
on the applicant — the Court of First
Instance (Second
Chamber), composed of N.J. Forwood, President, J. Pirrung and
A.W.H. Meij, Judges; J. Plingers, Administrator, for the Regis-
trar, gave a judgment on 8 July 2004, in which it:

1. Annuls Article 1(2) of Commission Decision 2003/382/EC of
8 December 1999 relating to a proceeding under Article 81 EC
(Case IV/E–1/35.860-B Seamless steel tubes) in so far as it finds
that the infringement imputed to the applicant by that provision
existed before 1 January 1991;

2. Fixes the amount of the fine imposed on the applicant in Article 4

of Decision 2003/382 at EUR 10,080,000;

3. Dismisses the remainder of the application;

4. Orders the applicant and the Commission to bear their own costs.

(1) OJ C 149 of 27.5.2000.

In Joined Cases T-67/00, T-68/00, T-7100 and T-78/00: JFE
Engineering Corp., formerly NKK Corp., established in Tokyo
(Japan), represented initially by M. Smith and C. Maguire, solici-
tors, and subsequently by A. Vandencasteele and V. Dehin,
lawyers, and A.-L. Marmagioli, solicitor, with an address for
service in Luxembourg, Nippon Steel Corp., established in
Tokyo, represented by J.-F. Bellis and K. Van Hove,
lawyers,
with an address for service in Luxembourg, JFE Steel Corp.,
formerly Kawasaki Steel Corp., established in Tokyo, repre-
lawyer, with an address for
sented by A. Vandencasteele,
service in Luxembourg, Sumitomo Metal Industries Ltd, estab-
lished in Tokyo, represented by C. Vajda QC, G. Sproul and F.
Weitzman, solicitors, with an address for service in Luxem-
the European Communities
bourg, against Commission of
(Agents: M. Erhart and A. Whelan assisted by N. Khan,
barrister, with an address
in Luxembourg),
supported by EFTA Surveillance Authority (Agents: D. Sif
Tynes and P Bjørgan — application for the annulment of
Commission Decision 2003/382/EC of 8 December 1999
relating to a proceeding under Article 81 of the EC Treaty
(Case IV/E-1/35.860-B seamless steel tubes) (OJ 2003 L 140, p.
1) or, in the alternative, for reduction of the fines imposed on
the applicants, — the Court of First
(Second
Chamber), composed of N.J. Forwood, President, J. Pirrung and
A.W.H. Meij, Judges; J. Plingers, Administrator, for the Regis-
trar, gave a judgment on 8 July 2004, in which it:

Instance

service

for

1. Annuls Article 1(2) of Commission Decision 2003/382/EC of
8 December 1999 relating to a proceeding under Article 81 of
the EC Treaty (Case IV/E-1/35.860-B seamless steel tubes) in so
far as it establishes the existence of the infringement found in that
article against the four applicants in Cases T-67/00, T-68/00,
T-71/00 and T-78/00 as pre-dating 1 January 1991 and
extending beyond 30 June 1994;

C 239/14

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

25.9.2004

2. Sets the fine imposed on each of the four applicants by Article 4

3. Orders the Commission to bear its own costs and to pay two-

of Decision 2003/382 at EUR 10,935,000;

thirds of the applicant's costs;

3. Dismisses the remainder of the four applications;

4. Orders the Federal Republic of Germany to bear its own costs.

4. Orders the four applicants and the Commission to bear their own

costs;

(1) OJ C 335 of 25.11.2000.

5. Orders the EFTA Surveillance Authority to bear its own costs.

(1) OJ C 149 of 27.5.2000.

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE

of 1 July 2004

in Case T-308/00: Salzgitter AG v Commission of the
European Communities (1)

(State aid — Article 4(c) CS, Articles 67 CS and 95 CS —
Financial intervention in favour of the undertaking Salzgitter
— Border between the former German Democratic Republic
and former Czechoslovak Socialist Republic — Non-notified
aid — Sixth Steel Aid Code — Legal certainty)

(2004/C 239/28)

(Language of the case: German)

In Case T-308/00: Salzgitter AG, established in Salzgitter
(Germany), represented by J. Sedemund and T. Lübbig, lawyers,
with an address for service in Luxembourg, supported by the
Federal Republic of Germany, (Agent: W.-D. Plessing, assisted
by K. Schroeter, lawyer) against the Commission of the Euro-
pean Communities (Agents: K.-D. Borchardt and V. Kreuschitz)
— application for an annulment of Commission Decision
2000/797/ECSC of 28 June 2000 on State aid granted by the
Federal Republic of Germany to Salzgitter AG, Preussag Stahl
AG and the group's steel-industry subsidiaries, now known as
Salzgitter AG – Stahl und Technologie (SAG) (OJ 2000 L 323,
p. 5) — the Court of First Instance (Fourth Chamber, Extended
J. Pirrung, P.
Composition), composed of V. Tiili, President,
Mengozzi, A.W.H. Meij and M. Vilaras,
I.
Natsinas, Administrator, has given a judgment on 1 July 2004,
in which it:

Judges; Registrar:

2

1. Annuls Articles

and

Commission Decision
3
2000/797/ECSC of 28 June 2000 on State aid granted by the
Federal Republic of Germany to Salzgitter AG, Preussag Stahl AG
and the group's
subsidiaries, now known as
Salzgitter AG – Stahl und Technologie (SAG);

steel-industry

of

2. Orders the applicant to bear one-third of its costs;

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE

of 7 July 2004

in Joined Cases T-107/01 and T-175/01: Société des mines
de Sacilor — Lormines SA v Commission of the European
Communities (1)

(ECSC Treaty — Steel — Abandonment of mining conces-
sions — Charges imposed on mining undertakings by the
French Republic — Complaint — No favourable response
from the Commission — Action for failure to act — Action
for annulment — Admissibility — Capacity to bring proceed-
ings — Undertaking within the meaning of Article 80 CS)

(2004/C 239/29)

(Language of the case: French)

In Joined Cases T-107/01 and T-175/01: Société des mines de
Sacilor — Lormines SA, established in Puteaux (France), repre-
sented initially by G. Marty and subsequently by R. Schmitt,
lawyers, against Commission of the European Communities
(Agents: G. Rozet and L. Ström) — application for failure to act
and, in the alternative, for annulment, concerning the Commis-
sion's refusal to uphold the applicant's complaint seeking a
declaration that the French Republic had infringed the provi-
sions of Articles 4(b) and (c) CS and 86 CS by reason of the
imposition on the applicant of allegedly excessive charges in
the context of procedures for the abandonment and renuncia-
tion of its mining concessions — the Court of First Instance
(Fourth Chamber), composed of H. Legal, President, V. Tiili and
M. Vilaras, Judges; J. Palacio González, Principal Administrator,
in
for the Registrar, has given a judgment on 7 July 2004,
which it:

1. Dismisses the actions as inadmissible;

2. Orders the applicant to pay the costs, including those of the proce-

dure for interim measures.

(1) OJ C 227 of 11.8.2001.