Council Regulation (EC) No 501/2007 of 7 May 2007 amending Annex I to Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and on the Common Customs Tariff
Date: 2007-05-07
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: Combined Nomenclature, aluminium, common customs tariff, customs regulations, suspension of customs duties, tariff nomenclature

9.5.2007

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 119/1

(Acts adopted under the EC Treaty/Euratom Treaty whose publication is obligatory)

I

REGULATIONS

COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) No 501/2007

of 7 May 2007

amending Annex I to Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 on the tariff and statistical nomenclature and on
the Common Customs Tariff

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty
Community, and in particular Article 26 thereof,

establishing the European

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Whereas:

(1) With the enlargement of

Furthermore,

significantly increased.

alloyed aluminium for

the European Union the
number of small and medium sized enterprises (SME)
using unwrought, not
the
production of
semi-finished and finished industrial
the
goods has
market situation within the European Union has signifi-
to takeovers of Community
cantly
changed due
industries by global
industrial holdings and further
concentration of manufacturers of aluminium on the
world market. At the same time costs for electricity, an
important cost factor in the production of not alloyed
aluminium, has dramatically increased and the devel-
opment of the world economy has led to a shortage of
supply of raw aluminium.

(2)

(3)

These factors have lead to a significant increase in prices
for raw aluminium and excluded to a very large extent
independent small and medium sized users of not alloyed
aluminium from duty free purchases of this product. The
payment of customs duties of 6 % for the basic raw
material has therefore the effect that the competitiveness
of such companies is at risk and creates the danger that a
larger number of these companies will not be able to
survive.

of

companies

elimination

The
from the
these
Community market would certainly reduce competition
for semi-finished aluminium products on this market. In
addition such elimination would have negative effects on
the employment in the Community especially in some

(4)

(5)

(6)

customs duty

the new Member States. The partial
rural areas of
suspension of
for non-alloyed
the
aluminium would therefore improve to a certain extent
the competitiveness of the SME and thus improve the
competition for semi-finished and finished aluminium
products on the Community market.

This situation has to be weighed against the impact of a
customs duty suspension on the manufacturing plants of
not alloyed aluminium which still exist within the
Community and in countries with a preferential tariff
arrangement with the European Union. Almost all
these plants belong either directly or
indirectly to
major industrial holdings located outside the European
Union. The aluminium produced in these plants and
supplied duty free is mainly used for further transfor-
mation within companies
linked to these holdings.
Only a relative small share of duty free non alloyed
aluminium is made available to independent SME. Never-
theless taking into account the relative high level of the
duty of 6 % the
conventional
autonomous partial suspension of this duty will have
an impact on the profitability of the production and
the
these
companies due to an increased price pressure on the
products resulting from transformation as well as on
the raw aluminium sold on the open market to inde-
pendent companies.

transformation operations of

subsequent

rate of

customs

In view of this situation it appears therefore appropriate
rate of customs duty
to suspend the autonomous
to
partially. This will allow the independent SMEs
reduce their costs and to benefit
from a significant
increase in competitiveness.

This partial suspension of the autonomous customs duty
for unwrought, not alloyed aluminium is appropriate to
balance
operators
concerned.

economic

interest

the

the

of

L 119/2

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

9.5.2007

(7)

(8)

in the
Taking into account possible future changes
market situation of unwrought, not alloyed aluminium,
a review should be foreseen after three years of the entry
into force of this Regulation.

Since the partial suspension should cover all products
falling within CN code 7601 10 00 and given the
permanent
to
Council Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87 (1) should be
amended accordingly,

the measure, Annex I

character of

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Two (Schedule of Customs Duties) shall be replaced by the
following:

‘6 (*)
___________
(*) Autonomous rate of duty: 3’.

Article 2

Three years after the entry into force of this Regulation, the
Council, acting on a proposal from the Commission, may adjust
the autonomous customs duty of 3 % for unwrought, not
alloyed aluminium falling within CN code 7601 10 00.

Article 1

Article 3

In Annex I to Regulation (EEC) No 2658/87, the text in column
3 for CN code 7601 10 00 in Chapter 76, Section XV of Part

This Regulation shall enter into force on the third day following
its publication 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 Luxembourg, 7 May 2007.

For the Council
The President

H. SEEHOFER

(1) OJ L 256, 7.9.1987, p. 1. Regulation as last amended by Regulation

(EC) No 301/2007 (OJ L 81, 22.3.2007, p. 11).