Joined Cases C-474/09 P to C-476/09 P: Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 28 July 2011 — Territorio Histórico de Vizcaya — Diputación Foral de Vizcaya (C-474/09 P), Territorio Histórico de Álava — Diputación Foral de Álava (C-475/09 P), Territorio Histórico de Guipúzcoa — Diputación Foral de Guipúzcoa (C-476/09 P) v European Commission, Comunidad Autónoma del País Vasco — Gobierno Vasco, Comunidad Autónoma de la Rioja, Cámara Oficial de Comercio, Industria y Navegación de Vizcaya, Cámara Oficial de Comercio e Industria de Álava, Cámara Oficial de Comercio, Industria y Navegación de Guipúzcoa, Confederación Empresarial Vasca (Confebask) (Appeal — State aid — Actions for annulment — Decisions of the Commission concerning the State aid schemes implemented by Spain in favour of undertakings in the provinces of Vizcaya, Álava and Guipúzcoa — Reductions in the tax base for certain newly-created undertakings — Legitimate expectations — Principles of legal certainty and sound administration — Compliance with a reasonable time-limit — Lack of notification)
Date: 2011-07-28
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: Basque Country, Spain, State aid, aid to undertakings, control of State aid, tax relief








C_2011298EN.01000402.xml










8.10.2011   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 298/4





Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 28 July 2011 — Territorio Histórico de Vizcaya — Diputación Foral de Vizcaya (C-474/09 P), Territorio Histórico de Álava — Diputación Foral de Álava (C-475/09 P), Territorio Histórico de Guipúzcoa — Diputación Foral de Guipúzcoa (C-476/09 P) v European Commission, Comunidad Autónoma del País Vasco — Gobierno Vasco, Comunidad Autónoma de la Rioja, Cámara Oficial de Comercio, Industria y Navegación de Vizcaya, Cámara Oficial de Comercio e Industria de Álava, Cámara Oficial de Comercio, Industria y Navegación de Guipúzcoa, Confederación Empresarial Vasca (Confebask)
(Joined Cases C-474/09 P to C-476/09 P) (1)

(Appeal - State aid - Actions for annulment - Decisions of the Commission concerning the State aid schemes implemented by Spain in favour of undertakings in the provinces of Vizcaya, Álava and Guipúzcoa - Reductions in the tax base for certain newly-created undertakings - Legitimate expectations - Principles of legal certainty and sound administration - Compliance with a reasonable time-limit - Lack of notification)
2011/C 298/06
Language of the case: Spanish

Parties


Appellants: Territorio Histórico de Vizcaya — Diputación Foral de Vizcaya (C-474/09 P), Territorio Histórico de Álava — Diputación Foral de Álava (C-475/09 P), Territorio Histórico de Guipúzcoa — Diputación Foral de Guipúzcoa (C-476/09 P) (represented by: I. Sáenz-Cortabarría Fernández and M. Morales Isasi, abogados)

Other parties to the proceedings: European Commission (represented by: F. Castillo de la Torre and C. Urraca Caviedes, acting as Agents), Comunidad Autónoma del País Vasco — Gobierno Vasco (represented by: I. Sáenz-Cortabarría Fernández and M. Morales Isasi, abogados), Comunidad Autónoma de la Rioja (represented by: J.M. Criado Gámez and M. Martínez Aguirre, abogados), Cámara Oficial de Comercio, Industria y Navegación de Vizcaya, Cámara Oficial de Comercio e Industria de Álava, Cámara Oficial de Comercio, Industria y Navegación de Guipúzcoa (represented by: I. Sáenz-Cortabarría Fernández and M. Morales Isasi, abogados), Confederación Empresarial Vasca (Confebask)

Intervener in support of the appellants: Kingdom of Spain (represented by: N. Díaz Abad, acting as Agent)

Re:

Appeal against the judgment of the Court of First Instance (Fifth Chamber, extended composition) of 9 September 2009 in Joined Cases T-227/01 to T-229/01 and T-265/01, T-266/01 and T-270/01 Diputación Foral de Álava and Gobierno Vasco and Others v Commission, by which the Court dismissed, in Cases T-227/01 and T-265/01 an application to annul Commission Decision 2002/802/EC of 11 July 2001 on the State aid scheme implemented by Spain for firms in Álava in the form of a tax credit amounting to 45 % of investments (OJ 2002 L 296, p. 1), in Cases T-228/01 and T-266/01 an application to annul Commission Decision 2003/27/EC of 11 July 2001 on the State aid scheme implemented by Spain for firms in Vizcaya in the form of a tax credit amounting to 45 % of investments (OJ 2003 L 17, p. 1), and in Cases T-229/01 and T-270/01, an application to annul Commission Decision 2002/894/EC of 11 July 2001 on the State aid scheme implemented by Spain for firms in Guipúzcoa in the form of a tax credit amounting to 45 % of investments (OJ 2002 L 314, p. 26).

Operative part of the judgment

The Court:






1.


Dismisses the principal appeals and the subsidiary appeals;










2.


Orders Territorio Histórico de Vizcaya — Diputación Foral de Vizcaya, Territorio Histórico de Álava — Diputación Foral de Álava, Territorio Histórico de Guipúzcoa — Diputación Foral de Guipúzcoa, Cámara Oficial de Comercio, Industria y Navegación de Vizcaya, Cámara Oficial de Comercio e Industria de Álava, Cámara Oficial de Comercio, Industria y Navegación de Guipúzcoa each to pay an equal share of the costs of the present appeals;










3.


Orders the Kingdom of Spain to bear its own costs.






(1)  OJ C 37, 13.2.2010.