Case T-57/11: Judgment of the General Court of 3 December 2014  — Castelnou Energía v Commission (State Aid — Electricity — Compensation of additional production costs — Public service obligation to produce certain volumes of electricity from indigenous coal — Preferential dispatch mechanism — Decision not to raise objections — Decision declaring the aid compatible with the internal market — Action for annulment — Individual concern — Significant effect on a competitive position — Admissibility — Failure to initiate the formal review procedure — Serious difficulties — Service of general economic interest — Security of electricity supply — Article 11(4) of Directive 2003/54/EC — Free movement of goods — Protection of the environment — Directive 2003/87/EC)
Date: 2014-12-03
Institutions: General Court
Subjects: Spain, State aid, coal, control of State aid, electrical energy, electricity supply, energy production, production cost, security of supply








C_2015026EN.01002401.xml










26.1.2015   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 26/24





Judgment of the General Court of 3 December 2014 — Castelnou Energía v Commission
(Case T-57/11) (1)

((State Aid - Electricity - Compensation of additional production costs - Public service obligation to produce certain volumes of electricity from indigenous coal - Preferential dispatch mechanism - Decision not to raise objections - Decision declaring the aid compatible with the internal market - Action for annulment - Individual concern - Significant effect on a competitive position - Admissibility - Failure to initiate the formal review procedure - Serious difficulties - Service of general economic interest - Security of electricity supply - Article 11(4) of Directive 2003/54/EC - Free movement of goods - Protection of the environment - Directive 2003/87/EC))
(2015/C 026/28)
Language of the case: Spanish

Parties


Applicant: Castelnou Energía, SL (Madrid, Spain) (represented initially by: E. Garayar Gutiérrez, subsequently by: C. Fernández Vicién, A. Pereda Miquel and C. del Pozo de la Cuadra, then by: C. Fernández Vicién, L. Pérez de Ayala Becerril and D. Antón Vega, and finally by: C. Fernández Vicién, L. Pérez de Ayala Becerril and C. Vila Gisbert, lawyers)

Defendant: European Commission (represented by: É. Gippini Fournier and C. Urraca Caviedes, acting as Agents)

Intervener in support of the applicant: Greenpeace-España (Madrid, Spain) (represented initially by: N. Ersbøll, S. Rating and A. Criscuolo, and subsequently by: N. Ersbøll and S. Rating, lawyers)

Interveners in support of the defendant: Kingdom of Spain (represented initially by: J. Rodríguez Cárcamo, subsequently by: M. Muñoz Pérez and N. Díaz Abad, then by: N. Díaz Abad and S. Centeno Huerta, and finally by: A. Rubio González and M. Sampol Pucurull, abogados del Estado); Hidroeléctrica del Cantábrico, SA (Oviedo, Spain) (represented by: J. Álvarez de Toledo Saavedra and J. Portomeñe López, lawyers); E.ON Generación, SL (Santander, Spain) (represented initially by: E. Sebastián de Erice Malo de Molina and S. Rodríguez Bajón, and subsequently by: S. Rodríguez Bajón, lawyers); Comunidad Autónoma de Castilla y León (represented initially by: K. Desai, Solicitor, S. Cisnal de Ugarte and M. Peristeraki, lawyers, and subsequently by: S. Cisnal de Ugarte); and Federación Nacional de Empresarios de Minas de Carbón (Carbunión) (Madrid, Spain) (represented initially by: K. Desai, Solicitor, S. Cisnal de Ugarte and M. Peristeraki, lawyers, and subsequently by: S. Cisnal de Ugarte and A. Baumann, lawyers)

Re:

Application for annulment of Commission Decision C(2010) 4499 of 29 September 2010, concerning State aid N178/2010 notified by the Kingdom of Spain in the form of a public service compensation linked to a preferential dispatch mechanism for indigenous coal power plants.

Operative part of the judgment

The Court:






1.


Dismisses the application;










2.


Orders Castelnou Energía, SL to bear its own costs and to pay the costs incurred by the European Commission;










3.


Orders the Kingdom of Spain, Greenpeace-España, Hidroeléctrica del Cantábrico, SA, E.ON Generación, SL, la Comunidad Autónoma de Castilla y León and la Federación Nacional de Empresarios de Minas de Carbón (Carbunión) to bear their own costs.






(1)  OJ C 80, 12.3.2011.