Cases T-724/22 and T-725/22: Judgment of the General Court of 23 October 2024 – Neottolemo and Register.com v Commission (Madeira Free Zone) (State aid – Madeira Free Zone – Aid scheme implemented by Portugal – Decision finding that the scheme does not comply with Decisions C(2007) 3037 final and C(2013) 4043 final, declaring it to be incompatible with the internal market and ordering the recovery of aid paid under that scheme – Actions for annulment – Locus standi – Interest in bringing proceedings – Admissibility – Concept of 'state aid' – Fiscal autonomy of the Member States – Concept of 'existing aid' within the meaning of Article 1(b)(ii) of Regulation (EU) 2015/1589 – Recovery – Unjust enrichment)
Date: 2024-10-23
Institutions: General Court
Subjects: Madeira, Portugal, State aid, aid to undertakings, control of State aid, corporation tax, regional aid, reimbursement of aid, tax exemption, tax relief








C_202407328EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
C series













C/2024/7328


16.12.2024






Judgment of the General Court of 23 October 2024 – Neottolemo and Register.com v Commission (Madeira Free Zone)


(Cases T-724/22 and T-725/22)
                (1)

(State aid - Madeira Free Zone - Aid scheme implemented by Portugal - Decision finding that the scheme does not comply with Decisions C(2007) 3037 final and C(2013) 4043 final, declaring it to be incompatible with the internal market and ordering the recovery of aid paid under that scheme - Actions for annulment - Locus standi - Interest in bringing proceedings - Admissibility - Concept of 'state aid' - Fiscal autonomy of the Member States - Concept of 'existing aid' within the meaning of Article 1(b)(ii) of Regulation (EU) 2015/1589 - Recovery - Unjust enrichment)
(C/2024/7328)
Language of the case: Portuguese

Parties


Applicant in Case T-724/22: Neottolemo, Lda (Zona Franca da Madeira) (Funchal, Portugal) (represented by: G. Leite de Campos and M. Clemente, lawyers)

Applicant in Case T-725/22: Register.com LP – Sucursal em Portugal (Zona Franca da Madeira) (Funchal) (represented by: G. Leite de Campos and M. Clemente, lawyers)

Defendant: European Commission (represented by: I. Barcew and P. Caro de Sousa, acting as Agents)

Intervener in support of the applicant in Case T-724/22: Intercement Portugal SA (Lisbon, Portugal) (represented by: G. Leite de Campos and M. Clemente, lawyers)

Re:

By their actions under Article 263 TFEU, the applicants seek the annulment of Articles 1 to 3, 4(1) to (3) and second limb of (4), 5 and 6 of Commission Decision (EU) 2022/1414 of 4 December 2020 on aid scheme SA.21259 (2018/C) (ex 2018/NN) implemented by Portugal for Zona Franca da Madeira (ZFM) – Regime III (OJ 2022 L 217, p. 49).

Operative part of the judgment

The Court:






1.


Joins Cases T-724/22 and T-725/22 for the purposes of the judgment;










2.


Dismisses the actions;










3.


Orders Neottolemo, Lda (Zona Franca da Madeira) and Register.com LP – Sucursal em Portugal (Zona Franca da Madeira) to bear their own costs and to pay those incurred by the European Commission;










4.


Orders Intercement Portugal SA to bear its own costs and to pay those incurred by the Commission which relate to its intervention.






(1)  
            OJ C 63, 20.2.2023.


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2024/7328/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)