Case T-671/25: Action brought on 27 September 2025 – TNG Stadtnetz v Commission
Date: 2025-09-27
Institutions: General Court
Subjects: Germany, State aid, abuse of power, control of State aid, infringement procedure (EU), powers of the institutions (EU), rule of law, transmission network








C_202506137EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
C series













C/2025/6137


8.12.2025






Action brought on 27 September 2025 – TNG Stadtnetz v Commission


(Case T-671/25)

(C/2025/6137)
Language of the case: German

Parties


Applicant: TNG Stadtnetz GmbH (Kiel, Germany) (represented by: S. Louven, lawyer)

Defendant: European Commission

Form of order sought

The applicant claims that the Court should:






—


annul the letter of information of the European Commission dated 28 July 2025; (1)











—


order the defendant to pay the costs.





Pleas in law and main arguments

In support of the action, the applicant relies on the following pleas in law.






1.


In the first place, the applicant challenges the Commission’s competence.






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The Commission took action in the form of a letter of information pursuant to the first sentence of the second subparagraph of Article 24(2) of Regulation (EU) 2015/1589 (2) after a considerable period of time had elapsed, although the facts and points of law raised by the applicant in its complaint provided sufficient grounds to show, on the basis of a prima facie examination, an infringement of the law on aid had occurred and therefore a formal decision ought to have been issued.














2.


In the second place, the applicant alleges an infringement of the essential formal requirements.






—


The Commission circumvented the requirement under the first sentence of Article 15(1) of Regulation (EU) 2015/1589 to take action in the form of a decision by sending a letter of information instead.














3.


In the third place, the applicant alleges a failure to discharge its duties under the Treaties.






—


Contrary to Article 12 of Regulation (EU) 2015/1589, the principle of good administration under Article 41(1) of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (EU Fundamental Rights Charter), the principle of the rule of law enshrined in the first sentence of Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union and Article 52(2) of the EU Fundamental Rights Charter, the Commission seriously failed to discharge its duty to investigate.














4.


In the fourth place, the applicant alleges a misuse of discretion.






—


The Commission misused the discretion granted to it under Article 12 of Regulation (EU) 2015/1589, in so far as it took action under the first sentence of the second subparagraph of Article 24(2) of Regulation (EU) 2015/1589 not in the form of a decision, but merely through a letter of information.










(1)  Letter of information pursuant to the first sentence of the second subparagraph of Article 24(2) of Council Regulation (EU) 2015/1589 of 13 July 2015, concerning Case SA 114187/Alleged aid to NetCOM BW.

(2)  Council Regulation (EU) 2015/1589 of 13 July 2015 laying down detailed rules for the application of Article 108 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (codification) (OJ 2015 L 248, p. 9).


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2025/6137/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)