CELEX: C2003/158/04
Language: en
Date: 2003-07-05 00:00:00
Title: Judgment of the Court of 13 May 2003 in Case C-463/00: Commission of the European Communities v Kingdom of Spain (Failure by a Member State to fulfil its obligations — Articles 43 EC and 56 EC — System of administrative approval relating to privatised undertakings)

5.7.2003                  EN                         Official Journal of the European Union                                               C 158/3
                  JUDGMENT OF THE COURT                                      3.    Community law does not preclude the shipment to mainland
                                                                                   Portugal of white sugar produced in the Azores from sugarbeet
                                                                                   harvested in the Azores and which receives the Community aid
                            (Fifth Chamber)
                                                                                   provided for in Article 25 of Regulation No 1600/92 up to a
                                                                                   limit of 10 000 tonnes of production per year.
                            of 15 May 2003
                                                                             4.    Community law does not preclude the shipment to mainland
in Case C-282/00 (Reference for a preliminary ruling from                          Portugal of white sugar produced in the Azores from raw beet
the Tribunal Judicial da Comarca de Ponta Delgada):                                sugar imported under the specific supply arrangements provided
Refinarias de Açúcar Reunidas SA (RAR) v Sociedade de                              for under Title I of Regulation No 1600/92, provided that it
        Indústrias Agricolas Açoreanas SA (Sinaga) (1)                             corresponds to traditional shipments within the meaning of the
                                                                                   second paragraph of Article 8 of that regulation.
(Sugar — Decision 91/315/EEC — Poseima Programme —
Specific measures in favour of the Azores and Madeira —                      (1 ) OJ C 247 of 26.8.2000.
Regulation (EEC) No 1600/92 — Shipment to the rest of the
Community of white sugar produced in the Azores from
sugarbeet harvested there or from raw beet sugar imported
exempt from levies and/or customs duties — Meaning of
‘processing of products’ — Meaning of ‘traditional shipment
                  to the rest of the Community’)
                            (2003/C 158/03)                                                   JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
                   (Language of the case: Portuguese)                                                   of 13 May 2003
(Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be published       in Case C-463/00: Commission of the European Communi-
                     in the European Court Reports)                                             ties v Kingdom of Spain (1)
                                                                             (Failure by a Member State to fulfil its obligations —
In Case C-282/00: Reference to the Court under Article 234                   Articles 43 EC and 56 EC — System of administrative
                                                                                       approval relating to privatised undertakings)
EC by the Tribunal Judicial da Comarca de Ponta Delgada
(Portugal) for a preliminary ruling in the proceedings pending
before that court between Refinarias de Açúcar Reunidas SA                                              (2003/C 158/04)
(RAR) and Sociedade de Indústrias Agricolas Açoreanas SA
(Sinaga), on the interpretation of Council Regulation (EEC)
No 1600/92 of 15 June 1992 concerning specific measures                                         (Language of the case: Spanish)
for the Azores and Madeira relating to certain agricultural
products (OJ 1992 L 173, p. 1), the Court (Fifth Chamber),
                                                                             (Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be published
composed of: M. Wathelet, President of the Chamber,                                              in the European Court Reports)
C.W.A. Timmermans, D.A.O. Edward, P. Jann and S. von Bahr
(Rapporteur), Judges; J. Mischo, Advocate General; H.A. Rühl,
Principal Administrator, for the Registrar, has given a judgment
on 15 May 2003, in which it has ruled:
                                                                             In Case C-463/00, Commission of the European Communities
                                                                             (Agents: M. Patakia and M. Desantes, and, subsequently,
1.    The refining of raw beet sugar into white sugar must be                M. Patakia and G. Valero Jordana) v Kingdom of Spain (Agent:
      considered to be the processing of a product within the meaning        N. Díaz Abad), supported by United Kingdom of Great Britain
      of the second paragraph of Article 8 of Council Regulation             and Northern Ireland (Agent: R. Magrill, assisted by D. Wyatt,
      (EEC) No 1600/92 of 15 June 1992 concerning specific                   QC, and J. Crow, barrister): Application for a declaration that
      measures for the Azores and Madeira relating to certain                the provisions of Article 2 and Article 3(1) and (2), together
      agricultural products.                                                 with Article 1, of Ley 5/1995 de régimen jurídico de enajena-
                                                                             ción de participaciones públicas en determinadas empresas
2.    Shipments which, at the time of the entry into force of                (Law 5/1995 of 23 March 1995 on the legal arrangements for
      Regulation No 1600/92 on 1 July 1992, were ongoing,                    disposal of public shareholdings in certain undertakings (BOE
      regular and significant are traditional shipments to the rest of       No 72 of 25 March 1995, p. 9366) and the implementing
      the Community within the meaning of the second paragraph of            royal decrees enacted under Article 4 of Law 5/1995 (Royal
      Article 8 of Regulation No 1600/92. It is for the referring            Decree No 3/1996 of 15 January 1996 concerning Repsol SA
      court to assess whether that was the case for the shipments of         (BOE No 14 of 16 January 1996, p. 1133), Royal Decree No 8/
      sugar from the Azores to mainland Portugal and to Madeira              1997 of 10 January 1997 concerning Telefónica de España SA
      between 1907 and 1992 referred to in the table set out in the          and Telefónica Servicios Móviles SA (BOE No 10 of 11 January
      order for reference.                                                   1997, p. 907), Royal Decree No 40/1998 of 16 January 1998
 ---pagebreak--- C 158/4                  EN                          Official Journal of the European Union                                               5.7.2003
concerning Corporación Bancaria de España SA (Argentaria)                                      JUDGMENT OF THE COURT
(BOE No 15 of 17 January 1998, p. 1851), Royal Decree
No 552/1998 of 2 April 1998 concerning Tabacalera SA (BOE
No 80 of 3 April 1998, p. 11370), and Royal Decree No 929/                                                of 13 May 2003
1998 of 14 May 1998 concerning Endesa SA (BOE No 129 of
30 May 1998, p. 17939), in so far as they implement a system
of prior administrative approval                                             in Case C-98/01: Commission of the European Communi-
                                                                             ties v United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern
                                                                                                             Ireland ( 1)
—     which is not justified by any overriding requirements of
      the general interest,
                                                                             (Failure by a Member State to fulfil its obligations —
                                                                             Articles 43 EC and 56 EC — Rights attaching to the United
—     which does not lay down objective and stable criteria                                Kingdom’s Special Share in BAA plc)
      which have been made public, and
                                                                                                          (2003/C 158/05)
—     which does not comply with the principle of pro-
      portionality,
                                                                                                  (Language of the case: English)
are incompatible with Article 43 EC and Article 56 EC, the
Court, composed of: G.C. Rodríguez Iglesias, President, J.-
P. Puissochet, M. Wathelet and R. Schintgen (Presidents of                   (Provisional translation; the definitive translation will be published
Chambers), C. Gulmann, D.A.O. Edward, A. La Pergola, P. Jann                                      in the European Court Reports)
(Rapporteur), V. Skouris, F. Macken, N. Colneric, S. von Bahr
and A. Rosas, Judges; D. Ruiz-Jarabo Colomer, Advocate
General; L. Hewlett, Principal Administrator, for the Registrar,
has given a judgment on 13 May 2003, in which it:
                                                                             In Case C-98/01, Commission of the European Communities
                                                                             (Agents: F. Benyon and M. Patakia) v United Kingdom of Great
                                                                             Britain and Northern Ireland (Agents: R. Magrill, assisted by
1.    Declares that, by maintaining in force the provisions of Article 2     D. Wyatt, QC, and J. Crow, barrister): Application for a
      and Article 3(1) and (2) of Ley 5/1995 de régimen jurídico             declaration that the provisions limiting the possibility of
      de enajenación de participaciones públicas en determinadas             acquiring voting shares in BAA plc as well as the procedure
      empresas (Law 5/1995 on the legal arrangements for disposal            requiring consent to the disposal of the company’s assets, to
      of public shareholdings in certain undertakings) of 23 March           control of its subsidiaries and to winding-up are incompatible
      1995, as well as Royal Decree No 3/1996 of 15 January                  with Articles 43 EC and 56 EC, the Court, composed of:
      1996 concerning Repsol SA, Royal Decree No 8/1997 of                   G.C. Rodríguez Iglesias, President, J.-P. Puissochet, M. Wathelet
      10 January 1997 concerning Telefónica de España SA and                 and R. Schintgen (Presidents of Chambers), C. Gulmann,
      Telefónica Servicios Móviles SA, Royal Decree No 40/1998 of            D.A.O. Edward, A. La Pergola, P. Jann (Rapporteur), V. Skouris,
      16 January 1998 concerning Corporación Bancaria de España              F. Macken, N. Colneric, S. von Bahr and A. Rosas, Judges;
      SA (Argentaria), Royal Decree No 552/1998 of 2 April                   D. Ruiz-Jarabo Colomer, Advocate General; H. von Holstein,
      1998 concerning Tabacalera SA, and Royal Decree No 929/                Deputy Registrar, has given a judgment on 13 May 2003, in
      1998 of 14 May 1998 concerning Endesa SA, in so far as                 which it:
      they implement a system of prior administrative approval, the
      Kingdom of Spain has failed to fulfil its obligations under
      Article 56 EC;                                                         1.    Declares that, by maintaining in force the provisions limiting
                                                                                   the possibility of acquiring voting shares in BAA plc as well as
                                                                                   the procedure requiring consent to the disposal of the company’s
2.    Orders the Kingdom of Spain to pay the costs;                                assets, to control of its subsidiaries and to winding-up, the
                                                                                   United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has
                                                                                   failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 56 EC;
3.    Orders the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern
      Ireland to bear its own costs.
                                                                             2.    Orders the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern
                                                                                   Ireland to pay the costs.
( 1) OJ C 61 of 24.2.2001.
                                                                             (1 ) OJ C 134 of 5.5.2001.