CELEX: C2000/285/29
Language: en
Date: 2000-10-07 00:00:00
Title: Case T-189/00: Action brought on 18 July 2000 by "Invest" Import und Export GmbH and Invest Commerce against the Commission of the European Communities

C 285/16              EN                     Official Journal of the European Communities                                        7.10.2000
—    The Commission failed to examine the facts diligently by           Pleas in law and main arguments
     finding that the purported capacity reduction would
     have an effect on competition which would offset the
     detrimental effects of the State aid. The alleged ‘reduction’      The applicants are import/export undertakings established
     of capacity, as described in the contested decision, will          within the Community. Their parent company is Invest-Import
     have no impact on the competitiveness of Delon and will            AG, established in Belgrade. By the contested decision, the
     lead, on the contrary, to a de facto increase in capacity;         applicants have been placed on a list of undertakings which
                                                                        are ‘deemed to be owned or controlled by the Government of
                                                                        the FRY [Federal Republic of Yugoslavia] or the Government
—    The aid in question was not accompanied by real and                of the Republic of Serbia’ (Article 2(2) of Council Regulation
     effective reductions in capacity as provided for in the            (EC) No 1294/1999 (1)). As a result of this, in accordance with
     Code on Aid to the Synthetic Fibres Industry (1) as well as        Article 3(1) of the regulation, the applicants’ accounts in
     in Article 87 EC.                                                  Germany and France are frozen.
                                                                        The applicants complain, first of all, that the contested
                                                                        regulation is contrary to Regulation No 1294/1999. They
(1) OJ 1996 C 94, p. 11.                                                maintain that the Commission has committed an error of law
                                                                        in subsuming the applicants under those companies and
                                                                        entities which, via their parent companies, are controlled by
                                                                        the Government or socially owned. On the contrary, the
                                                                        parent company of the applicants is privately owned by the
                                                                        employees of the undertaking.
                                                                        In addition, the applicants raise the objection, in accordance
                                                                        with Article 241 EC, that Regulation No 1294/1999, in the
                                                                        version contained in Regulation No 723/2000, is illegal,
                                                                        inasmuch as their parent company is wrongly treated by those
Action brought on 18 July 2000 by ‘Invest’ Import                       legal instruments as being ‘socially-owned’.
und Export GmbH and Invest Commerce against the
        Commission of the European Communities
                                                                        The applicants further plead infringement of their rights of
                                                                        defence and violation of the principle of proportionality.
                         (Case T-189/00)                                Lastly, they claim that the contested regulation contains an
                                                                        insufficient statement of reasons.
                         (2000/C 285/29)
                                                                        (1) Council Regulation (EC) No 1294/1999 of 15 June 1999 concern-
                                                                            ing a freeze of funds and a ban on investment in relation to the
                                                                            Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) and repealing Regulations
                 (Language of the case: German)                             (EC) No 1295/98 and (EC) No 1607/98 (OJ 1999 L 153, p. 63),
                                                                            in the version contained in Council Regulation (EC) No 723/2000
                                                                            of 6 April 2000 (OJ 2000 L 86, p. 1).
An action against the Commission of the European Communi-
ties was brought before the Court of First Instance of the
European Communities on 18 July 2000 by ‘Invest’ Import
und Export GmbH, of Neuss (Federal Republic of Germany),
and Invest Commerce, of Paris, represented by Rolf Wägen-
baur, of Graf von Westphalen Fritze & Modest, Brussels.
                                                                        Action brought on 21 July 2000 by the Regione Siciliana
The applicants claim that the Court should:                               against the Commission of the European Communities
—    annul Commission Regulation (EC) No 1147/2000 of                                             (Case T-190/00)
     29 May 2000 amending Annex II to Council Regulation
     (EC) No 1294/1999 concerning a freeze of funds and a
     ban on investment in relation to the Federal Republic of                                     (2000/C 285/30)
     Yugoslavia, in so far as it amends Annex II to Regulation
     No 1294/1999 so as to include the second applicant
     under the heading ‘France’ and the first applicant under                               (Language of the case: Italian)
     the heading ‘Germany’;
                                                                        An action against the Commission of the European Communi-
—    order the defendant to pay the costs.                              ties was brought before the Court of First Instance of the