CELEX: 31976D0507
Language: en
Date: 1976-05-17 00:00:00
Title: Commission Decision of 17 May 1976 on the application of certain special tariffs of the Luxembourg National Railways (CFL) favouring Luxembourg agriculture

5. 6. 76                          Official Journal of the European Communities                             No L 147/ 13
                                                           II
                                     (Acts whose publication is not obligatory)
                                             COMMISSION
                                            COMMISSION DECISION
                                                   of 17 May 1976
             on the application of certain special tariffs of the Luxembourg National Rail­
                                ways (CFL) favouring Luxembourg agriculture
                                         (Only the French text is authentic)
                                                     (76/507/ EEC)
THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN                                 Whereas, having informed the Luxembourg Govern­
COMMUNITIES,                                                   ment of this state of affairs, and after an inquiry with
                                                               the latter and with the CFL into the tariffs, products
                                                               and routes concerned , the Commission summoned
Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European          the said Government to a consultative meeting as
Economic Community, and in particular Article 80               provided for in Article 80 (2) of the EEC Treaty,
thereof,                                                       pointing out that, should the results of this consulta­
                                                               tion confirm the supportive character of the tariffs in
Whereas the Luxembourg Government, in a letter                 question, the Commission would be obliged to take
from the Office of its Permanent Representative to             any measures necessary to end the breach arising from
the European Communities dated 18 March 1975,                  their application without authorization by the
                                                               Commission ;
informed the Commission pursuant to Article 93 (3)
of the EEC Treaty of its intention to grant aid to
Luxembourg agriculture by exempting 'all agricultural          Whereas the consultation , which took place on 9 July
products and certain means of production' from the             1975, confirmed that the exemption from the 10 %
general 10 % increase in the tariffs of the Luxem­             tariff increase imposed on the CFL and compensated
bourg National Railways (CFL) which entered into               for by the Luxembourg Government, concerns :
force on 1 January 1975 ; whereas it stated at the same
time that the estimated sum of Lfrs 1 440 000 would
                                                               — Chapters I, II and III of Special Tariff No 10 appli­
be entered in the national budget for 1975 to compen­               cable to cereals, animal feedingstuffs and natural
sate the CFL for the loss of income resulting from                  and chemical fertilizers,
this measure ;
                                                               — Chapters I and II of Special Tariff No 1 1 appli­
                                                                    cable to Thomas slag on certain routes,
Whereas the measure did in fact enter into force on
21 March 1975 ;                                                — Franco-Luxembourg International Tariff No 9469
                                                                    (No 7401 since 1 August 1975) applicable to the
                                                                    carriage of cereals ;
Whereas, since this is an imposition by the Luxem­
bourg Government of rates and conditions involving,
on its own admission , a support to agriculture, the           Whereas Chapter II of Special Tariff No 10 and Chap­
measure undeniably falls within the sphere of Article          ters I and II of Special Tariff No 1 1 are applied by the
80 of the EEC Treaty and the application of these              CFL to meet competition from road transport and/or
rates and conditions of transport was therefore subject        mixed transport by road and the River Moselle via
to prior authorization by the Commission ;                     Mertert and whereas, in particular, Chapter I of
 ---pagebreak--- No L 147/ 14                         Official Journal of the European Communities                            5. 6. 76
 Special Tariff No 1 1 applies exclusively to the export       HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION :
 of Thomas slag from Luxembourg steel works ;
 Whereas, since prices in Chapters I and II of Special                                Article 1
 Tariff No 11 are exempted from the 10% increase,
 the aid measure also favours Luxembourg production            The application of the reduced rates in the following
 of Thomas slag ;                                              CFL special tariffs, resulting from the exemption of
                                                               the transport operations concerned from the general
 Whereas the application of all the above tariffs as
 support tariffs imposed by a Member State cannot be
                                                               10 % tariff increase on 1 January 1975, is not autho­
                                                               rized :
 denied, seeing that it necessarily results from the fact
 that the Luxembourg Government grants the CFL                 — Chapters I, II and III of Special Tariff No 10 —
 corresponding compensation pursuant to Council                    Agricultural products,
 Regulation (EEC) No 1 107/70 of 4 June 1970 on the            — Chapters I and II of Special Tariff No 1 1 — Ferti­
granting of aids for transport by rail, road and inland            lizers,
waterway (') ;
                                                               — International Tariff No 7401 (formerly 9469) —
Whereas, because of its express aim of aiding Luxem­               Carriage of cereals, fodder and oilcakes between
 bourg agriculture, the measure is likely to disturb the           France and Luxembourg.
 functioning of the common agricultural market ;
whereas, moreover, it favours Luxembourg steel works
 producing Thomas slag vis-ti^vis other steel works in                                Article 2
 the Community ; whereas the Luxembourg Govern­
 ment has not put forward any ground of regional               This Decision is addressed to the Grand Duchy of
 policy which could justify it ; whereas by its applica­       Luxembourg.
 tion to rail transport alone and, moreover, to tariffs
 applied as competitive tariffs by the CFL, it is of a
 nature such as to affect competition between the
                                                               Done at Brussels, 17 May 1976.
 different modes of transport ;
Whereas, in spite of repeated action by the Commis­
                                                                                         For the Commission
sion and in spite of reiterated declarations by the
 Luxembourg Government of its intention to abolish                                 Carlo SCARASCIA MUGNOZZA
this measure as soon as possible, it continues to be
applied,                                                                                    Vice-President
(•) OJ No L 130, 15. 6. 1970, p. 1 .