CELEX: 62007TJ0422
Language: en
Date: 2012-01-18 00:00:00
Title: Judgment of the General Court (Second Chamber) of 18 January 2012.#Djebel - SGPS SA v European Commission.#State aid – Aid scheme designed to promote modern and competitive entrepreneurial strategies – Planned aid for a commercial company in the form of a soft loan in order to help finance an investment by that company in Brazil – Decision declaring aid to be incompatible with the common market – Duty to state reasons – Impairment of competition – Effect on trade between Member States – Equal treatment.#Case T-422/07.

Judgment of the General Court (Second Chamber) of 18 January 2012 – Djebel – SGPS v Commission
      (Case T-422/07)
      State aid – Aid scheme designed to promote modern and competitive entrepreneurial strategies – Planned aid for a commercial company in the form of a soft loan in order to help finance an investment by that company in
         Brazil – Decision declaring aid to be incompatible with the common market – Duty to state reasons – Impairment of competition – Effect on trade between Member States – Equal treatment
      
      1.                     Actions for annulment – Jurisdiction of the EU judicature – Claim seeking that directions be issued to an institution – Claim
            for a declaratory judgment – Inadmissibility (Art. 230 EC) (see para. 50)
      2.                     State aid – Commission decision finding aid to be incompatible with the common market – Duty to state reasons – Scope – Decision
            in line with previous decisions – Summary reasoning – Decision going well beyond previous decisions – Express reasoning (Arts
            87(1) EC and 253 EC) (see paras 52-54, 57-58, 70)
      3.                     State aid – Effect on trade between Member States – Adverse effect on competition – Criteria for assessment – Small size and
            limited extent of aid not a priori excluding the possibility of trade being affected (Art. 87(1) EC) (see paras 81-85, 88-90, 97, 100)
      4.                     State aid – Prohibition – Exceptions – Discretion of the Commission – Judicial review (Art. 87(3) EC) (see paras 107-108)
      5.                     State aid – Prohibition – Exceptions – Aid eligible for the derogation laid down in Article 87(3)(c) EC – Aid not needed or
            having an incentive effect – Exclusion (Art. 87(3)(c) EC) (see paras 118-124)
      6.                     State aid – General aid scheme approved by the Commission – Approval subject to a reservation requiring individual notification
            of certain aids – Examination of such a notified aid having regard only to the rules of the Treaty (see paras 144, 147-149)
      7.                     State aid – Concept – Assessment according to the criterion of the private investor – Capital contribution (Art. 87(1) EC)
            (see paras 157-158)
      8.                     State aid – Commission decision – Assessment of legality by reference to the information available at the time of adoption
            of the decision – Foreseeable development of competition to be taken into account (Art. 87(1) EC) (see paras 168-170)
      9.                     State aid – Administrative procedure – Obligations of the Commission – Duty to act within a reasonable time – Criteria for
            assessment – Infringement – Consequences – Annulment of the decision where defence rights infringed (Art. 88(2) EC) (see paras
            174-176)
      10.                     Union law – Principles – Protection of legitimate expectations – Possibility of the Commission taking account of the development
            of the common market in relation to a previous decision – No breach of the principle of equal treatment (see paras 199-200,
            202-203)
      Re:
      
         
               ACTION for annulment of Commission Decision 2007/582/EC of 10 May 2007 on State aid C 4/2006 (ex N 180/2005) – Portugal –
                  Aid to Djebel (OJ 2007 L 219, p. 30).
               
            Operative part
      The Court:
      
         
                  1.
               
               
                  
               
               
                  	Dismisses the action;
               
            
         
                  2.
               
               
                  
               
               
                  	Orders Djebel – SGPS, SA to bear its own costs and to pay those of the European Commission.