CELEX: C2002/274/65
Language: en
Date: 2002-11-09 00:00:00
Title: Case T-292/02: Action brought on 27 September 2002 by the Confederazione nazionale dei servizi against the Commission of the European Communities

C 274/38                EN                        Official Journal of the European Communities                                      9.11.2002
Action brought on 27 September 2002 by the Confedera-                        three-year exemption from tax on profits, granted by Italy to
zione nazionale dei servizi against the Commission of the                    local public service undertakings with publicly-owned majority
                      European Communities                                   shareholdings within the meaning of Article 3(70) of Legge
                                                                             (Law) No 549/1995, and loans at reduced interest rates within
                           (Case T-292/02)                                   the meaning of Article 9a of Decreto Legge (Decree-Law)
                                                                             No 488/1986, in so far as it requires Italy to recover the said
                          (2002/C 274/65)                                    aids from the recipients, including the applicant.
                     (Language of the case: Italian)                         In support of its claims the applicant alleges:
                                                                             —     infringement of Article 87(1) EC and Regulation No 659/
                                                                                   1999/EC by virtue of the absence of any effect on trade
An action against the European Commission was brought
                                                                                   between the Member States. It argues in that regard that,
before the Court of First Instance of the European Communities
                                                                                   for the purposes of applying Article 87(1) to an aid
on 27 September 2002 by the Confederazione nazionale dei
                                                                                   measure, the Commission must identify and establish the
servizi, represented by C. Tessarolo and A. Vianello, lawyers.
                                                                                   facts that are capable of showing, firstly, the existence of
                                                                                   a system of competition in the relevant market sector
The applicant claims that the Court should:                                        and, secondly, the possibility of the aid having a negative
                                                                                   effect on trade within the Community. As it is, the
—     annul Article 2 of Commission Decision No C.27/99                            markets in which the companies formed under Legge
      (ex NN 69/99) by which the Commission declared                               (Law) No 142/90 were operating during the period under
      incompatible with the common market the measures                             consideration had not been liberalised; on the contrary,
      adopted by Italy in the form of a three-year exemption                       they were organised as local monopolies which were
      from tax on profits and in the form of loans to joint-stock                  totally closed to free competition. Furthermore, the
      companies with publicly-owned majority shareholdings                         particular nature of companies formed under Legge
      within the meaning of Legge (Law) No 142 of 8 June                           No 142/90 and their substantive corporate continuity as
      1990;                                                                        reincarnations of the municipalised and special undertak-
                                                                                   ings had led the Italian legislature and national law to
—     alternatively, annul Article 3 of Decision No C.27/99 by
                                                                                   confine the activities of the newly incorporated joint-
      which the Commission required Italy to recover from the                      stock companies within the local sphere of the relevant
      recipient undertakings the aid which had been declared
                                                                                   undertaking;
      unlawful;
                                                                             —     infringement of Article 88(1) of the EC Treaty and of
—     in any case, in the further alternative, annul Article 3 in                  Article 1(b)(i) and (v) of Regulation No 659/1999,
      so far as it fixes interest on the basis of the reference rate               inasmuch as the defendant has classified the measures as
      used to calculate the equivalent subsidy in connection                       ‘new aid’, thereby infringing the procedural rules with
      with aid for regional purposes;                                              which the Commission must comply in the case of
—     order the Commission to pay the costs.                                       ‘existing aid’;
                                                                             —     infringement of the derogation provided for in
                                                                                   Article 86(2) EC, inasmuch as undertakings formed under
Pleas in law and main arguments                                                    Legge No 142/90 perform activities of general economic
                                                                                   interest.
This action seeks annulment of the Commission’s decision of
5 June 2002 (State Aid No 27/99), in so far as it declares                   The applicant also pleads infringement of the obligation to
unlawful and incompatible with the common market the                         state reasons.