JUDGMENT OF THE COURT (FIFTH CHAMBER) 22 JUNE 1983 »

Usines Gustave Boël and Fabrique de Fer de Maubeuge v Commission of the European Communities

(ECSC — Adjustment of reference production)

Case 317/82

1. ECSC — Production — Quota system — Etablishment on an equitable basis — Adjustment of reference production — Conditions — Restriction to categories subject to a high abatement rate (Commission Decision 1696/82, Art. 14)

2. ECSC — Production — Quota system — Establishment on an equitable basis — Adjustment of reference production — Conditions — Taking into account of the abatement rate applicable to each of the categories of products referred to (Commission Decision 1696/82, Art. 14)

1. Article 14 of Decision 1696/82/ECSC Accordingly only difficulties which provides limited scope for adjusting are the direct consequence of the the quotas solely when an under­ establishment and application of the taking experiences "exceptional quota system may be considered when difficulties" "by virtue of the scale of Article 14 is applied. It follows that it the abatement rates". In those is only for categories the subject of circumstances the Commission is a high abatement rate that an required to take into consideration adjustment may in exceptional the special situation in each case in circumstances become necessary. Any order to determine whether the other solution would have arbitrary undertaking in question is confronted results in so far as it would allow the with exceptional difficulties resulting adjustment of reference production of from the reductions in production categories least affected by the system imposed on it. of restriction of production solely in order to counteract the difficulties involved in applying high abatement rates to other categories.

• — LanguagcoftheCasc: French.

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2. Article 14 of Decision 1696/82 does expression "category in question" not expressly impose an obligation on used in the aforesaid Article 14 refers the Commission to adjust reference not to all Categories la to Id but only productions of all categories la to Id to those mentioned at the beginning when the conditions in that article are of the provision, the abatement rates satisfied. That is true even though the of which are of a scale which may article provides for "suitable adjust­ create exceptional difficulties for the ments to its reference production . . . undertaking. for the category in question". The

In Case 317/82

USINES GUSTAVE BOËL, a Belgian limited liability company having its registered office in ,

FABRIQUE DE FER DE MAUBEUGE, a French limited liability company having its registered office in (), ,

both represented by E. Gutt of the Brussels Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of J. Loesch, 2 Rue Goethe, applicants, v

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, represented by its Principal Legal Adviser, Donald W. Allen, and by its Legal Adviser, Etienne Lasnet, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the office of Oreste Montako, a member of its Legal Department, Jean Monnet Building, Kirchberg, defendant,

APPLICATION for a declaration that the Commission decision of 26 No­ vember 1982, notified by telex message of the same day and confirmed by letter of 3 December 1982, on a procedure for the application of Article 14 of Commission Decision 1696/82/ECSC of 30 June 1982 on the extension of the system of monitoring and production quotas for certain products of undertakings in the steel industry (Official Journal L 191, 1. 7. 1982, p. 1), is void,

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