T-419/03

6.3.2004 EN Official Journal of the European Union C 59/27

Action brought on 22 December 2003 by ARGEV Ver- ments would fulfil the requirements of the block exemption packungsverwertungs-Gesellschaft mbH and Altstoff regulation. The imposition of conditions which exceed the Recycling Austria Aktiengesellschaft against the Com- provisions of the block exemption is impermissible. mission of the European Communities

(Case T-419/03) Furthermore, the applicants submit that the conditions pro- vided for cannot be fulfilled and are unreasonable. Article 3(b) of the decision requires ARGEV and/or its disposal partner to (2004/C 59/43) have continuing information concerning the total amount of packaging licensed through systems in the domestic sector. (Language of the case: German) That information is not, however, available. In addition, market shares can only be determined retrospectively. The distribution key laid down by the Commission for the goods collected is therefore impracticable. Moreover, Article 3(b) would, on the An action against the Commission of the European Communi- basis of realistic assumptions, result in ARGEV failing to ties was brought before the Court of First Instance of the achieve the collection and recycling quota laid down by the European Communities on 22 December 2003 by ARGEV authorities. In the worst case, that would lead to the withdrawal Verpackungsverwertungs-Gesellschaft mbH and Altstoff of approval. The condition is therefore unreasonable, in Recycling Austria Aktiengesellschaft, Vienna (Austria), rep- particular because there were less severe means of achieving resented by Dr Hanno Wollmann, lawyer. the objective sought by the Commission. The proposals made by ARGEV in that regard were left out of account by the Commission in the decision, without any reasons being given. The applicant claims that the Court should

In 1994 the applicants notified several agreements and request- ed negative clearance or, in the alternative, an exemption decision. By the contested decision, the Commission approved, subject to conditions, the bundle of contracts of ARA, the countrywide Austrian system for the collection and recycling of packaging waste. Action brought on 22 December 2003 by European New Car Assessment Programme (‘Euro NCAP’) against the Commission of the European Communities The applicants object to Articles 2 and 3 of the decision and claim that the restriction of competition found by the Commission does not exist. The Commission bases Article 2 (Case T-424/03) of the decision on the fact that ARGEV has given exclusive contracts in the relevant collecting region to those disposal (2004/C 59/44) undertakings with which it has concluded collection and sorting agreements (‘services contracts’). That is incorrect. The services contracts do not contain either a commitment to (Language of the case: English) exclusivity which binds ARGEV or on which it can rely. For that reason, the Commission ought to have given the services contracts the negative clearance primarily applied for instead of an exemption. An action against the Commission of the European Communi- ties was brought before the Court of First Instance of the Moreover, the applicants claim that the services contract European Communities on 22 December 2003 by European satisfies the requirements of the block exemption in Regulation New Car Assessment Programme (‘Euro NCAP’), Brussels, No 2790/1999 (1). Even if the services contracts of ARGEV Belguim, represented by Mr S. Kinsella and Mr K. Daly, contained an obligation of exclusivity (quod non) the agree- Solicitors.