20.10.2007   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 247/22


Judgment of the Court of First Instance of 12 September 2007 — Olympiaki Aeroporia Ypiresies v Commission

(Case T-68/03) (1)

(State aid - Restructuring aid granted by the Hellenic Republic to the airline Olympic Airways - Decision declaring the aid incompatible with the common market and ordering its recovery - Misuse of the aid - New aid - Burden of proof - Right to be heard - Private creditor test - Error of fact - Manifest error of assessment - Statement of reasons - Articles 87(1) EC and (3)(c) EC)

(2007/C 247/32)

Language of the case: Greek

Parties

Applicant: Olympiaki Aeroporia Ypiresies AE, formerly Olympiaki Aeroporia AE (Athens, Greece) (represented first by D. Waelbroeck and E. Bourtzalas, lawyers, J. Ellison and M. Hall, Solicitors, and A. Kalogeropoulos and C. Tagaras, lawyers, and then by P. Anestis, lawyer, and T. Soames, Solicitor)

Defendant: Commission of the European Communities (represented by: D. Triantafyllou and J. L. Buendía Sierra, acting as Agents, and A. Oikonomou, lawyer)

Re:

Application for the annulment of Commission Decision 2003/372/EC of 11 December 2002 on aid granted by Greece to Olympic Airways (OJ 2003, L 132, p. 1)

Operative part of the judgment

The Court hereby:

1.

Annuls Articles 2 and 3 of Commission Decision 2003/372/EC of 11 December 2002 on aid granted by Greece to Olympic Airways in so far as they concern tolerance of persistent non-payment of airport charges owed by Olympic Airways to Athens International Airport and of VAT owed by Olympic Aviation on fuel and spare parts.

2.

Dismisses the remainder of the application.

3.

Orders Olympiaki Aeroporia Ypiresies AE to pay 75 % of its own costs and of those of the Commission and orders the Commission to pay 25 % of its own costs and of those of Olympiaki Aeroporia Ypiresies.


(1)  OJ C 112 of 10.5.2003.