Parties
In Joined Cases T-25/95, T-26/95, T-30/95, T-31/95, T-32/95, T-34/95, T-35/95, T-36/95, T-37/95, T-38/95, T-39/95, T-42/95, T-43/95, T-44/95, T-45/95, T-46/95, T-48/95, T-50/95, T-51/95, T-52/95, T-53/95, T-54/95, T-55/95, T-56/95, T-57/95, T-58/95, T-59/95, T-60/95, T-61/95, T-62/95, T-63/95, T-64/95, T-65/95, T-68/95, T-69/95, T-70/95, T-71/95, T-87/95, T-88/95, T-103/95 and T-104/95,
T-25/95
Cimenteries CBR SA, a company incorporated under Belgian law, established in Brussels, represented by Michel Waelbroeck, Alexandre Vandencasteele, Denis Waelbroeck and, initially, also by Olivier Speltdoorn, of the Brussels Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Ernest Arendt, 8-10 Rue Mathias Hardt,
T-26/95
Cembureau - Association Européenne du Ciment, an association constituted under Belgian law, established in Brussels, represented by Julian Ellison, Solicitor, and Mark Clough, Barrister, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Aloyse May, 31 Grand-Rue,
T-30/95
Fédération de l'Industrie Cimentière Belge ASBL, an association constituted under Belgian law, established in Brussels, represented by Onno Willem Brouwer, of the Amsterdam Bar, and Frédéric P. Louis, of the Brussels Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Marc Loesch, 11 Rue Goethe,
T-31/95
Eerste Nederlandse Cementindustrie NV (ENCI), a company incorporated under Netherlands law, established in 's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands, represented by Mark B.W. Biesheuvel, of the Hague Bar, and T. Martijn Snoep, of the Rotterdam Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Alex Bonn and Alex Schmitt, 7 Val Sainte-Croix,
T-32/95
Vereniging Nederlandse Cementindustrie (VNC), an association constituted under Netherlands law, established in 's-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands, represented by Piet A. Wackie Eysten, of the Hague Bar, and T. Martijn Snoep, of the Rotterdam Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Alex Bonn and Alex Schmitt, 7 Val Sainte-Croix,
T-34/95
Ciments Luxembourgeois SA, a company incorporated under Luxembourg law, established in Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg, represented by Joachim Sedemund, Rechtsanwalt, Cologne, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Aloyse May, 31 Grand-Rue,
T-35/95
Dyckerhoff AG, a company incorporated under German law, established in Wiesbaden, Germany, represented by Claus Tessin and Frank Montag, Rechtsanwälte, Cologne, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Aloyse May, 31 Grand-Rue,
T-36/95
Syndicat National de l'Industrie Cimentière (SFIC), an association constituted under French law, established in Paris, represented by Édouard Didier and Jean-Claude Rivalland, of the Paris Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Katia Manhaeve, 56-58 Rue Charles Martel,
T-37/95
Vicat SA, a company incorporated under French law, established in Paris, represented by Édouard Didier and Jean-Claude Rivalland, of the Paris Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Katia Manhaeve, 56-58 Rue Charles Martel,
T-38/95
Groupe Origny SA, a company incorporated under French law, established in Paris, successor to Cedest SA, represented by Xavier de Roux and Marie-Pia Hutin, of the Paris Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Jacques Loesch, 11 Rue Goethe,
T-39/95
Ciments Français SA, a company incorporated under French law, established in Paris, represented by Antoine Winckler, of the Paris Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Elvinger, Hoss & Prussen, 2 Place Winston Churchill,
T-42/95
Heidelberger Zement AG, a company incorporated under German law, established in Heidelberg, Germany, represented by Rainer Bechtold, Rechtsanwalt, Stuttgart, and Hans-Jörg Niemeyer, Rechtsanwalt, Stuttgart and Brussels, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Loesch & Wolter, 11 Rue Goethe,
T-43/95
Lafarge Coppée SA, a company incorporated under French law, established in Paris, represented by Henry Lesguillons, of the Paris Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Marc Loesch, 11 Rue Goethe,
T-44/95
Aalborg Portland A/S, a company incorporated under Danish law, established in Aalborg, Denmark, represented by Karen Dyekjær-Hansen and Katja Hoegh, Copenhagen, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Aloyse May, 31 Grand-Rue,
T-45/95
Alsen AG, formerly Alsen-Breitenburg Zement- und Kalkwerke GmbH, a company incorporated under German law, established in Hamburg, Germany, represented by Karlheinz Moosecker and Martin Klusmann, Rechtsanwälte, Düsseldorf, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Alex Bonn, 7 Val Sainte-Croix,
T-46/95
Alsen AG, formerly Nordcement AG, a company incorporated under German law, established in Hamburg, Germany, represented by Karlheinz Moosecker and Martin Klusmann, Rechtsanwälte, Düsseldorf, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Alex Bonn, 7 Val Sainte-Croix,
T-48/95
Bundesverband der Deutschen Zementindustrie eV, a registered association constituted under German law, established in Cologne, Germany, represented by Jochen Burrichter, Rechtsanwalt, Düsseldorf, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Aloyse May, 31 Grand-Rue,
T-50/95
Unicem SpA, a company incorporated under Italian law, established in Turin, Italy, represented by Franzo Grande Stevens and Andrea Gandini, of the Turin Bar, GianDomenico Magrone and Cristoforo Osti, of the Rome Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Marc Loesch, 11 Rue Goethe,
T-51/95
Fratelli Buzzi SpA, a company incorporated under Italian law, established in Casale Monferrato, Italy, represented by Guido Brosio, Carlo Pavesio and Nicola Ceraolo, of the Turin Bar, Claudia Crescenzi and Silvia D'Alberti, of the Rome Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of René Faltz, 6 Rue Heinrich Heine,
T-52/95
Compañia Valenciana de Cementos Portland SA, a company incorporated under Spanish law, established in Madrid, represented by Santiago Martínez Lage and Jaime Pérez-Bustamante Köster, of the Madrid Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Aloyse May, 31 Grand-Rue,
T-53/95
The Rugby Group plc, a company incorporated under English law, established in Rugby, United Kingdom, represented by Lynda Martin Alegi, Solicitor, London, and Jacques Bourgeois, of the Brussels Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Marc Loesch, 11 Rue Goethe,
T-54/95
British Cement Association, an association constituted under English law, established in Berkshire, United Kingdom, represented initially by Kenneth Parker QC, Robert Tudway and Dorcas Rogers, Solicitors, London, subsequently solely by Kenneth Parker QC and Robert Tudway, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Arendt & Medernach, 8-10 Rue Mathias Hardt,
T-55/95
Asland SA, a company incorporated under Spanish law, established in Barcelona, Spain, represented initially by Antonio Creus Carreras and Xavier Ruiz Calzado, of the Barcelona Bar, and Antonio Hierro Hernández Mora, of the Madrid Bar, and, subsequently, Creus Carreras, Hierro Hernández-Mora and Marta Ventura Arasanz, of the Barcelona Bar, Cuatrecasas Chambers, 78 Avenue d'Auderghem, Brussels,
T-56/95
Castle Cement Ltd, a company incorporated under English law, established in Birmingham, United Kingdom, represented by Nicholas Forwood QC, John Cook, Geert Goeteyn and Trevor Soames, Solicitors, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Ernest Arendt, 8-10 Rue Mathias Hardt,
T-57/95
Heracles General Cement Company SA, a company incorporated under Greek law, established in Athens, represented by Kostas Loukopoulos, Sotirios Felios and Irini Gortsila, of the Athens Bar, and Sebastian Farr and Ciaran Walker, Solicitors, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Jos Stoffel, 8 Rue Willy Goergen,
T-58/95
Corporación Uniland SA, a company incorporated under Spanish law, established in Barcelona, Spain, represented by Luis de Carlos Bertrán and Edurne Navarro Varona, of the Barcelona Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Alex Bonn and Alex Schmitt, 7 Val Sainte-Croix,
T-59/95
Agrupación de Fabricantes de Cemento de España (Oficemen), an association constituted under Spanish law, established in Madrid, represented initially by Jaime Folguera Crespo and Ramón Vidal Puig, of the Madrid Bar, subsequently solely by Folguera Crespo, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Alex Bonn and Alex Schmitt, 7 Val Sainte-Croix,
T-60/95
Irish Cement Ltd, a company incorporated under Irish law, established in Dublin, represented initially by John D. Cooke, SC, and, subsequently, by Paul Sreenan, SC, instructed by Gerrard, Scallan and O'Brien, Solicitors, Dublin, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Faltz & Associés, 6 Rue Heinrich Heine,
T-61/95
Cimpor - Cimentos de Portugal SA, a company incorporated under Portuguese law, established in Lisbon, represented by Carlos Botelho Moniz, Teresa Mendes, Amadeu Brandão Colaço and Adelino Duarte, of the Lisbon Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Aloyse May, 31 Grand-Rue,
T-62/95
SECIL - Companhia Geral de Cal e Cimento SA, a company incorporated under Portuguese law, established in Outão, Setúbal, Portugal, represented by Nuno Mimoso Ruiz, of the Lisbon Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Aloyse May, 31 Grand-Rue,
T-63/95
Associação Técnica da Indústria de Cimento (ATIC), an association constituted under Portuguese law, established in Lisbon, represented by Mário João Marques Mendes, of the Lisbon Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Aloyse May, 31 Grand-Rue,
T-64/95
Titan Cement Company SA, a company incorporated under Greek law, established in Athens, represented by Ian S. Forrester QC, of the Scots Bar, and Aristotelis N. Kaplanidis, of the Thessaloniki Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Tom Loesch, 11 Rue Goethe,
T-65/95
Italcementi - Fabbriche Riunite Cemento SpA, a company incorporated under Italian law, established in Bergamo, Italy, represented by André Faures, of the Brussels Bar, Cesare Lanciani, of the Milan Bar, Alberto Predieri, of the Florence Bar, Mario Siragusa, of the Rome Bar, Francesca Maria Moretti, of the Bologna Bar, and Giulio Cesare Rizza, of the Syracuse Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Elvinger, Hoss & Prussen, 2 Place Winston Churchill,
T-68/95
Holderbank Financière Glarus AG, a company incorporated under Swiss law, established in Jona, Switzerland, represented by Cornelis Canenbley and Michael Esser-Wellié, Rechtsanwälte, Düsseldorf, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Alex Bonn, 7 Val Sainte-Croix,
T-69/95
Hornos Ibéricos Alba SA (Hisalba), a company incorporated under Spanish law, established in Madrid, represented by Michael Schütte, Rechtsanwalt, Berlin, Luis Suaréz de Lezo Mantilla, of the Madrid Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Alex Bonn, 7 Val Sainte-Croix,
T-70/95
Aker RGI ASA, a company incorporated under Norwegian law, established in Oslo, represented by Nicholas Forwood QC, John Cook, Geert Goeteyn and Trevor Soames, Solicitors, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Arendt & Medernach, 8-10 Rue Mathias Hardt,
T-71/95
Scancem (publ) AB, formerly EUROC AB, a company incorporated under Swedish law, established in Malmö, Sweden, represented by Nicholas Forwood QC, John Cook, Geert Goeteyn and Trevor Soames, Solicitors, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Arendt & Medernach, 8-10 Rue Mathias Hardt,
T-87/95
Cementir - Cementerie del Tirreno SpA, a company incorporated under Italian law, established in Rome, represented by Gian Michele Roberti and Antonio Tizzano, of the Naples Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Alain Lorang, 51 Rue Albert 1er,
T-88/95
Blue Circle Industries plc, a company incorporated under English law, established in London, represented initially by Jeremy Lever QC, Nicholas Green and Jessica Simor, Barristers, Laura Carstensen and Sarah Vaughan, Solicitors, and, subsequently, by Nicholas Green, Jessica Simor, Laura Carstensen and Marc Israel, Solicitor, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Elvinger, Hoss & Prussen, 2 Place Winston Churchill,
T-103/95
Enosi Tsimentoviomichanion Ellados, an association constituted under Greek law, established in Athens, represented by Ioannis Georgakakis and Maria Golfinopoulou, of the Athens Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Tom Loesch, 11 Rue Goethe,
and
T-104/95
Tsimenta Chalkidos AE, a company incorporated under Greek law, established in Athens, represented by Panagiotis Marinou Bernitsas, of the Athens Bar, with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Chambers of Philippe Dupont, 8-10 Rue Mathias Hardt,
applicants,
v
Commission of the European Communities, represented by Richard Lyal (in all the cases), Julian Currall (in Case T-26/95), Wouter Wils (in Cases T-31/95 and T-32/95), Norbert Lorenz (initially in Cases T-34/95, T-35/95, T-42/95, T-45/95, T-46/95, T-48/95 and T-68/95), Hans Peter Hartvig (in Case T-44/95), Klaus Wiedner (replacing Norbert Lorenz in Cases T-34/95, T-35/95, T-42/95, T-45/95, T-46/95, T-48/95 and T-68/95), Francisco Enrique González-Díaz (initially in Cases T-52/95, T-55/95, T-58/95, T-59/95 and T-69/95), Francisco de Sousa Fialho (in Cases T-61/95, T-62/95 and T-63/95), Theofanis Christoforou (in Cases T-103/95 and T-104/95), of its Legal Service, and Rosemary Caudwell (in Cases T-53/95 and T-60/95), a national civil servant on secondment to the Commission, acting as Agents, assisted by Marc van der Woude and Jean-Jo Evrard, of the Brussels Bar (in Cases T-25/95 and T-30/95), Bertrand Wägenbaur, Rechtsanwalt, Cologne and Brussels (in Case T-34/95), Alexander Böhlke, Rechtsanwalt, Frankfurt am Main and Brussels (in Cases T-35/95 and T-42/95), Nicole Coutrelis, of the Paris Bar (in Cases T-36/95, T-37/95, T-38/95, T-39/95 and T-43/95), Alberto Dal Ferro, of the Vicenza Bar (in Cases T-50/95, T-51/95, T-65/95 and T-87/95), Renzo Maria Morresi, of the Bologna Bar (in Cases T-50/95, T-51/95, T-65/95 and T-87/95), José Rivas Andrés, of the Madrid Bar (in Cases T-52/95, T-55/95, T-58/95, T-59/95 and T-69/95), David Lloyd Jones, Barrister (in Cases T-54/95 and T-88/95), Scott Crosby, Solicitor (in Cases T-56/95, T-70/95 and T-71/95), and Leonard Hawkes, Solicitor (in Cases T-57/95 and T-64/95), Victor Refega Fernandes, of the Lisbon Bar (in Cases T-61/95, T-62/95 and T-63/95), Rainer M. Bierwagen, of the Brussels Bar (in Case T-68/95), Mark Brealey, Barrister (in Case T-88/95), and Alkiviadis Oikonomou, of the Athens Bar (in Cases T-103/95 and T-104/95), with an address for service in Luxembourg at the Office of Carlos Gómez de la Cruz, of its Legal Service, Wagner Centre, Kirchberg,
defendant,
APPLICATION for annulment in whole or in part of Commission Decision 94/815/EC of 30 November 1994 relating to a proceeding under Article 85 of the EC Treaty (Cases IV/33.126 and 33.322 - Cement) (OJ 1994 L 343, p. 1),
THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE
OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES (Fourth Chamber, Extended Composition),
composed of: P. Lindh, President, R. García-Valdecasas, K. Lenaerts, J. Azizi and M. Jaeger, Judges,
Registrar: I. Maselis, Legal Secretary,
having regard to the written procedure and further to the hearings which took place on 16 September 1998 (in Cases T-26/95, T-36/95, T-37/95 and T-38/95), 18 September 1998 (in Cases T-39/95, T-43/95, T-70/95 and T-71/95), 23 September 1998 (in Cases T-53/95, T-54/95, T-56/95 and T-88/95), 25 September 1998 (in Cases T-57/95, T-64/95, T-103/95 and T-104/95), 30 September 1998 (in Cases T-50/95, T-51/95, T-65/95 and T-87/95), 2 October 1998 (T-61/95, T-62/95 and T-63/95), 7 October 1998 (in Cases T-55/95, T-58/95 and T-59/95), 9 October 1998 (in Cases T-31/95, T-32/95, T-52/95 and T-69/95), 14 October 1998 (in Cases T-25/95, T-30/95, T-44/95 and T-60/95), 16 October 1998 (in Cases T-35/95, T-45/95, T-46/95 and T-48/95) and 21 October 1998 (in Cases T-34/95, T-42/95 and T-68/95),
gives the following
Judgment