Official Journal of the European Union

Series C

C/2024/1997

18.3.2024

(Case C-471/22, (1) Agentsia ‘Patna infrastruktura’ (European funding of road infrastructure))

(Reference for a preliminary ruling - European Union Cohesion Funds - Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 - Articles 99 and 101 - Financial corrections in connection with detected irregularities - Regulation (EU) 2021/1060 - Article 104 - Financial corrections made by the Commission - Commission decision annulling in part a contribution from that fund - Validity - Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union - Article 41 - Right to good administration - Article 47, first paragraph - Right to an effective remedy before a tribunal)

(C/2024/1997)

Language of the case: Bulgarian

Referring court

Parties to the main proceedings

Applicant: Agentsia ‘Patna infrastruktura’

Defendant: Rakovoditel na Upravlyavashtia organ na Operativna programa ‘Transport’ 2007-2013 i direktor na direktsia ‘Koordinatsia na programi i proekti’ v Ministerstvo na transporta (RUO)

Operative part of the judgment

1.The joint examination of the first and second questions has revealed nothing capable of affecting the validity of Commission Decision C(2021) 5739 final of 27 July 2021 cancelling part of the Cohesion Fund contribution to the operational programme ‘Transport’ 2007-2013 under the ‘Convergence’ objective in Bulgaria.

2.Article 98(2) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006 of 11 July 2006 laying down general provisions on the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund and the Cohesion Fund and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1260/1999, in conjunction with the general EU law principles of good administration, protection of the rights of defence and equality of arms,

3.must be interpreted as meaning that where, in a decision adopted under Article 99 of that regulation, the European Commission finds an irregularity, within the meaning of Article 2(7) of that regulation, and imposes, as a result, a financial correction on a Member State, the competent national authorities must pursue the recovery of the sums unduly paid, by imposing a financial correction on the beneficiary of the funds, at the end of an autonomous administrative procedure during which that beneficiary has been able usefully and effectively to express its observations.

Article 47 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union

must be interpreted as not precluding a national court from being bound by a final Commission decision cancelling, on account of an irregularity, all or part of a contribution from an EU fund, where an action against the national act imposing, in implementation of that decision, a financial correction on the beneficiary of that fund, is brought before that court, since it falls to that court to make a reference to the Court for a preliminary ruling on that act’s validity if it has doubts as to its validity.

ECLI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2024/1997/oj

ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)

ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2024/1997/oj

ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)

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* Language of the case: Bulgarian.