Official Journal of the European Union

EN

C series

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C/2024/6416

(Case C-613/24)

(C/2024/6416)

Language of the case: Portuguese

Parties

Applicant: European Commission (represented by: I. Melo Sampaio and N. Ruiz García, acting as Agents)

Defendant: Portuguese Republic

Form of order sought

—Declare that, by failing to take all necessary measures to comply with the judgment of the Court of Justice of 5 September 2019, in case C-290/18, Commission v Portugal (EU:C:2019:669), the Portuguese Republic failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 260(1) TFEU;

—order the Portuguese Republic to pay to the European Commission a lump sum of EUR 8 202 816;

—in the event that the failure to fulfil obligations declared in the first indent persists on the date of delivery of the judgment, order the Portuguese Republic to pay to the European Commission a periodic penalty payment of EUR 45 543 for each day of delay in adopting the measures necessary to comply with the judgment of the Court of Justice of 5 September 2019, in case C-290/18, Commission v Portugal (EU:C:2019:669); and

—order Portuguese Republic to pay the costs.

Pleas in law and main arguments

On 2 October 2019, the Commission questioned Portugal regarding the measures taken to comply with the judgment delivered in case C-290/18, Commission v Portugal (EU:C:2019:669), in which the Court of Justice declared that that Member State failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 4(4) and Article 6(1) of Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 (OJ L 206, 22.7.1992, p. 7-50).

Portugal informed the Commission that it had created all 61 sites of community importance at issue in that judgment.

Taking the view that that measure was not sufficient to comply fully with the judgment in question, on 2 December 2021, the Commission sent a letter of formal notice to Portugal.

Since Portugal persisted in not designating, with the required precision, the 61 special areas of conservation at issue in that judgment (Article 4(4) of Directive 92/43) and in not establishing the necessary conservation measures for those areas (Article 6(1) of that directive), the Commission decided, on 7 February 2024, to refer the matter to the Court of Justice, by bringing the present action for failure to fulfil obligations.

* Language of the case: Portuguese.

ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2024/6416/oj

ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)

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