Order of the General Court (Fourth Chamber) of 3 November 2021 –
ExxonMobil Production Deutschland v Commission

(Case T‑731/20)

(Action for annulment – Environment – Directive 2003/87/EC – Greenhouse gases – Allocation of emission allowances – Request to transfer emission certificates to Germany – Request made in the context of national proceedings for interim relief aimed at guaranteeing the effectiveness of the preliminary ruling procedure in Case C‑126/20 – Commission refusal decision – Locus standi – Lack of individual concern – Inadmissibility)

1.      Actions for failure to act – Failure to act – Concept – Measure not considered satisfactory – Measure not considered satisfactory – Precluded

(Art. 265 TFEU)

(see paras 23, 28, 29)

2.      Action for annulment – Actionable measures – Acts intended to have legal effects – Position adopted by the Commission on a request of a national authority – Included

(Art. 263 TFEU)

(see para. 30)

3.      Action for annulment – Natural or legal persons – Measures of direct and individual concern to them – Whether directly concerned – Criteria – Commission decision addressed to a national authority, refusing to transfer to it additional greenhouse gas emission allowances until the final outcome of national court proceedings – Action brought by the applicant in the national court proceedings – Decision not producing direct effects on that applicant’s legal position – National authority not responsible for the implementation of that decision when it was adopted – Not directly concerned – Inadmissibility

(Art. 263, fourth para., TFEU)

(see paras 33, 34, 38, 40-55)

4.      Action for annulment – Natural or legal persons – Measures of direct and individual concern to them – Conditions cumulative in nature – Inadmissibility of the action where just one of those conditions not met

(Art. 263, fourth para., TFEU)

(see para. 35)

Re:

Application under Article 263 TFEU for annulment of the Commission’s letter of 8 December 2020 refusing the request of the Deutsche Emissionshandelsstelle (German Emissions Trading Authority) to transfer, as a protective measure, to the national holding account of the Federal Republic of Germany or, in the alternative, to the applicant’s operator holding account, by 31 December 2020 at the latest, a number of greenhouse gas emission allowances corresponding to the number of additional allowances covered by the application filed by the applicant with the Verwaltungsgericht Berlin (Administrative Court, Berlin, Germany) for the free allocation of emission allowances for the third greenhouse gas emission allowance trading period.

Operative part

1. The action is dismissed as inadmissible.

2. ExxonMobil Production Deutschland GmbH shall pay the costs, including those relating to the proceedings for interim relief.