Action brought on 23 February 2024 – Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional et Lusosider-Aços Planos v Commission
(Case T-110/24)
Language of the case: English
Parties
Applicants: Companhia Siderúrgica Nacional (São Paolo, Brésil), Lusosider-Aços Planos SA (Seixal, Portugal) (represented by: L. Catrain González, F. Pili and S. Seeuws, lawyers)
Defendant: European Commission
Form of order sought
The applicants claim that the Court should:
annul Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/2758 of 12 December 2023 imposing a definitive anti-dumping duty on imports of certain hot-rolled flat products of iron, non-alloy or other alloy steel originating in the Federative Republic of Brazil, the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Russian Federation following an expiry review pursuant to Article 11(2) of Regulation (EU) 2016/1036 of the European Parliament and of the Council,1 in its entirety or in so far as it affects the applicants;
order the Commission to pay the costs of the proceedings.
Pleas in law and main arguments
In support of the action, the applicants rely on four pleas in law.
First plea in law, alleging the European Commission’s failure to use the right legal basis to conduct the review of the definitive anti-dumping duty on imports into the EU of certain hot-rolled flat products of iron, non-alloy or other alloy steel originating in the Federative Republic of Brazil, the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the Russian Federation. The European Commission went beyond the scope of Article 11(2) of Regulation (EU) 2016/1036 of the European Parliament and of the Council1 (Basic Regulation) by excluding Ukraine from the definitive anti-dumping duties and disregarding the fundamental change of circumstances since the original measures. The applicants argue that the European Commission should have self-initiated an interim review pursuant to Article 11(3) of the Basic Regulation combined with Article 11(2) expiry review. In that context, the European Commission should have assessed the change of circumstances since the imposition of the original measures caused by the material impact of the EU Russian sanctions and the safeguard measures on the import of the products under investigation. The European Commission’s error constitutes a serious breach of EU law, insofar as it violates, first, the provisions and underlying principles of the Basic Regulation as interpreted in the light of the EU rules and the international legal principle of fundamental change of circumstances; and, second, the applicants’ fundamental right to good administration under EU law.
Second plea in law, alleging that the European Commission’s assessment of the conditions to extend the original measures, in particular in relation to the likelihood of recurrence of injury test, is based on manifest errors of assessment of the relevant facts that vitiated the contested regulation.
Third plea in law, alleging that the European Commission’s asymmetric assessment of Brazilian captive and non-captive sales with EU non-captive sales artificially inflates the market share of Brazilian products in the EU. This mistakenly led the European Commission to conclude that there is a likelihood of recurrence of injury caused by Brazilian imports. In doing so, the European Commission unjustifiably discriminates between Brazilian products and products manufactured by the EU producers.
Fourth plea in law, alleging that that the contested regulation falls short of the standards of reasoning set out in Article 296 TFEU.
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1 Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/2758 of 12 December 2023 imposing a definitive anti-dumping duty on imports of certain hot-rolled flat products of iron, non-alloy or other alloy steel originating in the Federative Republic of Brazil, the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Russian Federation following an expiry review pursuant to Article 11(2) of Regulation (EU) 2016/1036 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 2023/2758, 13.12.2023).
1 Regulation (EU) 2016/1036 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2016 on protection against dumped imports from countries not members of the European Union (OJ 2016 L 176, p. 21).