ORDER OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE SIXTH CHAMBER OF THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE
3 March 2008(*)
(Removal from the register)
In Case T-318/07,
The National Association of Licensed Opencast Operators, established in Ferryhill (United Kingdom), represented by M. Hoskins and C. West, Barristers, and H. Bracegirdle, Solicitor,
applicant,
v
Commission of the European Communities, represented by V. Di Bucci and J. Samnadda, acting as Agents,
defendant,
APPLICATION for annulment of the decision of the Commission of 18 June 2007 (Case COMP/35.821) rejecting the complaint lodged by the applicant against the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB) relating to the discriminatory pricing practice allegedly used by the CEGB when purchasing coal for the production of electricity.
1 By letter lodged at the Registry of the Court of First Instance on 4 January 2008, the applicant informed the Court in accordance with Article 99 of the Rules of Procedure of the Court of First Instance that it wished to discontinue proceedings and requested that no order as to costs be issued.
2 By letter lodged at the Registry of the Court on 15 February 2008, the defendant informed the Court that it had no objections to the discontinuance of the proceedings and requested that the applicant be ordered to bear its own costs and the costs incurred by the defendant.
3 The first subparagraph of Article 87(5) of the Rules of Procedure provides that a party who discontinues or withdraws from proceedings shall be ordered to pay the costs if they have been applied for in the observations of the other party on the discontinuance. In the present case, the defendant applied for the applicant to bear the costs.
4 The case will therefore be removed from the register and the applicant ordered to pay the costs.
5 Accordingly, there is no need to rule upon the applications for leave to intervene lodged on 27 November 2007 by E.ON UK plc, on 28 November 2007 by International Power plc and on 29 November 2007 by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in support of the form of order sought by the defendant.
On those grounds,
THE PRESIDENT OF THE SIXTH CHAMBER OF THE COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE
hereby orders:
1. Case T-318/07 is removed from the register of the Court of First Instance.
2. The applicant shall bear the costs.
3. There is no need to rule upon the applications of E.ON UK plc, International Power plc and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland for leave to intervene.
Luxembourg, 3 March 2008.