31988R3421

No L 301 /39 4. 11 . 88 Official Journal of the European Communities

COMMISSION REGULATION (EEC) No 3421/88 of 3 November 1988 issuing a standing invitation to tender in order to determine refunds on exports of olive oil for the 1988/89 marketing year

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, sions should be supplemented by certain specific provi­ sions ; Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, Whereas the measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Having regard to Council Regulation No 136/66/EEC of Committee for Oils and Fats, of 22 September 1966 on the establishment of a common organization of the market in oils and fats ('), as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 2210/88 (2), HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION :

Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 1650/86 of 26 May 1986 on the refunds and levies applicable to Article 1 exports of olive oil (3), and in particular Article 7 thereof, 1 . There shall be issued a standing invitation to tender Whereas the export refunds for olive oil cannot be fixed in order to determine export refunds on olive oil falling only in accordance with the standard procedure, since within the following CN codes : there is insufficient information available on the world — 1509 10 90 market situation ; whereas provision should therefore be made for issuing a standing invitation to tender so that — 1509 90 00 the refunds can, in the coming months, be determined by — 1510 00 90 tender ; Whereas, in view of the demand for olive oil on the world 2. The standing invitation to tender shall remain open until 31 October 1989 . During its period of validity there market in certain special cases, provisions should be shall be issued partial invitations to tender. adopted whereby certain conditions are laid down in the standing invitation to tender ; Article 2 Whereas, in view of the specific nature of the tendering procedure, detailed rules should be laid down which will Pursuant to this tendering procedure the Commission enable operators in the various Member States to take part may in accordance with the procedure laid down in on equal terms, while providing certain guarantees Article 38 of Regulation No 136/66/EEC : regarding the validity of the tenders ; (a) issue invitations to tender in respect of specific desti­ Whereas, in order to ensure the smooth operation of the nations, in response to demand for olive oil in certain tendering procedure, the arrangements for determining third countries ; the refunds and awarding the contract should be speci­ (b) impose restrictions on the quantities and qualities of fied ; oil for which offers may be submitted ; Whereas, given that the administrative burden of taking (c) cancel one or more partial invitations to tender before part in a tendering procedure tends to weigh more heavily the deadline for submitting tenders ; on smaller undertakings, provision should be made for (d) exclude certain countries of destination from the invi­ allowing operators to obtain export licences for quan­ tation to tender or differentiate the refund according tities ; to the country of destination. Whereas Commission Regulation (EEC) No 3665/87 (4) Article 3 lays down common detailed rules for the application of the system of export refunds on agricultural products ; whereas Commission Regulation (EEC) No 3183/80 (*), as 1 . The periods during which tenders may be submitted in response to the partial invitations to tender shall be as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 2082/87 (*), lays follows : down common detailed rules for the application of the system of (import and) export licences and advance fixing — for November, January, February, March, April, May, certificates for agricultural products ; whereas these Regu­ June, September, and October : from the fifth day to lations apply to olive oil ; whereas these common provi­ the ninth day of each month at 1 p.m. and from the 15th to the 23rd day of each month at 1 p.m, (') OJ No 172, 30 . 9 . 1966, p. 3025/66. — for July and August : from the 1 5th to the 23rd day of (2) OJ No L 197, 26. 7. 1988 , p. 1 . each month at 1 p.m, (3) OJ No L 145, 30. 5. 1986, p. 8 . 4) OJ No L 351 , 14. 12. 1987, p. 1 . — for December : from the fifth to the ninth day at 1 0 OJ No L 338 , 13 . 12. 1980, p. 1 . (6) OJ No L 195, 16. 7. 1987, p. 11 . p.m .

4. 11 . 88 No L 301 /40 Official Journal of the European Communities

That deadline shall be in Belgian time. Where the day on 8 . Once submitted, a tender may not be withdrawn. which the deadline expires in a Member State is a public holiday for the authority responsible for receiving the Article 4 tenders, the deadline shall expire at 1 p.m. on the last preceding working day. 1 . A security of 10 ECU per 100 kilograms of olive oil to be exported must be lodged by each tenderer. This 2. Offers in connection with this invitation to tender security shall in the case of successful tenderers become must be in writing, and must be either delivered by hand, the security for the export licence. against a receipt, to the competent authority in a Member State, or addressed to that authority by registered letter, 2. The provisions of Commission Regulation (EEC) No telex, telefax or telegram. 2220/85 (') shall apply- to the securities referred to in this Regulation. The primary requirements within the Separate tenders must be submitted where they relate to meaning of Article 20 of Regulation (EEC) No 2220/85 several qualities, presentations or, where applicable, shall be the obligations set out in paragraph 3 (b) and several countries of destination . compliance with the time limit set. 3 . An offer must indicate : 3 . Except in case of force majeure, the security will be (a) the reference number of the Regulation issuing the released : invitation to tender, and the partial or specific invita­ (a) to tenderers only in respect of the quantity for which tion to tender in response to which the offer is being no award was made ; made ; (b) the name and address of the tenderer ; (b) to successful tenderers, only (c) the quantity, quality and subheadings of the olive oil — for the quantity in respect of which they have to be exported and the presentation of the oil, speci­ fulfilled the obligation created by the licence fying whether it is put up in immediate containers of a referred to in Article 9, the provisions of Article 33 net capacity of five litres or less or whether it is other­ of Regulation (EEC) No 3183/80 remaining wise presented ; applicable, (d) the country of destination, where the refund is — if proof is furnished that the olive oil has reached differentiated according to the country of destination ; its destination, in cases where the refund appli­ (e) the amount of the export refund per 100 kilograms of cable in respect of the invitation to tender is valid olive oil, expressed in the currency of the Member for certain third countries only. State in which the tender is submitted ; (f) the minimum amount of the security to be lodged Article 5 covering the quantity of olive oil indicated in (c), expressed in the currency of the Member State in 1 . Tenders shall be examined in private by the compe­ which the tender is submitted. tent agency of the Member State concerned. Subject to paragraph 2, persons present af the examination shall be 4. An offer shall be valid only if : under an obligation not to disclose any particulars relating thereto . (a) the quantity to be exported is not less than five tonnes of a single quality in the case of olive oil put up in 2. Tenders shall be communicated by telex or by immediate containers of a net capacity of five litres or telefax to the Commission forthwith and in such a less, and not less than 20 tonnes of a single quality in manner that the tenderers remain anonymous. the case of olive oil otherwise presented ; (b) proof is furnished before expiry of the time limit for Article 6 the submission of tenders that the tenderer has lodged the security indicated in the tender ; The amount of the export refund expressed in national (c) it contains all the information required under para­ currency shall, for the purposes of comparing the tenders graph 3. and awarding the contract, be converted into ECU on the basis of the green rates. 5. Tenders shall be valid in respect of only one partial invitation to tender or, where applicable, one specific invitation to tender. -A tender may stipulate that it is to be Article 7 regarded as having been submitted only if the quantity 1 . In the light, in particular, of the current situation awarded represents all or a specified part of the tendered and foreseeable development of the Community and quantity. world olive oil markets, and the tenders received, a 6. The tender, the proof and the declarations referred maximum refund shall, in accordance with the procedure to in paragraphs 3 and 4 above shall be expressed in the laid down in Article 38 of Regulation (EEC) No 136/ official language or one of the official languages of the 66/EEC, be fixed for exports of the product falling within Member State whose competent authority received the the subheadings listed in Article 1 . Refunds shall be fixed tender. no later than the eighth working day after the expiry of each deadline for the submission of tenders. 7. A tender which is not submitted in accordance with the provisions of this Regulation or which contains terms other than those indicated herein, shall not be considered. (') OJ No L 205, 3. 8 . 1985, p. 5.

No L 301741 4. 11 . 88 Official Journal of the European Communities

Article 9 2. It may also be decided, in accordance with that procedure : 1 . The competent authority of the Member State — to fix a maximum quantity in respect of each partial concerned shall immediately notify the applicants of the invitation to s tender, result of their participation in the invitation to tender. In — not to award a contract in response to a partial specific addition, the competent authority shall issue to successful invitation to tender. tenderers an export licence for the quantity awarded, indi­ cating in box 18 (a) the export refund quoted in his 3. The refunds are be differentiated according to tender and also stating the quality and presentation of the whether the olive oil is put up in immediate containers of oil and, where appropriate, the use to which it is to be a net capacity of five litres or less or is otherwise put. presented. Article 10 4. Where the refund is differentiated according to destination it shall be fixed in the light of the specific Every successful tenderer shall have : situation of each country of destination. the obligation to export, during the period of validity of 5. Export refunds shall be adjusted during the period of the export licence awarded to him and, where applicable, validity of the export licences as referred to in Article 9, to the country indicated in the tender, the tendered quan­ in the light of changes in the threshold price occuring tity of olive oil of the quality and presentation stated in between the day on which the export declaration is the tender. accepted. This right and these obligations are not transferable. 6. Without prejudice to the provisions of the first indent of paragraph 2 a contract shall, in cases where' a Article 11 maximum export refund is fixed, be awarded to every 1 . Before expiry of the timelimit for the submission of tenderer whose tender quotes a rate of refund equal to or tenders, operators who are unable to take part in the invi­ less than such maximum refund for the quantity stated in the tender. tation to tender on account of the minimum quantity referred to in Article 3 may apply each month for a Article 8 special export licence for a total quantity of less than 20 tonnes in respect of each quality and presentation of olive 1 . If a maximum quantity is fixed in respect of a oil. The said licence, which shall be subject to the provi­ partial invitation to tender, a contract shall be awarded to sions of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2041 /75 (') as the tenderer whose tender quotes the lowest export refund regards export licences with advance fixing of the refund, and, if necessary, to the tenderer whose tender quotes the shall be issued by the competent authority of the Member next lowest refund, and so on until the entire maximum State concerned, and shall indicate in box 18 (a) the quantity has been accounted for. maximum rate of refund accepted in respect of the last 2. However, where an award to a particular tenderer in invitation to tender for that quality and presentation. accordance with the provisions of paragraph 1 would The rights and obligations arising from the said licence otherwise result in the maximum quantity being are not transferable . exceeded, that award shall be limited to such quantity as is still available. Where two or more tenders quote the 2. The Member States shall communicate to the Commission on the 5th and 20th of each month, in same refund, and awards to all of them would result in the maximum quantity being exceeded, the quantity respect of the previous fortnight, the number of licences available shall be allocated as follows : issued and the quantities involved, broken down by quality and presentation. ' — by being divided among the tenderers concerned in proportion to the total quantities in each of their Article 12 tenders, or — by being apportioned among the tenderers concerned This Regulation shall enter into force on the day of its by reference to a maximum tonnage to be fixed for publication in the Official Journal of the European each of them . Communities.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States .

Done at Brussels, 3 November 1988 .

For the Commission Frans ANDRIESSEN Vice-President

0 OJ No L 213, 11 . 8 . 1975, p. 1 .