Judgment of the Court (Sixth Chamber) of 21 December 2011 - ACEA v
   Commission

   (Case C-319/09 P)

   Appeal - State aid - Aid granted to public utilities - Tax exemptions -
   Decision declaring the aid scheme incompatible with the common market -
   Action for annulment - Admissibility - Locus standi - Legal interest -
   Article 87 EC - Concept of `aid' - Article 88 EC - Concept of `new aid'
   - Regulation (EC) No 659/1999 - Articles 1 and 14 - Lawfulness of a
   recovery order - Duty to state reasons

   1.                     Actions for annulment - Natural or legal persons
   - Measures of direct and individual concern to them - Commission
   decision prohibiting a sectoral aid scheme - Action brought by an
   undertaking having received individual aid granted under that scheme
   and that must be recovered - Admissibility (Art. 230, fourth para., EC)
   (see paras 54-59)

   2.                     Actions for annulment - Legal interest in
   bringing proceedings - Condition - Action capable of procuring an
   advantage for the party bringing it - Commission decision on the
   recovery of State aid (see paras 67-69)

   3.                     Appeals - Pleas in law - Inadequate statement of
   reasons - Reliance by the Court of First Instance on implied reasoning
   - Whether permissible - Conditions (Art. 225 EC; Statute of the Court
   of Justice, Arts 36 and 53, first para.) (see para. 82)

   4.                     Appeals - Pleas in law - Mistaken assessment of
   the facts - Inadmissibility - Review by the Court of the assessment of
   the facts and evidence - Possible only where the clear sense of the
   evidence has been distorted (Art. 225 EC; Statute of the Court of
   Justice, Art. 58, first para.) (see paras 114-116)

   5.                     Appeals - Pleas in law - Plea directed against a
   ground of the judgment not necessary in order to support the operative
   part - Plea in law ineffective (see para. 120)

   Re:

   Appeal brought against the judgment of the Court of First Instance
   (Eighth Chamber, Extended Composition) of 11 June 2009 in Case T-297/02
   ACEA v Commission by which that court dismissed the action brought for
   annulment of Articles 2 and 3 of Commission Decision 2003/193/EC of 5
   June 2002 on State aid granted by Italy in the form of tax exemptions
   and subsidised loans to public utilities with a majority public capital
   holding (OJ 2003 L 77, p. 21).

   Operative part


   The Court:

   1.

   Dismisses the main appeal and the cross-appeal;

   2.

   Orders ACEA SpA to pay the costs of the main appeal;

   3.

   Orders the European Commission to pay the costs of the cross-appeal;

   4.

   Orders Iride SpA to pay its own costs.