Commission Regulation (EC) No 757/2000 of 12 April 2000 opening an invitation to tender for the reduction in the duty on maize imported into Portugal from third countries
13. 4. 2000 EN Official Journal of the European Communities L 92/9 COMMISSION REGULATION (EC) No 757/2000 of 12 April 2000 opening an invitation to tender for the reduction in the duty on maize imported into Portugal from third countries THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 1766/92 of 30 June 1992 on the common organisation of the market in cereals (1), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1253/ 1999 (2), and in particular Article 12(1) thereof, take these facts into account a further reduction should be made in the import duty for the purposes of invita- tions to tender opened by this Regulation. (5) The Management Committee for Cereals has not deliv- ered an opinion within the time limit set by its chairman, Whereas: HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION: (1) (2) (3) (4) Pursuant to the Agreement on Agriculture concluded during the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade nego- tiations, the Community has undertaken to import a certain quantity of maize into Portugal. Commission Regulation (EC) No 1839/95 of 26 July 1995 laying down detailed rules for the application of tariff quotas for imports of maize and sorghum into Spain and imports of maize into Portugal (3), as amended by Regulation (EC) No 1963/95 (4), lays down the rules governing the administration of those special arrangements. This Regulation lays down the special additional detailed rules necessary for implementing the invitation to tender, in particular those relating to the lodging and release of the security to be lodged by operators to ensure compliance with their obligations and, in particular, the obligation to process or use the imported product on the Portuguese market. In the light of current market needs in Portugal, an invitation to tender for the reduction in the duty on imports of maize should be opened in the framework of these special arrangements for imports. As a result of the temporary closure of the Danube to trade, transport costs for maize originating in countries through which that river flows and which no longer have access by sea to the Iberian peninsula have increased considerably. Accordingly, the rate of duty applying to such imports no longer reflects the real impact of the costs of transport. As a consequence, to Article 1 1. An invitation to tender is hereby opened for the reduc- tion in the import duty referred to in Article 10(2) of Regula- tion (EEC) No 1766/92 on maize to be imported into Portugal. 2. The invitation to tender shall be open until 25 May 2000. During that period, weekly invitations shall be issued with quantities and closing dates as shown in the notice of invitation to tender. Regulation (EC) No 1839/95 shall apply save as other- 3. wise provided for in this Regulation. Article 2 Import licences issued under these invitations to tender shall be valid 50 days from the date they are issued, within the meaning of Article 10(4) of Regulation (EC) No 1839/95. Article 3 The reduction in duty granted under the invitations to tender shall be increased by EUR 10 per tonne for imports originating in landlocked countries through which the Danube flows. Article 4 This Regulation shall enter into force on the day of its publica- tion in the Official Journal of the European Communities. This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States. Done at Brussels, 12 April 2000. For the Commission Franz FISCHLER Member of the Commission (1) OJ L 181, 1. 7. 1992, p. 21. (2) OJ L 160, 26. 6. 1999, p. 18. (3) OJ L 177, 28. 7. 1995, p. 4. (4) OJ L 189, 10. 8. 1995, p. 22