Request for a preliminary ruling from the Consiglio di Stato (Italy) lodged on 11 December 2017 — Telecom Italia SpA v Ministero dello Sviluppo Economico and Infrastrutture e telecomunicazioni per l’Italia SpA (Infratel Italia SpA)

(Case C-697/17)

(2018/C 112/19)

Language of the case: Italian

Referring court

Consiglio di Stato

Parties to the main proceedings

Appellant: Telecom Italia SpA

Respondents: Ministero dello Sviluppo Economico and Infrastrutture e telecomunicazioni per l’Italia SpA (Infratel Italia SpA)

Question referred

Must the first sentence of Article 28(2) of Directive 2014/24/EU (1) be interpreted as requiring pre-qualified operators and those who submit tenders in the context of a restricted procedure to be completely legally and economically identical and, in particular, must that provision be interpreted as precluding the conclusion of an agreement between the holding companies which control two pre-qualified operators at some point between pre-qualification and the submission of tenders, where: (a) that agreement has as its purpose and effect (inter alia) the completion of a merger by the absorption of one of those pre-qualified undertakings into the other (a transaction which, however, is authorised by the European Commission); (b) the effects of that merger were fully realised after the submission of a tender by the absorbing undertaking (for which reason, at the time the tender was submitted, its composition had not changed from that which existed at the time of pre-qualification); (c) the undertaking then absorbed (whose composition had not changed at the time of the deadline for submitting tenders) has however stated that it is not taking part in the restricted procedure, probably in implementation of the contractual schedule established by the agreement drawn up between the holding companies?

(1)  Directive 2014/24/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on public procurement and repealing Directive 2004/18/EC (OJ 2014 L 94, p. 65).