Request for a preliminary ruling from the Tribunal Supremo (Spain) lodged on 21 May 2013 — Elcogás, S.A. v Administración del Estado and Iberdrola, S.A.

(Case C-275/13)

(2013/C 226/04)

Language of the case: Spanish

Referring court

Tribunal Supremo, Spain

Parties to the main proceedings

Applicant: Elcogás, S.A.

Defendants: Administración del Estado, Iberdrola, S.A.

Question referred

Does the interpretation of Article 107(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, and of the case-law of the Court of Justice of the European Union concerning that article (in particular, the judgments in Cases C-379/98 (1) and C-206/06 (2)), mean that the annual sums allocated to Elcogás in its capacity as the owner of a particular electricity generating facility, as provided for in the extraordinary viability plans approved for Elcogás by the Council of Ministers, are to be regarded as ‘aid granted by a Member State or through State resources’, where those sums are collected under the general category of ‘permanent costs of the electricity system’, which are paid by all users and are transferred to undertakings in the electricity sector by means of subsequent settlements made by the Comisión Nacional de Energía (National Energy Commission) in accordance with predetermined statutory criteria, for which purpose that Commission has no margin of discretion?

(1)  2001, ECR I-2099.

(2)  2008, ECR I-5497.