Reference for a preliminary ruling from the Finanzgericht des Landes Sachsen-Anhalt (Germany) lodged on 8 March 2012 — Magdeburger Mühlenwerke GmbH v Finanzamt Magdeburg

(Case C-129/12)

2012/C 174/23

Language of the case: German

Referring court

Finanzgericht des Landes Sachsen-Anhalt

Parties to the main proceedings

Applicant: Magdeburger Mühlenwerke GmbH

Defendant: Finanzamt Magdeburg

Question referred

Did Commission Decision C(1998) 1712 of 20 May 1998 (1) grant the German legislature discretion in relation to the formulation of point 4 of the second sentence of Paragraph 2 of the Investitionszulagengesetz (‘InvZulG 1996’) (Law on investment grants of 1996) in the version of the Steuerentlastungsgesetz 1999 (Law on tax relief of 1999) of 19 December 1998, whereby a scheme would be covered by that discretion if it promotes investments under that scheme, in relation to which the binding investment decision was made before the expiration of the period for the implementation of the Commission Decision or before the publication of the intended measures in the Bundessteuerblatt (Federal Tax Journal, ‘BStBl’), but the delivery of the capital asset and the determination and disbursement of the grant take place afterwards?

(1)  1999/183/EC: Commission Decision of 20 May 1998 concerning State aid for the processing and marketing of German agricultural products which might be granted on the basis of existing regional aid schemes (OJ 1999 L 60, p. 61).