(1)

Under Article 5 of Regulation No 136/66/EEC the unit production aid must be adjusted in each Member State where actual production exceeds the guaranteed national quantity referred to in paragraph 3 of that Article. In assessing the extent of the overrun, account should be taken, in the case of Greece, Spain, France, Italy and Portugal, of the estimates for the production of table olives expressed as olive-oil equivalent using the relevant coefficients referred to, for Greece, in Commission Decision 2001/649/EC (3), for Spain, in Commission Decision 2001/650/EC (4), for France, in Commission Decision 2001/648/EC (5), for Italy, in Commission Decision 2001/658/EC (6) and, for Portugal, in Commission Decision 2001/670/EC (7).

(2)

Article 17a(1) of Regulation (EEC) No 2261/84 provides that in order to determine the unit amount of the production aid for olive oil that can be paid in advance, the estimated production for the marketing year concerned should be determined. That amount must be fixed at a level that avoids any risk of unwarranted payment to olive growers. The amount also applies to table olives, expressed as olive-oil equivalent.

(3)

In order to establish the estimated production, Member States must forward to the Commission data for the olive oil and, where appropriate, table olive production estimates for each marketing year. The Commission may use other sources of information. On the basis of that data, the estimated production of olive oil and table olives, expressed as olive-oil equivalent, should be fixed for each Member State.

(4)

In determining the amount of the advance, account must be taken of the amounts withheld for measures to improve the quality of olive oil and table olive production provided for in Article 5(9) of Regulation No 136/66/EEC and Article 4a(1) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1638/98 (8).

(5)

The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for Oils and Fats,