THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community,

Having regard to Council Regulation (EEC) No 1785/81 of 30 June 1981 on the common organization of the markets in the sugar sector ( 1 ) as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1101/95 ( 2 ), and in particular Article 39 thereof,

Whereas Article 39 of Regulation (EEC) No 1785/81 requires the Member States and the Commission to communicate to each other the information necessary for the implementation of that Regulation; whereas implementing rules were laid down by Commission Regulation (EEC) No 787/83 of 29 March 1983 on communications in the sugar sector ( 3 ), as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 3819/85 ( 4 ); whereas, as a result of developments since then in the organization of the markets in the sugar sector, and in particular the commitments entered into by the Community under the Agreement on Agriculture concluded during the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations, those rules should be reviewed and new ones added and hence Regulation (EEC) No 787/83 should be repealed with effect from the start of the 1996/97 marketing year;

Whereas, if the situation with regard to sugar bought in or sold under the intervention measures provided for in Regulation (EEC) No 1785/81 is to be correctly assessed, relevant information must be available and in particular information on changes in the quantities held by intervention agencies and on the distribution of such quantities among warehouses approved pursuant to Article 1 (2) of Council Regulation (EEC) No 447/68 of 9 April 1968 laying down general rules for intervention buying of sugar ( 5 ), as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 1359/77 ( 6 ); whereas, if a close watch is to be kept on the implementation of the intervention system, it is also essential that information should be regularly made available on the quantities of sugar rendered unfit for human consumption and on the quantities used for the manufacture of certain chemical products, with an indication of the quantities of sugar which have been either denatured in accordance with one of the processes set out in the Annex to Commission Regulation (EEC) No 100/72 of 14 January 1972 laying down detailed rules for the denaturing of sugar for animal feed ( 7 ), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 260/96 ( 8 ), or used in the manufacture of the chemical products listed in the Annex to Council Regulation (EEC) No 1010/86 of 25 March 1986 laying down general rules for the production refund on certain sugar products used in the chemical industry ( 9 ), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1101/95, and those listed in the Annex to Commission Regulation (EEC) No 1729/78 of 24 July 1978 laying down detailed rules of application in respect of the production refund for sugar used in the chemical industry ( 10 ), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 260/96;

Whereas the accurate and regular monitoring of trade with third countries is the only way to monitor developments closely in the light of the constraints arising from the Community's commitments under the aforementioned Agreement on Agriculture and to take, as appropriate, the measures required, in particular for the application of Article 23 (4a) of Regulation (EEC) No 1785/81, and those arising from the Community's commitments under the International Sugar Agreement; whereas the Commission should therefore receive on a regular basis the relevant information not only on imports and exports of products for which levies or refunds have been fixed, in respect of which operations licences are issued in particular under Commission Regulation (EC) No 1464/95 of 27 June 1995 on special detailed rules for application of the system of import and export licences in the sugar sector ( 11 ), as amended by Regulation (EC) No 2136/95 ( 12 ), regard being had to the more general provisions of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 3719/88 ( 13 ), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 2137/95 ( 14 ), and Commission Regulation (EEC) No 3665/87 ( 15 ), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 1384/95 ( 16 ), but also on imports and exports of products exported without refund, with or without a licence, and in particular those covered by inward processing arrangements; whereas it should also be possible to monitor imports of preferential sugar to ensure the effective implementation of Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2782/76 of 17 November 1976 laying down detailed implementing rules for the importation of preferential sugar ( 17 ), as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 1714/88 ( 18 );

Whereas the effective administration of the quota system defined in Title III of Regulation (EEC) No 1785/81, particularly in view of the Community's commitments under the aforementioned Agreement on Agriculture, calls for an awareness of all the relevant factors; whereas this entails the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 206/68 of 20 February 1968 laying down outline provisions for contracts and inter-trade agreements on the purchase of beet ( 19 ), as last amended by the Act of Accession of Austria, Finland and Sweden, Council Regulation (EEC) No 193/82 of 26 January 1982 laying down general rules for transfers of quotas in the sugar sector ( 20 ), Commission Regulation (EEC) No 2670/81 of 14 September 1981 laying down detailed implementing rules in respect of sugar production in excess of the quota ( 21 ), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 158/96 ( 22 ), and Commission Regulation (EEC) No 1443/82 of 8 June 1982 laying down detailed rules for the application of the quota system in the sugar sector ( 23 ), as last amended by Regulation (EC) No 392/94 ( 24 ); whereas the above also applies to the equalization system for storage costs laid down by Article 8 of Regulation (EEC) No 1785/81; whereas this refers to the application of Council Regulation (EEC) No 1358/77 of 20 June 1977 laying down general rules for offsetting storage costs for sugar and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 750/68 ( 25 ), as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 3042/78 ( 26 ), and Commission Regulation (EEC) No 1998/78 of 18 August 1978 laying down detailed rules for the offsetting of storage costs for sugar ( 27 ), as last amended by Regulation (EEC) No 1758/93 ( 28 );

Whereas the persons concerned must have the assurance that the information on every undertaking will be treated as confidential;

Whereas the measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the Management Committee for Sugar,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

(a) the tel quel quantities of white sugar and raw sugar offered to, but not yet taken over by, the intervention agency;

(b) the tel quel quantities of white sugar and raw sugar taken over by the intervention agency;

(c) the tel quel quantities of white sugar and raw sugar sold by the intervention agency.

2. at the Commission's request, in respect of a given period, the quantities of white sugar and raw sugar which have been denatured, indicating which of the processess set out in the Annex to Regulation (EEC) No 100/72 was used.

1. not later than the end of each calendar month in respect of the preceeding calendar month, the quantities of white sugar, of raw sugar, syrups expressed as white sugar and isoglucose expressed as dry matter, for which:

2. not later than the end of September each year in respect of the preceding marketing year, the quantities of white sugar, the quantities of raw sugar and syrups expressed as white sugar and the quantities of isoglucose expressed as dry matter, broken down between the products listed in the Annex to Regulation (EEC) No 1010/86, for which:

3. not later than the end of September each year in respect of the preceding marketing year, the quantities of the basic products referred to in point 2 used for the manufacture of the intermediate products referred to in the Annex to Regulation (EEC) No 1729/78.

1.   each month, in respect of the preceding month:

2. not later than the end of each calendar month, in respect of the preceding calendar month the quantities of white sugar referred to in (b) of point 1 exported pursuant to Article 8 (4) and (5) of Regulation (EEC) No 3719/88;

3. for each calendar month, and not later than the end of the third calendar month following the calendar month in question:

The notifications referred to in points (d) and (e) shall be supplied separately to the Commission for each Regulation applicable to the processed product in question.

1.   each month, in respect of the preceding month, the tel quel quantities of white sugar and raw sugar other than preferential sugar, or sugar syrups, of isoglucose and inulin syrup for which an import licence has actually been issued.

1. each week in respect of the previous week, of the quantities of white sugar and tel quel raw sugar for which an import or export licence has been issued pursuant to Article 10 of Regulation (EC) No 1464/95;

2. for each quarter and, separately not later than the end of the second calendar month following the quarter in question, of the quantities of sugar imported from third countries and exported as compensating products under the inward processing arrangements defined in Article 116 of Council Regulation (EEC) No 2913/92 ( 32 ).

1. before the 15th of each month in respect of the preceding calendar month, the total quantities of B and C sugar, if any, carried forward pursuant to Article 27 of Regulation (EEC) No 1785/81;

2. before 1 March each year in respect of the current marketing year and for each sugar-producing undertaking, the total quantities of B and C sugar carried forward to the following marketing year.

However:

(a) ‘preceding week’ means the reference period from Thursday to Wednesday;

(b) ‘preceding quarter’ means the three-month reference period from July to September, October to December, January to March or April to June, as the case may be;

(c) ‘preceding production year’ means the reference period from 1 October of one calendar year to 30 September of the following calendar year.