Brussels, 20/09/2011 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission decided on Tuesday 20 September to refer Italy to the European Court of Justice for its failure to recover illegal aid of about €25 million to aluminium producer Eurallumina SpA, which is based in Portoscuso, Sardinia. The aid took the form of reductions in excise taxes on heavy fuels used in production. In 2004 and again in 2007, the Commission ruled that the aid, granted from February 2002 and amended in 2004, gave Eurallumina an advantage over competitors and had, therefore, to be recovered. Rulings by the Court of Justice, in 2009, and the General Court, in 2011, upheld the Commission decisions. Despite this, the Italian state has yet to recover the illegal aid. The Commission decided, therefore, to return once again to the Court. The company, which came under the control of OAO Russian Aluminium in 2006, ceased production in 2009. (FG/transl.rt)