On Monday 2 October, the European Commission handed down a fine of €2.7873 billion to the Lithuanian railway company (Lietuvos geležinkeliai) over a breach of competition on the rail freight market, following the removal of a railway line between Lithuania and Latvia.
Lietuvos geležinkeliai, the national railway operator of Lithuania, is responsible for railway infrastructure and transport in Lithuania. When the company AB Orlen Lietuva, a subsidiary of PKN Orlen, a Polish oil company, planned to redeploy its railway goods traffic between Lithuania and Latvia in 2008, the Lithuanian operator made a decision in October of the same year to dismantle a stretch of railway line between the two countries, which has never been rebuilt, thereby forcing Orlen Lietuva to take a much longer route to reach Latvia.
The Commission opened formal investigation proceedings in March 2013 (see EUROPE 10800) and issued a statement of objections to the Lithuanian company on 5 January 2015 (see EUROPE 11223).
The Commission noted that the withdrawal of this line obliged Orlen Lietuva to use the services of an operator other than Lietuvos geležinkeliai, which has presented no objective argument to justify its actions. The European institution therefore found that the Lithuanian company had abused its dominant position and was guilty of breaching competition on the rail freight market. Lietuvos geležinkeliai must also take the necessary measures to put an end to the infringement. (Original version in French by Lucas Tripoteau)