Brussels, 02/07/2002 (Agence Europe) - The Commission has fined Germany's Degussa EUR 118 million and Japan's Nippon Soda Company Ltd EUR 9 million for their involvement in a cartel in the methionine market. The France company Aventis was also involved in the cartel, but in line with a 1996 Communication, it was exempted from any fines for having revealed the existence of the cartel and provided the Commission with decisive proof of how it operated. It would otherwise have been subject to a fine similar to the one imposed on Degussa.
The European Executive opened an indepth inquiry in 1999 on this agreement. It discovered that the three companies in question had, by common accord, applied price increases between 1986 and 1999 and had exchanged information on their sales volumes and their market shares concerning methionine, one of the main amino acids used essentially in feed for poultry and pigs. During the thirteen years of the agreement, the partners exchanged confidential information on their sales figures, data that was then compiled and used during discussions on indicative price determination. The most senior officials took part at these meetings, held at regular intervals. Such behaviour constitutes very serious infringement of competition rules and the Commission has therefore penalised the companies in relation to their market shares for the product concerned. Degussa, the world's leading methionine producer, received the largest fine given the injury that its dominant position in the sector caused to the smaller operators. Nippon Soda, which holds market shares five times smaller, received a smaller fine. For having collaborated in one way or another in the inquiry, the two companies were nonetheless granted appropriate reductions. Nippon Soda, which provided the Commission with hand-written notes drafted at the meetings and other valuable information thus saw its fine reduced by half. Degussa, which did not collaborate voluntarily, did however have its fine reduced by 25%. Finally, Aventis received full immunity for having pointed out the existence of infringement and for having fully cooperated in the investigation. The Commission hopes other companies will be encouraged, after the fashion of Aventis, to cease such practices and to denounce any illegal practice of the same kind that is aimed wholly at misleading consumers, said Mario Monti. The Commission again severely denounced such practices. He said "the behaviour of Aventis, Degussa and Nippon Soda has shown a complete disregard for their customers and, ultimately, consumers of chicken and pork meat who paid more for the products concerned than if the companies had engaged in healthy price competition", he stressed. Degussa, for its part, was highly critical in a press release about the Commission's decision and declares that it will appeal before the Court of Justice.