European Commission fined ethylene purchasers; Orbia, Clariant and Celanese for 260 million Euros for breaching EU antitrust rules. Westlake was not fined as it was the lenient.
Following its investigation, Commission has determined that from December 2011 to March 2017 during the process of establishing the Monthly Contract Price (MCP), four ethylene purchasers coordinated their price negotiation strategy reciprocatively influence the MCP to their advantage. Thus, Commission concluded that the companies took part in a cartel concerning purchases on the ethylene merchant market and they colluded to buy ethylene for the lowest possible price. All four companies acknowledged their involvement in the cartel and agreed to settle the case, and Westlake also benefitted from the leniency program by revealing the cartel.
As a result, European Commission fined three undertakings approximately 260 million Euros in total and did not impose any fines on Westlake for exposing the cartel. (European Commission – 14.07.2020)
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NAZALI TAX & LEGAL |