The German Competition Authority has fined Ilsenburger Grobblech GmbH, Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe AG and Voestalpine Grobblech GmbH, approximately 646 million euros for exchanging information and agreeing on prices for a high-quality type of steel between 2002-2016.
German Competition Authority found violation of competition rules for the period after the expiry of the European Coal and Steel Community Treaty in 2002. According to the findings representatives of the steel manufacturers regularly met and they have reached agreements on the pricing of this type of steel.
Dillinger Hüttenwerke, a company which also participated in the agreement, was the first company to cooperate with the German Competition Authority and so was granted full immunity from fines. Other companies, which could not benefit from immunity, admitted the charges against them and reached a settlement with the German Competition Authority. The settlement was taken into account by the Authority when calculating fines. Voestalpine Grobblech GmbH, one of the companies that reached a settlement with the Authority, also cooperated with the German Competition Authority during the transaction and this was taken into account when determining the administrative fine.