OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities 29
27.6.67 OFFICIALJOURNALOFTHEEUROPEANCOMMUNITIES 2517/67
DECISIONNo15/67
of14June1967
authorizingthejointbuyingofrolledsteelbythewholesalesteeldealersgroupedwithin
theStahlringCompanyandStahlringGmbH,Stahleinkaufsgesellschaft
THEHIGHAUTHORITY ,
HavingregardtoArticles2to5,47and65ofthe
Treaty;
Havingregardtotheapplicationmadeon28Novem­
ber1966bytheundertakingsconcerned;
I
1.Whereasthefollowingwholesalesteeldealers:
-LouisEilers&Co.,Hannover-Herrenhausen
-ErichHoselmann,Hannover
-F.W.Schwemann ,Hildesheim
-FriedrichVater&Co.,Braunschweig
-Walzstahlhandel Nord,ErichFreiKG,Braun­
schweig
-Wullbrandt&Seele,Braunschweig
-Wilh.Gauer,Kitzingen
-WalterHerzogGmbH,Stuttgart-Wangen
-UlrichAdamKnapp,Reutlingen
-Gebr.LotterKG,Ludwigsburg
-Hollinde&BoudonKG,Dortmund-HördeWhereasStahlringisdirectedbythegeneralmeeting
ofmembersandtheboardofmanagement ;whereas
decisionsofthegeneralmeetingofmembersarenor­
mallytakenbyasimplemajorityofthevotesofthose
present;whereasthevotingrightsofeachmember
areproportionate tothebuyingcommitmententered
intobyhim;
WhereasthesupervisoryboardofStahlringGmbH
isappointedbythegeneralmeetingofmembers;
whereasthesupervisoryboardmustincludeamem­
berfromtheNorthern,theWesternandtheSouthern
regionsoftheFederalRepublicofGermany;whereas
thesupervisoryboardofStahlringGmbHisbound
bythedecisionsofthegeneralmeetingofmembers
onlywherethosedecisionsaretakenbyamajority
oftwo-thirdsofthevotesofthosepresent;
Whereasthegeneralmeetingofmembers,normally
admitsnewmembersonaproposalfromtheboard
ofmanagement,byanunopposedmajorityvoteofall
members;
Whereasfurthermorethegeneralmeetingofmem­
bersapprovestheannualaccountssubmittedbythe
boardofmanagement ;whereasanyprofitshownby
theannualbalancesheethastobedistributed ;
Whereastheboardofmanagementconsistsofthe
chairmanandtwoalternates;whereasithasentire
responsibilityfortheconductofthecompany'sbusi­
ness;whereasitconductsthegeneralmeetingsof
members;whereasaspecialtaskdevolvinguponitis
toconcludewithmembersofStahlringGmbHtrust
agreements (Treuhandverträge )andtosupervise
theirimplementation ;
WhereasthecontractofassociationofStahlringpro­
videsasfollows:
-Membersundertaketopromotetheobjectsofthe
companyanddealfairlywitheachother.Incase
ofchangeinthenetassetsofamemberorinhis
positionasregardsparticipation ,thatmember
mustinformtheboardofmanagementaccordingly;-Wilh.JostenSöhne,Neuss
-AugustKirberg,Wuppertal-Elberfeld
-Montan-Handelsges .Richter&Co.,Düsseldorf
-J.Willems&Co.,Düsseldorf-Oberkassel
-LeopoldHugoZell,Wuppertal-Oberbarmen
appliedtotheHighAuthorityon28November
1966,inaccordancewithArticle65(2)oftheTreaty,
forauthorizationoftheagreementstheyhaveentered
intoforthejointbuyingofironandsteelproducts
fortheirstockrequirements ;whereas,tothatend,
thedealersconcernedareformingacivillawcom­
panyunderthenameStahlring(hereinaftercalled
'Stahlring')whoseseatisinDusseldorf,andanoper­
atingcompanyunderthenameStahlringGmbH,
Stahleinkaufsgesellschaft (hereinaftercalled'Stahl­
ringGmbH');whoseseatisalsoinDusseldorf;
2.WhereastheobjectofStahlringiscooperation
betweenmembersinbuyingironandsteelproducts
intheFederalRepublicofGermanyandabroadfor
theirstockrequirements ;whereassuchbuyingisto
beeffectedthroughStahlringGmbH;

30 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities
Whereasthemanagementisappointedandremoved
bythesupervisoryboard;whereasStahlringGmbH
isrepresentedbyamanagerorbytwomanagers
jointly;
4.Whereas,inaccordancewiththewrittendeclara­
tionsofthoseconcerned,jointbuyingtakesplacein
suchawaythateachmemberplacesmonthlyor
quarterlyorderswithStahlringGmbhforitsstock
requirements ;whereasthecompanycombinesorders
byproductandbysize,sothatthesteel-workswith
whichordersareplacedmaysendfullloadstoany
givendestination;whereasinthiswaysteel-works
mayhandlelargerlotsforrollinganddespatch;
whereasthepartiesconcernedseek,throughtheir
cooperation,toachieverationalization ofstocksby
limitingthemtoparticularcategoriesofproduct;
whereasthemembersretaintheirfreedomofaction
asregardsthesaleofrolledsteelboughtjointly;
5.Whereasnoneofthedealersconcernedisconcen­
tratedwithironandsteelproducerundertakings ;
whereascertainmemberscontrolothersteeldealers;
whereasthedealerssocontrolledarenothowever
partiestotheagreementsinquestion;
II-Membershipofthecompanycommitseachmem­
bertobuythroughStahlringGmbHonthelatter's
deliverytermsnotlessthan25%ofthequantity
ofmerchantsteel(includingreinforcingrods),
angles,shapesandsections,universalplates,heavy
andmediumplates,sheetsandhighqualitysheets,
accordingtohischoice,boughtduringthepreced­
ingyearforhisstockrequirements .Thebuying
commitmentmustbefulfilledinsuchawaythat
anorderforhalfthequantityinvolvedisplaced
withStahlringGmbHineachhalf-year.Thesuper­
visoryboardmayincreasethebuyingcommitment ,
unlesssuchincreaseisrefusedbytwo-thirdsofthe
members;
-EachmemberundertakestomakeDM5500per
voteavailabletothecompanysubjecttothat
amountbeingusedtowardspayingupthecapital
ofStahlringGmbH:
-MemberssharetheexpenditureincurredbyStahl­
ringGmbHasto50%onthebasisoftheirbuying
commitment andasto50%onthebasisofthe
quantitiesactuallybought.Wheremembersbuy
quantitieslessthanthosearisingfromtheircom­
mitment,theyneverthelesssharetheexpenditure
onthebasisoftheircommitment ;
-Themembersshareintheprofitandlossofthe
companyproportionately tothecapitaltheyhave
paidin;
-Thecompanyisformedforanunlimitedperiod.
Anymembermaywithdrawfromitattheendof
acalendaryearonsixmonths'notice;
3.WhereastheobjectsofStahlringGmbHareto
buysteelandotherironandsteelproductsandto
sellthoseproductstothemembersofthecivillaw
company,Stahlring,alsotosupportanyactionmak­
ingfortheincreaseduseofsteelandtoperformany
alliedfunction;
WhereasStahlringGmbHisempoweredtosetup
brancheswithintheFederalRepublicofGermany
andabroad,andtotakesharesinotherundertakings ;
WhereasthecapitalofStahlringGmbHisDM
200000,aquarterofwhichmustbesubscribedim­
mediately;whereasthecapitalsubscribedisheldby
trustees(Treuhander)onbehalfofStahlring;
WhereasStahlringGmbhisdirectedbythegeneral
meetingofmembers,thesupervisoryboardandthe
management ;
Whereasthesupervisoryboarddeterminesthepolicy
ofthebusiness;whereasitsupervisesthemanage­
ment;whereasthesupervisoryboardnormally ,takes
decisionsbyasimplemajorityofvotesrepresented;
whereasitdrawsuptheannualbalancesheetand
decidesonthedistributionofnetprofitsasshown
bythebalancesheet;6.WhereastheagreementsrelatingtoStahlringand
StahlringGmbHrestrictnormalcompetitionbetween
thedealersconcerned,sincethelatterundertaketo
buycertainminimumquantitiesfortheirstocksex­
clusivelythroughStahlringGmbH;whereasfurther­
moretheymaybuytheirtotalstockrequirements
throughthatcompany;
Whereasthoseagreementshavejointbuyingastheir
object;whereastheycanbeauthorizedifitisfound
thattheysatisfytheconditionslaiddowninArticle
65(2)(a),(b)and(c)oftheTreaty;
Whereas,inaccordancewiththoseconditions,the
agreementsmustmakeforasubstantialimprovement
intheproductionordistributionofsteelproducts
andmustbeessentialinordertoachievethese
resultsandbenotmorerestrictivethanisnecessary
forthatpurpose;whereasfurthermoretheymustnot
beliabletogivetheundertakingsconcernedthe
powertodeterminetheprices,ortocontrolorre­
stricttheproduction ,ormarketing,ofasubstantial
partoftheproductsinquestionwithinthecommon
market,ortoshieldthemagainsteffectivecompeti­
tionfromotherundertakingswithinthecommon
market;
7.Whereasallthoseconcernedarewholesalesteel
dealersholdingstocksofrolledsteel;whereasin
ordertosatisfycustomers'requirementsawiderange
ofrolledsteelproductsofdifferenttypesandsizes
mustbestocked;whereastheturnoverofstocks
variesconsiderablyfromproducttoproduct;where­
aswherethoseconcernedhavetobuytheirstock

OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities 31
requirementsindependently ,theycannotinmany
casesorderfromsteel-workssufficientlylargelotsfor
rollinganddespatchtoqualifyforthepriceconces­
sionsmadeonlargeorders;whereas,forthesame
reasons,thoseconcernedarenotable,whenacting
independently ,toobtainsuchfavourabletransport
rates;
WhereasjointbuyingthroughStahlringGmbH
enablesordersformembers'stockrequirementstobe
combined,sothat;
-thesteel-workshandlingtheordercanpreparelots
forrollinganddespatchwhicharesufficiently
largetoreduceproductioncosts;
-thepartiesconcernedcan,wherepriceisafunction
ofquantitiy,avoidthehigherpriceschargedfor
smallquantitiesandtakeadvantageofquantity
rebates;
-thequantitiesorderedcanformpartofacombined
loadforeachdestination,therebysavingtransport
costs;
Whereasthepartiesproposefurthermoretoreduce
storagecostsinfuturebystockingfewertypesof
product;whereasmembersmayhaverecourse,in
caseofneed,tothestocksofneighbouringmembers;
Whereassubstantialimprovements indistribution
resulttherefrom,inparticularbywayofreduced
costsforthoseconcerned;whereasjointbuyingalso
contributestotheimprovementsoughtbythesteel
producingindustriestowardsmakingthefullestpos­
sibleuseofexistingproductionplants;
Whereasthoseeffectscanberegardedassubstantial
evenifthepartiesdonotgobeyondtheirbuying
commitments ,forjointbuyingisresortedtomainly
forproductsinlessdemandwhichareordinarily
purchasedinsmallquantities;
Whereas,inviewoftherelativelylimitedvolumeof
businessofthedealersconcerned,suchimprove­
mentscouldnotbeachievedwithouttheagreements
inquestion;whereas,furthermore,thoseagreements
arenotmorerestrictivethanis"necessaryfortheir
purpose;whereastheyleavethepartiesconsiderable
freedominrespectofrolledsteelbuyinganddonot
restricttheiractionsinrespectofthesaleofthose
products;
8.Whereas,inordertoassessthemarketpositionof
theundertakingsconcerned,thecharacteristics ofthe
wholesaledealer'sbusinesswhichissubjectto
regionallimitationsbothasregardsbuyingandsell­
ingshouldbetakenintoaccount;whereastheparties
havesetup,accordingtotheregionallocationof
theirstocks,theNorthern,SouthernandWestern
groups,corresponding approximately tothefollow­ingLanderoftheFederalRepublicofGermany:
LowerSaxony,Baden-Wurtemberg ,NorthernRhine­
land-Westphalia;whereascurrentstatisticscoveronly
rolledsteelsuppliedtosteeldealersbyGermansteel
producers;whereasacomparisonbetweensuchsup­
pliesandthetotalquantitiesboughtbytheparties
fortheirstocks,includingquantitiesboughtfrom
suppliersinotherCommunitycountries,showsthat
fortheyear1965thepercentagevariesbetween5%
and25%fortheNorthern,SouthernandWestern
Groups;whereas,incompleteasisthiscomparison,
itneverthelessindicates,forthepurposeofassessing
themarketpositionofdealerswhoaremembersof
Stahlring,thattheorderofmagnitudeoftheirpur­
chasesandsalesofrolledsteeldoesnotexceedthat
ofothersteeldealerswhoarecontrolledbyironand
steelundertakings ;
Whereas,therefore,performanceoftheagreements
doesnotgivethepartiesthepower,inrespectofa
substantialpartoftheproductswhicharethesubject
ofjointbuying,todetermineprices,ortocontrolor
restrictproductionormarketinginthecommon
market,nortoshieldthemselvesagainsttheeffective
competitionofotherundertakingsinthecommon
market;
9.WhereasneitherthepartiesnortheHighAuthor­
itycanatpresentforecastwithcertaintyhowthe
proposedjointbuyingschemewilldevelop,northe
extenttowhichpossibilitiesforimprovingproduc­
tionanddistributionwillbeused;whereas,forthat
reason,itisappropriatethattheHighAuthorityre­
quiremembers,bytheendofasuitableperiod,to
showtheresultsachieved;
Whereastheagreementssubmittedforauthorization
areofunlimitedduration;whereastheHighAuthor­
ityconsiders,however,thatauthorizationshouldnot
extendbeyond31December1971;
10.WhereastheHighAuthoritymustensurethat
aid^measurestakenbythedealersconcerned,andby
managementofStahlringandStahlringGmbHonthe
basisoftheagreementssubmittedtoit,shouldbein
accordancewiththeauthorization grantedbythis
decisionandwiththeprovisionsoftheTreaty;
Whereas,tothatend,itshouldberequiredofthe
undertakingsconcernedthattheygiveimmediate
notificationtotheHighAuthorityofanychangesor
additionsasregardsthecontractsofassociation,the
admissionofnewmembers,thewithdrawalofmem­
bersandanyresolutionconcerningachangeinthe
buyingcommitmentofmembers;
11.WhereastheagreementssubmittedtotheHigh
Authorityforauthorization areconsequentlycom­
patiblewithArticle65(2)oftheTreaty,having
regardtothetimerestrictionandtheconditionsim­
posed,

32 OfficialJournaloftheEuropeanCommunities
DECIDES : Article2
Article1
Theagreementsconcludedbythefollowingwhole­
salesteeldealers:Thedealersconcernedshall,threemonthsafterthe
endofthefirsttwo-yearperiod,submittotheHigh
Authorityareportontheimprovements achieved
duringthatperiodinthedistributionoftheproducts
coveredbytheagreementsenteredinto,settingforth
theseimprovements indetailwithallrelevantdocu­
mentation; -LouisEilers&Co.,Hannover-Herrenhausen
-ErichHoselmann ,Hannover
-F.W.Schwemann ,Hildesheim Article3
-FriedrichVater&Co.,Braunschweig
-Walzstahlhandel Nord,ErichFreiKG,Braun­
schweig
—Wullbrandt&Seele,Braunschweig
-Wilh.Gauer,Kitzingen
-WalterHerzogGmnH,Stuttgart-Wangen
-UlrichAdamKnapp,ReutlingenTheundertakingsconcernedshallnotifytheHigh
Authoritywithoutdelayof:
(a)anychangesoradditionstothecontractsofas­
sociationofStahlringandStahlringGmbH;
(b)resolutionsconcerningtheadmissionofnew
members;
(c)anyresolutionconcerningchangesinthebuying
commitmentsofmembersprovidedforinpara­
graph11(2)ofthecontractofassociationof
Stahlring;
(d)thewithdrawalofmembers.-Gebr.LotterKG,Ludwigsburg
-Hollinde&BoudonKG,Dortmund-Hörde
-Wilh.JostenSöhne,Neuss
-AugustKirberg,Wuppertal-Elberfeld
-Montan-Handelsges .Richter&Co.,Düsseldorf
-J.Willems&Co.,Düsseldorf-Oberkassel
-LeopoldHugoZell,Wuppertal-Oberbarmen
Article4
forthejointbuyingofrolledsteelfortheirstock
requirements ,whichagreementsareprovidedforin
thecontractofassociationof24October1966ofthe
civillawcompanyStahlring,asmodifiedandampli­
fiedbytheagreementsof20April1967,andalso
providedforinthecontractofassociationof6July
1966ofStahlringGesellschaftmitbeschränkter
Haftung,Stahleinkaufsgesellschaft whoseseatisat
Düsseldorf(NotarialregisterNo743/1966ofPaul
Reuter,Notary,Düsseldorf)areauthorizedbythis
Decision,subjecttothereservationsandconditions
containedinthefollowingArticles.ThisDecisionshallbenotifiedtothedealerscon­
cernedandpublishedintheOfficialJournalofthe
EuropeanCommunities .Itshallenterintoforceon
20June1967andexpireon31December1971.
ThisDecisionwasconsideredandadoptedbythe
HighAuthorityatitsmeetingof14June1967.
FortheHighAuthority
TheVice-President
A.COPPE