Decision No 4/1999 of the Association Council between the European Communities and their Member states , of the one part, and the Republic of Lithuania, of the other part, of 26 May 1999 adopting the necessary rules for the implementation of Article 64(1)(i), (1)(ii) and (2) of the European Agreement establishing an association between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of Lithuania, of the other part
Date: 1999-05-26
Institutions: EC–Lithuania Association Council
Subjects: Lithuania, association agreement (EU), competition policy, control of restrictive practices

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Official Journal of the European Communities

L 156/33

DECISION No 4/1999 OF THE ASSOCIATION COUNCIL

between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the
Republic of Lithuania, of the other part

of 26 May 1999

adopting the necessary rules for the implementation of Article 64(1)(i), (1)(ii) and (2) of
the European Agreement establishing an association between the European Communi-
ties and their Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of Lithuania, of the
other part

(1999/411/EC, ECSC, Euratom)

THE ASSOCIATION COUNCIL,

Having regard to the Europe Agreement establishing an association between the European
Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of Lithuania, of the
other part (1), signed on 12 June 1995, and in particular Article 64(3) thereof,

Whereas pursuant to Article 64(3) of the Europe Agreement the necessary rules for the imple-
mentation of Article 64(1) and (2) thereof should be adopted by the Association Council,

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

The necessary rules implementing Article 64(1)(i),
(1)(ii) and (2) of the Europe Agreement
establishing an association between the European Communities and their Member States, of the
one part, and the Republic of Lithuania, of the other part, as set out in the Annex to this
Decision, are hereby adopted.

This Decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Communities and
Valstybes Zynios (Lithuanian Official Journal).

Article 2

This Decision shall enter into force on the day of its adoption.

Article 3

Done at Brussels, 26 May 1999.

For the Association Council

The President

A. SAUDARGAS

(1) OJ L 51, 20.2.1998, p. 3.

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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ANNEX

IMPLEMENTING RULES FOR COMPETITION PROVISIONS APPLICABLE TO UNDERTAK-
INGS

Implementing rules for the application of the competition provisions applicable to undertakings
provided for in Article 64(1)(i), (1)(ii) and (2) of the European Agreement establishing an association
between the European Communities and their Member States, of the one part, and the Republic of
Lithuania, of the other part:

Article 1

General principle

Commission and the State Competition and Consumer
Protection Office, according to the rules under
this
Article.

the prevention,

Cases relating to agreements between undertakings, deci-
sions by associations of undertakings and concerted prac-
tices between undertakings which have as their object or
restriction or distortion of
effect
competition as well as to abuses of a dominant position in
the territories of the Community or of Lithuania as a
whole or in a substantial part thereof, which may affect
trade between the Community and Lithuania shall be
settled according to the principles contained in Article
64(1) and (2) of the Europe Agreement.

this purpose,

For
these cases are dealt with by the
Commission of the European Communities (DG IV) on
the Community side and the State Competition and
Consumer Protection Office (SCO) on the Lithuanian
side.

The competences of the EC Commission and the Lith-
uanian State Competition and Consumer Protection
Office to deal with these cases shall flow from the existing
rules of the respective legislation of the Community and
including where these rules are applied to
Lithuania,
undertakings located outside the respective territory.

Both authorities shall settle the cases in accordance with
their own substantive rules, and having regard to the
provisions set out below. The relevant substantive rules of
the authorities are the competition rules of the Treaty
establishing the European Community as well as the
European Coal and Steel Community Treaty including
the competition-related secondary legislation, for the EC
Commission and the Law on Competition and relevant
by-laws,
the Lithuanian State Competition and
Consumer Protection Office.

for

ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES UNDER THE EC TREATY

Article 2

Competence of both competition authorities

Cases under Article 64 of the Europe Agreement which
may affect both the Community and the Lithuanian
market and which may fall under the competence of both
competition authorities shall be dealt with by the EC

2.1. Notification

2.1.1. The competition authorities shall notify to each
other those cases they are dealing with, which,
according to the general principle laid out
in
Article 1, appear to fall also under the competence
of the other authority.

2.1.2. This situation may arise in particular in cases

concerning activities that:

 involve anti-competitive activities carried out in

the other authority’s territory,

 are relevant

to enforcement activities of

the

other competition authority,

 involve remedies that would require or prohibit
conduct in the other authority’s territory.

2.1.3. Notification under this Article shall include suffi-
cient information to permit an initial evaluation by
the recipient party of any effects on its interests.
Copies of the notifications shall be submitted on a
regular basis to the Association Council.

2.1.4. Notification shall be made in advance, as soon as
possible and at the latest at the stage of an invest-
igation still far enough in advance of the adoption
of a settlement or decision, so as to facilitate
comments or consultations and to enable the
proceeding authority to take into account the other
authority’s views, as well as to take such remedial
actions it may find feasible under its own laws, in
order to deal with the case in question.

2.2. Consultation and comity

Whenever
the State
the EC Commission or
Competition and Consumer Protection Office
consider that anticompetitive activities carried out
on the territory of the other authority are substan-
tially affecting important interests of the respective
Party, it may request consultation with the other
authority, or it may request that the other Party’s
competition authoritiy initiate any appropriate

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Official Journal of the European Communities

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procedures with a view to taking remedial action
under its legislation on anticompetitive activities.
This is without prejudice to any action under the
requesting Party’s competition law and does not
hamper the full freedom of ultimate decision of the
authority so addressed.

2.3.

Finding of an understanding

The competition authority so addressed shall give
full and sympathetic consideration to such views
and factual materials as may be provided by the
requesting authority and,
to the
nature of the anticompetitive activities in question,
the enterprises involved and the alleged harmful
effects on the important interests of the requesting
Party.

in particular,

the competition authorities

Without prejudice to any of their rights or obliga-
tions,
involved in
consultations under this Article shall endeavour to
find a mutually acceptable solution in the light of
the respective important interests involved.

Article 3

Competence of one competition authority only

3.1. Cases falling under the exclusive competence of
one competition authority, in accordance with the
principle laid down in Article 1, and which may
affect important interests of the other Party, shall
be handled having regard to the provisions set out
in Article 2, and taking account of the principles
set out below.

3.2.

an

undertakes

the competition
In particular, whenever one of
authorities
or
investigation
proceeding in a case which is found to affect
important
the
proceeding authority shall notify this case to the
other authority, without
request by the
latter.

the other Party,

interests of

formal

Article 4

Request for information

Whenever the competition authority of a Party becomes
aware of the fact that a case, falling also or only under the
competence of
the other authority, appears to affect
important interests of the first Party, it may request infor-
mation about this case from the proceeding authority.

The proceeding authority shall give sufficient information
to the extent possible and at a stage of its proceedings far
enough in advance of the adoption of a decision or settle-

ment to enable the requesting authority’s views to be
taken into account.

Article 5

Secrecy and confidentiality of information

5.1. Having regard to Article 64(7) of the Europe Agree-
ment, neither competition authority is required to
provide information to the other authority if disclo-
sure of that information to the requesting authority
is prohibited by the law of the authority possessing
the information, or would be incompatible with
important interests of the Party whose authority is
in possession of the information.

5.2.

Each authority agrees to maintain, to the fullest
extent possible, the confidentiality of any informa-
in confidence by the other
tion provided to it
authority.

Article 6

Block exemptions

In the application of Article 64 of the Europe Agreement
as provided for in Articles 2 and 3, the competition
authorities shall ensure that the principles contained in
in the
the block exemption regulations
Community
State
shall be
Competition and Consumer Protection Office shall be
informed of any procedure related to the adoption, aboli-
tion or modification of block exemptions by the
Community.

applied in full. The

in force

Where such block exemption regulations encounter
serious objections on the Lithuanian side, and having
regard to the approximation of legislation as foreseen in
the Europe Agreement, consultations shall take place in
the Association Council, in accordance with the provi-
sions contained in Article 9.

The same principles shall apply regarding other signifi-
cant
or Lithuanian
in the Community
changes
competition policies.

Article 7

Merger control

With regard to mergers which fall within Council Regula-
tion (EEC) No 4064/89 of 21 December 1989 on the
control of concentrations between undertakings (1) and
which have a significant
impact on the Lithuanian
economy, the State Competition and Consumer Protec-
tion Office shall be entitled to express its view in the
course of the procedure, taking into account the time
limits as provided for in the aforementioned Regulation.
The EC Commission shall give due consideration to that
view, without prejudice to any action under the Parties’
respective competition laws.

(1) OJ L 395, 30.12.1989, p. 1. Regulation as last modified by
Regulation (EC) No 1310/97 (OJ L 180, 9.7.1997, p. 1).

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Article 8

Activities of minor importance

8.1. Anticompetitive activities whose effects on trade
between the Parties or on competition are negli-
gible, do not fall under Article 64(1) of the Europe
Agreement, and therefore, are not to be treated
under Articles 2 to 6 of the present implementing
rules.

8.2. Negligible effects within the meaning of paragraph
8.1 are generally presumed to exist when:

 the aggregate annual turnover of the partici-
pating undertakings does not exceed ECU 200
million, and

 the goods or services which are the subject of
the agreement together with the participating
undertakings’ other goods or services which are
considered by users to be equivalent in view of
their characteristics, price and intended use, do
not
the total
market for such goods or services in the area of
the common market affected by the agreement,
and the Lithuanian market affected by the
agreement.

represent more than 5 % of

Article 9

Association Council

9.1. Whenever the procedures provided for in Articles 2
and 3 above do not lead to a mutually acceptable
solution, as well as
in other cases explicitly
mentioned in the present implementing rules, an
exchange of views shall take place in the Associa-
tion Council at the request of one Party within
three months following the request.

9.2.

Following this exchange of views, or after expiry of
the period referred to in paragraph 9.1, the Associa-
tion Council may make appropriate recommenda-
tions for the settlement of these cases, without prej-
udice to Article 64(6) of the Europe Agreement. In
these recommendations, the Association Council
may take into account any failure of the requested

authority to give its point of view to the requesting
authority within the period referred to in paragraph
9.1.

9.3.

These procedures in the Association Council are
without prejudice to any action under the respec-
tive competition laws in force in the territory of the
Parties.

Article 10

Negative conflict of competence

When both the EC Commission and the
State
Competition and Consumer Protection Office consider
that neither of them is competent to handle a case on the
basis of their respective legislation an exchange of views
shall take place on request in the Association Council.
The Community and Lithuania shall endeavour to find a
mutually acceptable solution in the light of the respective
important interests involved with the support of the Asso-
ciation Council, which may make appropriate recommen-
dations, without prejudice to Article 64(6) of the Europe
Agreement, and the rights of individual Member States of
their
the European Communities on the basis of
competition rules.

ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES UNDER THE ECSC TREATY

Article 11

Treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel
Community (ECSC)

The provisions contained in Articles 1 to 6 and 8 to 10
shall also apply with respect to the coal and steel sector.

Article 12

Administrative assistance (languages)

The EC Commission and the State Competition and
Consumer Protection Office will provide for practical
arrangements for mutual assistance or any other appro-
priate solution concerning in particular the question of
translations.