natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
Det bemærkes i den forbindelse, at Kommissionen ved vurderingen af varigheden med henblik på beregningen af den bøde, sagsøgeren skulle pålægges, tog hensyn til, at virksomheden havde deltaget i mere end fem år, samt til, at arrangementerne var stillet i bero mellem 1993 og begyndelsen af 1994, hvorefter Kommissionen fastsatte faktoren for forhøjelse af udgangspunktet for virksomhedens bøde til 1,4.
In any event, it must be considered that the Commission, in making provision and arrangements for access to the file at its premises as stated in the letter enclosed with the statement of objections, fulfilled its obligation to grant the undertakings access to the investigation file, on its own initiative and without waiting for any approach on their part.
For så vidt angår argumentet vedrørende overtrædelsens varighed bemærker sagsøgte, at i forbindelse med bødefastsættelsen skal overtrædelsens grovhed vurderes uafhængigt af dens varighed.
Nor, in those circumstances, can the Commission be accused of having wished to facilitate access to the investigation file by requesting the undertakings concerned to exchange between themselves, through their legal advisers, the documents obtained from each of them during the investigations.
Efter at overtrædelsens grovhed var blevet taget i betragtning, blev der i nærværende sag i overensstemmelse med retningslinjerne taget hensyn til overtrædelsens varighed med henblik på en eventuel forhøjelse af bøden.
As the applicant observes, the Commission refers on a number of occasions in its decision to the fact that ABB brought considerable pressure to bear on the other undertakings in the sector in order to persuade them to subscribe to the anticompetitive arrangements in question.
Det må herved igen understreges, at der reelt var tale om et sammenhængende kartel.
Furthermore, in determining the amount of the fine imposed on ABB, the Commission recognised that it 'systematically used its economic power and resources as a major multinational company to reinforce the effectiveness of the cartel and to ensure that other undertakings complied with its wishes' (point 169 of the decision).
Når henses til den periode på nogle måneder, hvorunder sagsøgerens deltagelse ikke er bevist, finder Retten, der træffer afgørelse på grundlag af sin fulde prøvelsesret efter EF-traktatens artikel 172 (nu artikel 229 EF) og artikel 17 i forordning nr. 17, det følgelig passende at nedsætte forhøjelsesfaktoren for varigheden af den overtrædelse, der er lagt sagsøgeren til last, til 1,35.
It should be observed, in that regard, that the applicant cannot rely on lack of access to the file on the ground that, in the course of that exchange of documents, ABB sent documents from which certain passages had been deleted.
For så vidt som sagsøgeren har gjort gældende, at Kommissionen ikke i forhold til virksomheden kunne lægge til grund, at der forelå en deltagelse i et sammenhængende kartel, skal der henvises til
As regards the infringement of which the applicant is accused, it is sufficient to recall that, according to settled case-law, an undertaking which participates in anticompetitive activities under pressure from other participants cannot rely on that presure, since it could have reported it rather than participating in the activities in question.
Det hedder i domskonklusionen:
A — Access to the file
•1) Artikel 1 i Kommissionens beslutning 1999I60IEF af 21. oktober 1998 om en procedure efter EF­traktatens artikel 85 (sag IV/35.691/E­4: Rørkartel (præisolerede rør)) annulleres, forså vidt som den fastslår, at sagsøgeren har overtrådt traktatens artikel 85, stk 1, ved at have deltaget i den i denne artikel angivne overtrædelse i perioden fra april til august 1994.
The applicant claims that the Commission infringed its rights of defence by twice introducing, by letters of 22 May and 9 October 1997, further documents in support of its case after it had sent the statement of objections. The Commission is not entitled to rely on those documents, since it did not indicate clearly in the statement of objections that it would do so.
Kommissionen for De Europæiske Fællesskaber frifindes i øvrigt.
It is necessary to determine whether in the present case the Commission complied with its obligation to give access to the entire investigation file.
Sag T-23/99 LR af 1998 A/S / Kommissionen for De Europæiske Fællesskaber Konkurrence
C — Infringement of the right to be heard as concerns the application of the guidelines for calculating fines
»Konkurrence — kartel — fjernvarmerør — EF-traktatens artikel 85 (nu artikel 81 EF) -sammenhængende overtrædelse — boykot — aktindsigt — bøde — retningslinjer for beregningen af bøder — forbud mod tilbagevirkende gyldighed — berettiget forventning« (Fjerde Afdeling)
Second, having regard to the wide discretion which Regulation No 17 leaves to the Commission, the fact that the latter introduces a new method of calculating fines, which may, in certain cases, lead to increased fines, but does not exceed the maximum level established by that regulation, cannot be regarded as an aggravation, with retroactive effect, of the fines as legally provided for by Article 15 of Regulation No 17, which infringes the principles of legality and legal certainty.
Selskabet LR af 1998 A/S, tidligere Løgstør Rør A/S, er et dansk selskab, der på tidspunktet for de faktiske omstændigheder fremstillede og solgte præisolerede rør, der navnlig anvendes til fjernvarme.
Ill — Third plea in law, alleging infringement of general principles and errors of fact in assessing the fine
Ved en klage dateret den 18. januar 1995 meddelte den svenske virksomhed Powerpipe AB Kommissionen, at de andre producenter og leverandører af præisolerede rør havde opdelt det europæiske marked inden for rammerne af et kartel, og at de havde taget samordnede skridt til at skade selskabets virksomhed og/eller begrænse dets virksomhed til det svenske marked og/eller helt at drive selskabet ud af markedet.
As regards the setting of fines for infringements of the competition rules, the Commission exercises its powers within the limits of the discretion conferred on it by Regulation No 17. It is settled caselaw that traders cannot have a legitimate expectation that an existing situation which is capable of being altered by the Community institutions in the exercise of their discretion will be maintained.
I fjernvarmeanlæg transporteres vandet, som opvarmes centralt, via underjordiske rør til de lokaler, der skal opvarmes. Da det transporterede vands (eller dampens) temperatur er meget høj, skal rørene være isolerede for at sikre en effektiv og sikker distribution.
The applicant complains that the Commission infringed the principle of nonretroactivity by applying the new guidelines in its case, when it had cooperated with the Commission without being aware of the Commission's intention to change fundamentally its policy on fines.
De anvendte rør er præisolerede og består med henblik herpå normalt af et stålrør, der ligger inden i et plastrør, og med et lag isoleringsskum mellem de to rør.
On the contrary, the Commission is entitled to raise the general level of fines, within the limits laid down in Regulation No 17, if that is necessary to ensure the implementation of the Community competition policy.
I henhold til Kommissionens beslutning af 12. juni 1995 gennemførte tjenestemænd fra Kommissionen og repræsentanter fra de pågældende medlemsstaters konkurrencemyndigheder den 28. juni 1995 uanmeldte og samtidige kontrolundersøgelser hos ti virksomheder eller sammenslutninger inden for fjernvarmemarkedet, herunder sagsøgeren (herefter »kontrolundersøgelserne«).
Under the method laid down in the guidelines, the fines continue to be calculated according to the two criteria referred to in Article 15(2) of Regulation No 17, namely the gravity of the infringement and its duration, and the maximum percentage of turnover of each undertaking as laid down in that provision is observed.
Kommissionen rettede herefter anmodninger om oplysninger til sagsøgeren og de fleste af de virksomheder, der var berørt af de omtvistede forhold, i medfør af artikel 11 i Rådets forordning nr. 17 af 6. februar 1962, første forordning om anvendelse af traktatens artikel 85 og 86.
It follows that undertakings involved in an administrative procedure which may lead to a fine cannot acquire a legitimate expectation that the Commission will not exceed the level of fines previously applied.
Der er en betydelig samhandel med fjernvarmerør mellem medlemsstaterne.
Consequently, the guidelines cannot be regarded as going beyond the legal framework of the fines set out in that provision.
De største nationale markeder i Den Europæiske Union er Tyskland med 40% af det samlede forbrug i EU og Danmark med 20%.
C - Infringement of the principles of equal treatment and proportionality, and legality of the guidelines
Med 50% af rørproduktionskapaciteten i Den Europæiske Union er Danmark hovedproduktionscentret i EU, hvorfra produktet leveres til alle de øvrige medlemsstater, hvor der anvendes fjernvarme.
Nor, contrary to what the applicant claims, does the change brought about by the guidelines, compared with the Commission's existing administrative practice, constitute an alteration of the legal framework determining the fines
aftaler om fastsættelse af salgskvoter for hver enkelt deltagende virksomhed.
Infringement of the principle of equal treatment
Den 20. marts 1997 sendte Kommissionen en meddelelse af klagepunkter til sagsøgeren og til de andre berørte virksomheder. En høring af de berørte virksomheder fandt derefter sted den 24. og 25. november 1997.
The applicant has not established that the Commission imposed a discriminatory fine on it by comparison with the fine imposed on ABB or that the Commission discriminated generally against small and medium-sized undertakings compared with a large undertaking such as ABB.
I 1994 blev der - stadig ifølge beslutningen indgået en aftale mellem alle disse producenter om fastsættelse af kvoter for hele det europæiske marked.
Contrary to what the applicant claims, the guidelines do not go beyond what is provided for in Regulation No 17.
Dette europæiske kartel omfattede en todelt struktur. »Direktørklubben«, som bestod af de administrerende direktører for de deltagende virksomheder i kartellet, tildelte den enkelte virksomhed kvoter såvel på markedet som helhed som på de forskellige nationale markeder, bl.a.
The applicant alleges that the guidelines allow the Commission to impose, depending on the gravity of the infringement, a starting point for setting the fine which is so high that, having regard to the fact that, according to Article 15(2) of Regulation No 17, the amount of the fine cannot in any event exceed the maximum of 10% of turnover of the undertaking concerned, it is no longer possible, in certain cases, for other factors, such as duration or mitigating or aggravating circumstances, to still have an effect on the level of the fine.
Tyskland, Østrig, Danmark, Finland, Italien, Nederlandene og Sverige. For visse nationale markeder blev der oprettet en »kontaktgruppe«, som bestod af de lokale salgsdirektører, og som skulle administrere aftalerne og herved fordele projekterne og koordinere buddene i forbindelse med licitationer.
In that regard, it should be observed that Article 15(2) of Regulation No 17, in providing that the Commission may impose fines of up to 10% of turnover during the preceding business year for each undertaking which participated in the infringement, requires that the fine eventually imposed on an undertaking be reduced if it should exceed 10% of its turnover, independently of the intermediate stages in the calculation intended to take the gravity and duration of the infringement into account.
Vedrørende det tyske marked nævnes det i beslutningen, at efter et møde, som blev afholdt den 18. august 1994 mellem de seks største europæiske producenter (ABB, Dansk Rørindustri, Henss/Isoplus, Pan-Isovit, Tarco og sagsøgeren) og Brugg Rohrsysteme GmbH (herefter »Brugg«), blev der den 7. oktober 1994 afholdt et første møde i kontaktgruppen for Tyskland.
In so far as the applicant complains that the Commission did not take its turnover on the relevant market into consideration when applying the limit of 10% of turnover laid down in Article 15(2) of Regulation No 17, it is settled caselaw that the turnover referred to in Article 15(2) of Regulation No 17 must be understood as referring to the total turnover of the undertaking concerned, which alone gives an approximate indication of its size and influence on the market.
Møderne i denne gruppe fortsatte længe efter, at Kommissionen havde gennemført sine kontrolundersøgelser i slutningen af juni 1995, selv om de efter dette tidspunkt blev afholdt uden for Den Europæiske Union, nemlig i Zürich. Møderne i Zürich fortsatte indtil den 25. marts 1996.
Provided that it complies with the limit laid down in Article 15(2) of Regulation No 17, the Commission may set the fine on the basis of the turnover of its choice, in terms of geographical area and relevant products.
Ifølge beslutningen blev der sidst i 1990 indgået en principaftale mellem de fire danske producenter af fjernvarmerør om et generelt samarbejde på deres hjemmemarked.
Nor, second, can the applicant plead infringement of the principle of proportionality on the ground that the Commission did not calculate its fine according to the profit it had made on the relevant market.
Parterne i denne aftale var sagsøgeren samt ABB IC Møller A/S, som er det danske datterselskab af den svensk-schweiziske koncern ABB Asea Brown Boveri Ltd (herefter »ABB«), Dansk Rørindustri A/S, der også kendes under navnet Starpipe (herefter »Dansk Rørindustri«), og Tarco Energi A/S (herefter »Tarco«) (disse fire virksomheder omtales herefter som »de danske producenter«).
Consequently, Article 15(2) of Regulation No 17 does not prohibit the Commission from referring, during its calculation, to an intermediate amount exceeding 10% of the turnover of the undertaking concerned, provided that the amount of the fine eventually imposed on the undertaking does not exceed that maximum limit.
En af de første foranstaltninger, der blev truffet, var samordning af en prisforhøjelse, såvel for det danske marked som for eksportmarkederne.
D — Incorrect assessment of the duration of the infringement
Med henblik på en opdeling af det danske marked blev der aftalt kvoter, som derefter blev gennemført og overvåget af en »kontaktgruppe«, som omfattede de pågældende virksomheders salgsdirektører.
As stated in paragraphs 99 to 109 above, the Commission correctly calculated the duration of the infringement in respect of which the applicant is accused.
Beslutningen anfører navnlig, at der som led i kartellet blev vedtaget og gennemført samordnede foranstaltninger med henblik på at fjerne Powerpipe, som var den eneste virksomhed af betydning, der ikke deltog i kartellet.
The guidelines make similar provision, moreover, where they state that 'the final amount calculated according to this method (basic amount increased or reduced on a percentage basis) may not in any case exceed 10% of the worldwide turnover of the undertakings, as laid down by Article 15(2) of Regulation No 17' (Section 5(a)).
Kommissionen anfører nærmere, at visse karteldeltagere ansatte nogle »nøglemedarbejdere« i Powerpipe og meddelte selskabet, at det burde trække sig ud af det tyske marked.
E - Incorrect application of the aggravating circumstances
Ifølge beslutningen deltog to tyske producenter Henss/Isoplus-koncernen (herefter »Henss/Isoplus«) og Pan-Isovit GmbH i de danske producenters regelmæssige møder fra efteråret 1991. Under disse møder blev der forhandlet om en opdeling af det tyske marked. I august 1993 resulterede disse forhandlinger i
In a case where the Commission refers in the course of its calculation to an intermediate amount in excess of 10% of the turnover of the undertakings concerned, it cannot be criticised because certain factors taken into consideration in its calculation do not affect the final amount of the fine, since that is the consequence of the prohibition laid down in Article 15(2) of Regulation No 17 on exceeding 10% of the turnover of the undertaking concerned.
overlod de nationale markeder til bestemte producenter og sørgede for, at andre producenter trak sig ud aftalte priserne på produktet og på de enkelte projekter udpegede de producenter, der skulle have tildelt de enkelte projekter, og manipulerede med tilbuddene på disse projekter for at sikre, at den udpegede producent også fik tildelt den pågældende kontrakt
deliveries to Powerpipe by that supplier. In those circumstances, the Commission was entitled to find that its active role in the reprisals against Powerpipe constituted an aggravating circumstance, while the major role played by ABB in that regard was also recognised.
Kommissionen understreger endvidere, at det »danske« og det »europæiske« kartel blot var udtryk for et enkelt kartel, der begyndte i Danmark, men som fra begyndelsen havde det langsigtede mål at udvide deltagernes kontrol til hele markedet.
Second, the applicant does not deny having continued the infringement after the Commission had carried out its investigation.
Ifølge Kommissionen havde den vedvarende aftale mellem producenterne mærkbar indvirkning på samhandelen mellem medlemsstaterne.
F — Failure to take mitigating circumstances into account
Af disse grunde konkluderer beslutningen: traf samordnede foranstaltninger for at beskytte kartellet mod konkurrence fra den eneste betydelige, udenforstående konkurrent, Powerpipe AB; foranstaltningerne gik ud på at begrænse dens aktiviteter, skade dens virksomhed eller tvinge den helt ud af markedet.
The applicant has failed to prove that the Commission, having recognised that the applicant voluntarily provided it with documentan.' evidence which contributed substantially to establishing important aspects of the case, in particular the fact that the members of the cartel had decided to continue its operation after the investigation, which the Commission suspected but of which it possessed no proof (point 177 of the decision), should have granted it a reduction higher than the 30% accorded to it.
De i artikel 1 omhandlede virksomheder pålægges følgende bøder for de i artikel 1 omhandlede overtrædelser:
Next, as regards the pressure which ABB brought to bear on the applicant, the applicant could have reported the pressure to the competent authorities and lodged a complaint with the Commission under Article 3 of Regulation No 17 rather than participate in the cartel.
ABB Asea Brown Boveri Ltd, Brugg Rohrsysteme GmbH, Dansk Rørindustri A/S, Henss/Isoplus-koncernen, KE KELIT Kunststoffwerk GmbH, Oy KWH Tech AB, Løgstør Rør A/S, Pan-Isovit GmbH, Sigma Tecnologie di rivestimento Sri og Tarco Energi A/S har overtrådt EF-traktatens artikel 85, stk. 1, ved at have deltaget på den måde og i det omfang, der er anført i begrundelsen, i et kompleks af aftaler og samordnet praksis i den præisolerede rørsektor, der opstod omkring november/december 1990 mellem de fire danske producenter, senere blev udvidet til andre nationale markeder og til at omfatte Pan-Isovit og Henss/Isoplus, og sidst i 1994 udgjorde et omfattende kartel for hele fællesmarkedet.
In the present case, the Commission first of all sets out in its decision its general findings concerning the gravity of the infringement in question and also the particular elements of the cartel on which it based its conclusion that the present case constituted a very grave infringement for which the fine would normally be at least ECU 20 million.
Beslutningen blev meddelt sagsøgeren ved skrivelse af 12. november 1998, som denne modtog næste dag.
It then states that this amount must be adjusted to take account of the actual economic capacity of the offending undertakings to cause significant damage to competition and of the need to ensure that the fines were sufficiently deterrent.
Ved stævning indleveret til Rettens Justitskontor den 21. januar 1999 har sagsøgeren anlagt nærværende sag.
The Commission then states that in determining the level of the fines, it took into account any aggravating or mitigating circumstances and also the position of each undertaking in relation to the leniency notice.
Syv af de andre ni virksomheder, der blev anset for ansvarlige for overtrædelsen, har også anlagt sag til prøvelse af beslutningen (sag T-9/99, T15/99, T-16/99, T-17/99, T-21/99, T-28/99 og T31/99).
As regards the fine to be imposed on the applicant, the Commission then states that, in view of the applicant's importance as the second-largest European producer of pre-insulated pipes and in order to reflect its situation as essentially a single-product company, the starting point for its fine will be adjusted to ECU 10 million owing to the gravity of the infringement in its case.
Overtrædelserne bestod i, at producenterne:
The Commission then states that the fine to be imposed on the applicant will be weighted to reflect the duration of the infringement.
Den anfægtede beslutning annulleres, i det omfang den er rettet til sagsøgeren.
The Commission goes on to state that the basis of the applicant's fine must be increased because of the particularly aggravating circumstance of its
For det andet bemærkes, at sagsøgeren erkender at have deltaget i en aftale om en forhøjelse af bruttopriserne i Tyskland fra den 1. januar 1992 og i en aftale om samarbejde i oktober 1991 vedrørende Torino-projektet.
circumstance in relation to the applicant, it provided all the information which the applicant needed to know whether the decision was well founded or whether it might be vitiated by an error allowing the applicant to challenge its validity.
I — Det første anbringende, hvorefter der foreligger faktiske fejl ved anvendelsen af traktatens artikel 85, stk 1
V — The fifth plea in law, alleging that the rate of interest on the fine is excessive deliberate continuation of the infringement after the investigations and the further aggravating circumstance represented by the applicant's active role in the retaliatory measures against Powerpipe, although it was not on a par with ABB.
A — Kompensationsordningen i forbindelse med det danske kartel
The Commission also states that there are no extenuating circumstances; although the applicant may have come under pressure from ABB at various times it greatly exaggerates the extent of that pressure in claiming that it was dragged unwillingly into the cartel by ABB.
For det tredje har Kommissionen behørigt godtgjort, at sagsøgeren ved udgangen af 1993 var part i en aftale om opdeling af det tyske marked.
The Commission further states that, since the final amount calculated according to that method may not in any case exceed 10% of the applicant's worldwide turnover, as laid down in Article 15(2) of Regulation No 17, the fine will be set at ECU 12 700 000 so as not to exceed the permissible limit.
Sagsøgeren anfører, at Kommissionen har begået en fejl, når den hævder, at sagsøgeren sidst i 1991 deltog i en kompensationsordning.
If Community law did not permit measures designed to offset the advantage that an undertaking might derive from delaying payment of a fine, that would encourage manifestly unfounded actions brought with the sole object of delaying payment.
Under disse omstændigheder har Kommissionen korrekt udledt af den omstændighed, at parterne i august og september 1993 holdt fortsatte møder om tildelingen af markedsandele, at der mellem deltagerne i disse møder forelå en aftale, i det mindste vedrørende princippet om en opdeling af det tyske marked.
Interpreted in the light of the detailed statement in the decision of the allegations of fact against each of its addressees, points 164 to 167 and 175 to 177 contain a relevant and sufficient statement of the criteria taken into account in order to determine the gravity and duration of the infringement committed by the applicant.