Ecobat, two other lead recylers face EU antitrust fines - sources (updated)
31/01/2017 17:00
(Adds European Commission, companies comment)
By Foo Yun Chee
BRUSSELS, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Ecobat Technologies ECOBT.UL ,
the world's biggest lead recycler, Belgian rival Campine
CAMB.BR and France's Recylex are set to be fined by EU
antitrust regulators next month for taking part in a cartel, two
people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.
Johnson Controls International JCI.N will not be
sanctioned as it alerted the European Commission about the
cartel, the people said.
The EU competition enforcer in June 2015 charged five
companies of fixing the prices of scrap lead-acid batteries in
Belgium, France, Germany and the Netherlands over a three-year
period to 2012, resulting in lowered prices paid to scrap
dealers. It did not name the companies.
The Commission subsequently dropped one company from the
case, one of the people said.
Commission spokesman Ricardo Cardoso declined to comment.
Ecobat had no immediate comment while Recylex and Johnson
Controls said they could not comment on an ongoing
investigation. Campine did not immediately respond to a request
for comment.
The recyclers buy scrap batteries, the bulk of them car
batteries, extract the lead from them and re-use it to make new
products. The case started with dawn raids by the Commission in
2012.
Companies can be penalised up to 10 percent of their global
turnover for breaching EU antitrust rules.
(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee. Editing by Jane Merriman)
((foo.yunchee@thomsonreuters.com; +32 2 287 6844; Reuters
Messaging: foo.yunchee.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
Keywords: EU CARTEL/LEADRECYCLING