Competition Council fines 11 companies with RON 3.7 mln for cartels on heat distributors market

Competition Council has fined 11 companies with RON 3.7 million for cartels on heat distributors’ costs market, according to a release of the authority.

The authority found out that three companies (ista Romania, Techem Energy Services and Elsaco Brunata) created a cartel to share the market, respectively the localities that supplied exploitation services of the heating distributors and set the tariffs for these services. Within the cartel also participated Elsaco Electronic for a limited period of time, for almost a year.

Thus, consumers had a limited choice for a supplier, paying at the same time higher tariffs for the services of these companies.

Within the same investigation, the Competition Council found out a cartel for heat distributors’ costs between Elsaco Brunata and Techem Energy Services, on one side, and their seven partners, on the other side (Heat Energy Services, Cagero Instal, Laguna Serv, Ovila Com, Autonomous office of Public services Ploiesti, Autonomous office of Common Household Pascani and Electroval Sound).

The companies ista Romania and Elsaco Brunata admitted they attended the cartel and received a fine reduction by 15 percent.