The European Commission (EC) on Wednesday fined four maritime car carriers a total of EUR 395 million for taking part in cartels, in breach of EU antitrust rules.
It is found the Chilean maritime carrier CSAV, the Japanese carriers "K" Line, MOL and NYK, and the Norwegian/Swedish carrier WWL-EUKOR participated in a cartel concerning the intercontinental maritime transport of vehicles.
According to the EC, the five carriers formed a cartel in the market for deep sea transport of vehicles on various routes between Europe and other continents for almost six years, from October 2006 to September 2012.
Investigation revealed that, to coordinate anticompetitive behaviour, the carriers' sales managers met at each other's offices, in bars, restaurants or other social gatherings and were in contact over the phone on a regular basis.
In particular, they coordinated prices, allocated customers and exchanged commercially sensitive information about elements of the price, such as charges and surcharges added to prices to offset currency or oil prices fluctuations.
The Commission's investigation started with an immunity application submitted by MOL.
"The Commission has sanctioned several companies for colluding in the maritime transport of cars and the supply of car parts,” said Commissioner Margrethe Vestager.
“The three separate decisions taken today show that we will not tolerate anticompetitive behaviour affecting European consumers and industries.
“By raising component prices or transport costs for cars, the cartels ultimately hurt European consumers and adversely impacted the competitiveness of the European automotive sector, which employs around 12 million people in the EU.”
The breakdown of the fines imposed on each company is as follows:
| Company | Reduction under Leniency Notice | Reduction under Settlement Notice | Fine (EUR) |
| MOL | 100% | 10% | 0 |
| NYK | 20% | 10% | 141,820,000 |
| "K" LINE | 50% | 10% | 39,100,000 |
| WWL-EUKOR | 20% | 10% | 207,335,000 |
| CSAV | 25% | 10% | 7,033,000 |
Publication date: 22 February, 2018
Star Cruises, Star Cruises Singapore Investment Holding, and CruiseGlobal creditors meetings arranged for May 2022, informs provisional liquidator.
Proposes voluntary delisting exercise from the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited due to associated costs and low trading liquidity of its shares.
Singapore judge favours ‘pre-action discovery’ against Sinfeng Marine Services over disputed payment terms in USD 10.0 million bunkers contract with Coastal Oil.
The BIMCO Bunker Terms 2018 improve on the previous edition with a maximum limit of the parties’ liabilities.
Arrest was from information received from an air operation along the Straits of Melaka, where the ship was spotted off Kendi Island around 12.00 pm on Tuesday.
Invoices for the product were inconsistent and there was no certificate of origin for the product, it says.
Rotterdam’s intention to mandate the usage of MFMs goes down well with licensed bunker supplier VT Group; MFM providers supportive of move but stressed continuous monitoring is needed for optimum performance.
Cost of alternative bunker fuels, bunker operations and technology advancement are some considerations to be examined by the maritime industry, says Neo, director of SDE International Pte Ltd.
Kim Hyung Joon and Han Donghoon were planning to join the Singapore entities of Hartree Group - either Hartree Partners Singapore Pte Ltd or Hartree Marine Fuels - in October, discovered management.
‘When you think of Helmsman on the next occasion, think of us as lawyers with expertise in various fields. Come to us before a problem develops. It’s the process that matters,’ says Tang Chong Jun, Executive Director.
Bernard Chew was a former shareholder of MB Marine and was an authorised signatory of the company’s cheques at the material time, according to court documents obtained by Manifold Times.
Maersk, CMA CGM, BP and Stena Bulk give insights on availability of the three potential bunker fuel types, their plans, transition from fuel oil and LNG to alt fuels, how important sustainable marine fuels are to shipowners and more.
