Romania Competition Council suspects cement collusion

The prices charged by Romania’s three leading cement producers Holcim, CRH and HeidelbergCement have followed a similar pattern and the geographic distribution of the customers around the companies’ cement plants support suspicions that the three are sharing the market, according to a report on the cement market completed by Romania’s Competition Council.

The report is part of a continued investigation into the country’s cement market, started last October. The Competition Council launched an investigation into the alleged anti-competitive agreement between Holcim, CRH and HeidelbergCement, which, it said, may have been coordinating price strategies since 2010. The authority carried out raids at the headquarters of the three cement producers and seized documents.

Should it find any evidence of collusion, fines of up to 10 per cent of company turnover are applicable. If the companies cooperate with the authority, they could expect leniency in the form of immunity or reduced fines.