CCR confirms the Competition Council’s right to use information collected by other institutions in investigations concerning possible anticompetitive practices

The Constitutional Court of Romania ruled that the provision in the Competition Law allowing the Competition Council to use information and documents collected by other public authorities and institutions is constitutional. The decision was issued in a case concerning total fines of 10.3 million lei imposed in 2018 on 13 companies accused of dividing up contracts in tenders organized by Transgaz.

The CCR rejected the constitutional challenge raised during the proceedings and confirmed that documents lawfully obtained by other institutions may be used in Competition Council investigations, under the conditions provided by law.

The case concerns tenders organized by S.N.T.G.N. Transgaz S.A. Mediaș for the award of contracts to build natural gas transmission pipelines and carry out related works. Following its investigation, the competition authority found possible violations of the law through the division of contracts and sanctioned the 13 companies.

The CCR ruling maintains the legal framework for cooperation between state institutions in investigations into anticompetitive practices. Information collected during official activities may help identify agreements between companies and possible cases of bid rigging in public tenders.