Fine of 9.91 million lei for Albalact. The court definitively ruled in favor of the Competition Council

The Bucharest Tribunal has definitively upheld the RON 9.91 million fine, approximately two million euros, imposed by the Competition Council on Albalact for refusing to allow access to information during an unannounced inspection.

The inspection took place at the end of March 2023, as part of an investigation into possible agreements to set prices on the butter production and sales market. Inspectors requested access to certain email accounts and correspondence used by employees or representatives of the companies under investigation.

The Competition Council subsequently sanctioned Albalact, Covalact and Dorna Lactate for obstructing the checks. To compel the companies to provide the requested information, the authority also set penalties of RON 130,913.27 for each day of delay, calculated until access was granted.

By the court’s decision, the Competition Council definitively won all three cases concerning the sanctions challenged by the companies. Unannounced inspections are authorized by the Bucharest Court of Appeal and seek to obtain the documents needed to clarify possible anticompetitive practices. Under the law, refusal to cooperate may be sanctioned with fines ranging from 0.1% to 1% of the total turnover generated in the previous financial year.