C ARTEL D AMAGE C LAIMS

– CDC –

THE EUROPEAN BRAND FOR PRIVATE ANTITRUST ENFORCEMENT










 
























'Price being the main instrument of competition, the various collusive arrangements and mechanisms adopted by the producers were all ultimately aimed at stabilising or inflating prices to their benefit. '

European Commission, decision dated 1 October 2008 [COMP/39181]








Paraffin Wax (candle waxes)

One affiliate of the CDC group is in charge of the enforcement of antitrust damage claims purchased from victims of the paraffin wax cartel. Paraffin wax is mainly used for candle production, but also has a wide range of other applications in various industries, including packaging, cosmetics, construction and food. Paraffin wax is produced from slack wax, which in turn is a by-product of the production of certain base-oils in crude oil refineries.

Background and facts

By decision of 1 October 2008 (Case COMP/39181 – Candle Waxes), the European Commission determined that the following nine groups of companies participated in EEA-wide anticompetitive concerted practices lasting from at least 1992 to 2005 on the market for paraffin wax:

Over the course of this single and continuous infringement of Art. 101 TFEU and Art. 53 of the EEA-Agreement, the cartelists had more than 50 meetings in various European cities and sent well over a hundred letters, faxes and emails in which they fixed target prices and monitored their implementation, allocated customers as well as market shares and exchanged commercially sensitive information. According to the Commission, the common overall plan of these efforts was to reduce and prevent competition on price in order to stabilise or raise prices by agreeing on minimum prices and price increases. Thereby, the cartel members aimed at significantly reducing or even eliminating competitive pressure with the ultimate goal of achieving higher profits. Shell, Sasol, Repsol, RWE and ExxonMobil acknowledged their participation in the anti-competitive agreements and provided evidence to the Commission under the Leniency Notice.

The European Commission imposed fines, totalling EUR 676 million, on the nine groups of companies. Shell received full immunity from fines under the Commission’s 2002 Leniency Notice, because it was the first undertaking to provide information about the cartel. Sasol’s and ExxonMobil’s fines were also reduced because they cooperated with the Commission’s investigation and provided evidence with significant added value. The civil liability for damages, however, is not affected by the Leniency Notice which means that all members of the cartel may be held liable in private damages actions.

Civil proceedings

On 16 September 2011, a company of the CDC group started legal proceedings against ExxonMobil, Shell, Total and Sasol for damages resulting from the European paraffin wax cartel. The action was filed in The Hague, the Netherlands. CDC is represented by the law firm Barents Krans. 

Prior to the filing of the action, eight companies – mostly candle producers – with production sites in five different European countries sold and assigned their damage claims resulting from the paraffin wax cartel to CDC. CDC enforces these claims under its own name and on its own account using its technical and economic know-how.

The detailed transaction data collected from the damaged companies together with other market data show that the cartel resulted in significant price overcharges. As a consequence, purchasers of paraffin wax incurred damages for which the defendants are liable. The damages are increased by interest as of the day when the damage was incurred.

Further information

On the administrative proceedings:
On the civil proceedings initiated by CDC:


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