Europe slaps PVC cartel with €173 million fine

The European competition watchdog yesterday slapped fines totalling €173 million on a plastics cartel of companies making products used in everything from credit cards to PVC fake leather.

The fines target 10 corporate groups operating in the plastic additives sphere which also ends up making the likes of soft drinks bottles, food packaging and budget flooring products.

"These companies must learn the hard way," said European Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes, who said 24 individual companies had conducted "elaborate precautions to cover their tracks" between 1987 and 2000.

The fines result from a probe first announced in February 2003. The companies hit were Akzo, Baerlocher, Ciba, Elementis, Elf Aquitaine (Arkema France), GEA, Chemson, Faci, Reagens and AC Treuhand.

The record European Commission fine for a cartel carve-up was dished out to the car glass sector in 2008 and ran to nearly €1.384 billion.

The biggest ever fine for an individual company was construction giant Saint Gobain, at €896 million, also last year.