Update: Lucsor Impex rejected the Competition Council's allegations and said it would challenge the decision in court, arguing that there is no evidence showing an anti-competitive agreement or coordination of commercial policies.

"Throughout the entire period under investigation, Lucsor acted as an independent distributor, not as a producer, offered its customers products at competitive prices and actively competed on the market," the company said in a statement sent to Romania-insider.com. It further argued that its commercial relationship with Agrana was a vertical producer-distributor relationship and that "setting a purchase price cannot be confused with setting resale prices to customers."

The company also challenged the relevance of Agrana's admission of wrongdoing, saying it was made for financial reasons, according to statements during the hearings, and "cannot constitute credible evidence against Lucsor." It further argued that the Competition Council's analysis did not fully reflect the effects of the government's 2023 emergency ordinance limiting commercial markups on basic food products, including sugar. 

Initial story: Romania’s Competition Council has fined Agrana Sales & Marketing GmbH, Agrana România SRL and Lucsor Impex SRL a combined RON 52.09 million (EUR 10 million) for an anti-competitive agreement to fix sugar prices on the Romanian market.

Agrana Sales & Marketing GmbH and Agrana România, which the authority considers a single economic unit, were fined RON 42.18 million, while Lucsor Impex was fined RON 9.91 million, Economica.net reported.

Following an investigation, the Competition Council found that the companies had agreed on the selling prices of sugar in Romania. The arrangement involved setting the value of individual components of Lucsor Impex’s selling price, including its commercial margin, which should have been determined independently.

As a result, the selling prices charged by Lucsor Impex to its customers followed the same trend as prices charged by Agrana, the authority said.

The Competition Council concluded that the agreement was intended to increase or at least maintain sugar prices in Romania above the levels that would have resulted from normal competitive conditions.

Agrana Sales & Marketing GmbH and Agrana România admitted the infringement of Romania’s Competition Law and received reductions in their fines as a result.

The Competition Council said the investigation also examined Pfeifer & Langen Romania SRL. However, the authority closed the proceedings against the company after finding insufficient evidence of a breach that would justify sanctions or other measures.

Agrana is one of the major sugar producers operating in Romania and is part of Austria-based Agrana Beteiligungs-AG. The Romanian market has been subject to heightened scrutiny over food prices and competition, particularly amid periods of elevated inflation and pressure on household purchasing power.

The latest sanctions follow the Competition Council’s efforts to investigate agreements that may have restricted competition by influencing retail or wholesale prices. The authority’s findings concern the conduct of the companies during the period covered by its investigation.

iulian@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Erik Tatevosian/Dreamstime.com)