OREANDA-NEWS.  September 03, 2012. The Cassation Arbitration Court of the Moscow District confirmed legitimacy of the determination of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS Russia) to fine “Belarus Food Company” Ltd. (“BPK” Ltd.) over 12 million Rubles for participating in concerted actions, reported the press-centre of FAS Russia. 

On 20th January 2011, the FAS Commission found that “Mozyrsalt” OJSC, “BPK” Ltd., “NDS” CJSC and “Evrotrust Expo” Ltd. violated the Federal Law “On Protection of Competition” (concerted actions resulted in allocating the market). The companies coordinated conditions for selling salt, produced by “Mozyrsalt” OJSC, in Moscow and the Moscow region. FAS imposed a turnover fine upon “BPK” Ltd.

“BPK” Ltd. filed a lawsuit to the Arbitration Court to change the FAS determination in the part of the administrative sanctions. However, Arbitration Courts of all instances supported the FAS position.

“All three Court instances supported the FAS decision, confirming the unlawful nature of the agreements and concerted actions aimed at allocating the market”, emphasized Deputy Head of FAS, Andrey Tsyganov.

Under Part 1 Article 14.32of the Code on Administrative Violations, when an economic entity concludes an agreement prohibited by the antimonopoly law of the Russian Federation as well as participates in such an agreement, it is punishable by an administrative fine upon company officers – from 20,000 to 50,000 Rubles or disqualification for the period up to three years; upon legal entities – from one hundredth to fifteen hundredths of the income of the violator from selling goods (works, services), on the market where the administrative violation was committed, but no less than 100,000 Rubles, and if the income of the violator from selling goods (works, services), on the market where the administrative violation was committed, exceeds 75% of the total income of the violator from selling all goods (works, services) – from three thousandths to three hundredths of the income of the violator from selling goods (works, services), on the market where the administrative violation was committed, but no less than 100,000 Rubles.