OREANDA-NEWS. September 05, 2013. The Federal Arbitration Court of the North-Western District confirmed legitimacy of the determination issued by the Office of the Federal Antimonopoly Service in the Leningrad region (Leningrad OFAS Russia) to impose an administrative fine upon “Lenenergo” OJSC 6,852,960 Rubles.

The network organization was fined for abusing market dominance (a violation of Article 10 of the Federal Law “On Protection of Competition”): “Lenenergo” OJSC was forcing residents of Gatchina District, the Leningrad region to enter into contracts for connecting to electric power network, according to which the applicants had to design and assemble at their own expense wood poles on the boundaries of their land plots. “Lenenergo” OJSC also breached the deadlines for considering petitions filed by residents. For instance, one application was considered during six months instead of the statutory 30 days.

For these violations OFAS imposed a turnover fine upon the network, the size of which reached 6,852,960 Rubles.

At the end of 2012, the Arbitration Court of First Instance reduced the fined to 100,000 Rubles.

“Such fine was small out of proportion in comparison with the seriousness of the violation, therefore the antimonopoly body disagreed with the judgment and appealed it at a higher Court Instance”, reminded Deputy Head of Leningrad OFAS Russia, Gleb Konnov.

The Appeal Court and the Cassation Court confirmed legitimacy and the adequate size of the fine imposed by Leningrad OFAS Russia.