Tribunal confirms R99m settlement between commission, K-Line

10th October 2018 By: Marleny Arnoldi - Deputy Editor Online

The Competition Tribunal has confirmed a settlement agreement between the Competition Commission and Japanese car shipping company Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (K-Line).

The settlement comes after the commission initiated an investigation in 2012 against K-Line and other car shipping firms for collusive tendering, dividing markets and price fixing.

The investigation resulted in the commission referring 15 instances of collusion against K-Line to the tribunal for adjudication.

These instances included collusion on tenders put out by automakers Toyota, BMW, Honda and Nissan between 2006 and 2011.

In the settlement agreement, K-Line admitted to eight instances of price fixing, dividing markets and tendering collusively on tenders issued by the various car manufacturers for the transportation of cars into and from South Africa.

K-Line agreed to pay an administrative penalty of R98.93-million for its role in the collusion.

The tribunal previously confirmed a settlement between the commission and Wallenius Wilhemsen Logistics for its part in the same cartel. That company agreed to a penalty of R95-million.