Stampa

PELLEGRINI/CONSIP


PRESS RELEASE



PRESS RELEASE
LUNCHEON VOUCHERS: FOR CIVIL SERVICE EMPLOYEES THE COMPETITION AUTHORITY HAS HANDED DOWN FINES OF OVER EURO34 MILLION TO THE COMPANIES AWARDED THE CONSIP TENDER FOR INTERFERENCE WITH COMPETITION


At its meeting on 13 June 2002 the Competition Authority resolved that the companies Gemeaz Cusin Srl, Sodexho Pass Srl, Day Ristoservice Srl, Ristomat Srl, Qui! Ticket Service Spa, Ristochef Spa, Sagifi Spa and Cascina Scrl had colluded to conclude an agreement designed to restrict competition, and had had the effect of so doing, on the market for the supply of alternative in-house catering services using luncheon vouchers for civil service employees, in relation to the tender called by Consip in 2000. The tender was for the supply over a two-year period of a total of 90 million luncheon vouchers, each having a value of euro 4.65. The total value of the tender was euro 418,330,088.26.

The investigation had begun on 27 June 2001, in response to a complaint by two companies that also operated on the meal voucher market, Pellegrini S.p.A. and Repas Lunch Coupon S.r.l., alleging that the procedures under which the tender had been awarded showed that the bids had been coordinated by the reported companies.

The investigation revealed that the companies had indeed colluded to jointly decide on their bidding procedures. Under this concerted practice all the participants to the agreement jointly agreed the composition of the temporary joint ventures (ATI) and the companies that would tender individually, jointly setting the levels of the discounts to be offered in their respective bids and the breakdown of the batches of business awarded.

The common purpose underlying this conduct was therefore to prevent any possible competitive comparison between 8 of the 10 companies taking part in the tender, jointly setting a price for the service that was higher than it would have been without this concerted practice, and guaranteeing each company the award of at least one of the batches or a part of one, thereby essentially guaranteeing that their respective shares would be more or less the same as they had had following the previous competitive tender with the ministries.

This therefore constituted a serious violation of competition law because the concerted practice put in place by these companies had interfered with the most important competition variables, namely the price and quantity conditions offered. The number and the economic strength of the companies involved were also indicative of the seriousness of the offence.

Bearing this in mind, the Authority handed down the following fines for an aggregate total of euro 34,088,520.98 (over 66 billion lire).
Company Fine (euro)
Gemeaz Cusin s.r.l. 16,355,826.40
Ristochef S.p.A. 3,820,954.61
Sodexho Pass s.r.l. 3,192,900.00
Day Ristoservice s.r.l. 2,976,612.76
La Cascina S.c.ar.l. 3,030,536.96
Qui! Ticket Service S.p.A. 2,073,751.74
Ristomat s.r.l. 1,875,330.28
Sagifi S.p.A. 762,608.23


Rome,  1 July 2002