In its meeting of 25 July 2017, at the end of a complex investigation, the Italian Competition Authority (“ICA”) imposed penalties for more than 184 million euros on the main companies that operate in the cement sales market, the AITEC trade association and a building materials dealer that operates in Tuscany.

The ICA ascertained that from 2011 to 2016, the companies Italcementi S.p.A., Buzzi Unicem S.p.A., Colacem S.p.A., Cementir S.p.A., Sacci in liquidation S.r.l., Cementirossi S.p.A., Holcim (Italia) S.p.A., Barbetti S.p.A., Cementeria di Monselice S.p.A., Cementizillo S.p.A., Cal.me S.p.A, Cementi Moccia S.p.A, and TSC S.r.l, as well as the AITEC trade association colluded in a single, continued and complex agreement seriously infringing Art. 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union - by coordinating themselves on cement prices throughout the whole country, also assisted by a systematic performance control of related market shares.

This agreement was based on a unified model of concerted action stable over time, according to which, as shown by the evidence acquired:
- even on association meetings, the cement companies agreed ex ante to define the same nominal increases in the price of cement to be communicated in advance to customers;
- the same companies constantly verified not only that competitors were sending price increase letters to the market, even making use of the TSC distributor’s active collaboration, but also that all competitors effectively applied such increases.

The AITEC trade association took on an active role in this coordination, both by guaranteeing the overall application of price increases announced by the cement companies and by disseminating data on domestic cement deliveries to facilitate continuous monitoring of the related shares and hence the stability of the agreement.

Amidst a serious crisis in the cement market, the companies’ coordinated commercial conduct led to the achievement of corporate revenues and margins higher than obtainable under competitive conditions, to the detriment of the demand represented by the construction sector.

The Italian Competition Authority therefore decided to impose the following pecuniary sanctions: 

Rome, 7 August 2017