The company Floarea Soarelui has announced that it will challenge the decision of the Competition Council, which imposed a fine of over 123 million MDL for anti-competitive practices, in national courts and, if necessary, in international courts. In a press release, the company described the decision as "illegal, marked by severe violations of national and European legislation, and directed against one of the largest domestic producers", IPN reports.
Floarea Soarelui and the Trans-Oil Group consider the Competition Council's decision to be unfounded and based on a flawed investigation process. They claim that the Council restricted the company’s access to a substantial portion of the case materials. The company argues that the decision contravenes international norms for protecting foreign investors, damaging the reputation and integrity of the Trans-Oil Group.
According to the company, in line with its corporate policy, bottled sunflower oil is sold on the domestic market of Moldova with a minimal commercial markup, just enough to cover costs, as part of its efforts to support the population. Therefore, the company asserts that the sanction is not only baseless but also illogical, considering its contribution to food security for citizens during the economic crisis.
The Competition Council fined "Floarea Soarelui" SA and "Lux Proba Grup" SRL a total of 192.6 million MDL after an investigation revealed an anti-competitive agreement between the two companies. The companies were found guilty of price coordination in the market during the period from October 2019 to June 2022.
The investigation, initiated in 2022, revealed that the two companies aligned their prices before communicating them to clients. "Lux Proba Grup" SRL reportedly requested "Floarea Soarelui" SA to adjust its prices for commercial networks, while the producer sought information about the distributor's rates to synchronize its own prices.
This price coordination negatively affected not only intra-brand competition (for "Floarea Soarelui" products) but also inter-brand competition, impacting private-label products of other companies that produced oil at the "Floarea Soarelui" factory.
