Panasonic : EU fines capacitor producers 254 million euros for taking part in cartel
March 21, 2018 at 07:21 am EDT
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BRUSSELS (Reuters) - EU antitrust regulators handed down a 254-million-euro (£221.78 million) fine to eight capacitor producers on Wednesday for taking part in a cartel for more than a decade.
The European Commission said Elna, Hitachi Chemical, Holy Stone, Matsuo, Nec Tokin, Nichicon, Nippon Chemi-Con and Rubycon fixed prices for the supply of aluminium and tantalum electrolytic capacitors.
Sanyo Electric Co and Panasonic Corp (>> Panasonic Corporation) alerted the EU competition enforcer and avoided a fine.
Capacitors are used in electronic products such as smartphones, home appliances, car electronic systems and wind turbines.
"Our decision again makes clear that we will not tolerate anti-competitive conduct that may affect European consumers, even if anticompetitive contacts take place outside Europe," European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said in a statement.
It said the cartel ran from 1998 to 2012, with meetings taking place mainly in Japan but the operation was on a global scale.
(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee, editing by Robin Emmott)
Panasonic Holdings Corporation (formerly Panasonic Corporation) specializes in manufacturing and marketing of consumer electronic equipments. Net sales (including intragroup) break down by family of products as follows:
- domestic equipments, appliances and audiovisual equipment (42.5%): lighting devices, photovoltaic devices, wiring devices, health and care devices, furnishing materials, air conditioning and ventilation equipments, air purifiers, refrigerators, air conditioners, washing machines, dryers, vacuum cleaners, irons, microwaves, fans, cooking appliances, dishwashers, TVs, digital cameras, audio and video equipment, fixed telephones, showcases, etc.;
- electronic and electromechanical components (13.2%): relays, switches, power supply systems, industrial motors and sensors, capacitors, coils, resistors, materials for electronic circuits, semiconductors, LCD panels, etc.;
- automotive multimedia equipment and electronic accessories (12.4%);
- avionics, industrial automation, communication and entertainment systems (10.8%): in-flight entertainment and communication systems, electronic component assembly machines, welding equipment, projectors, professional audio-visual systems, computers, tablets, mobile communication systems and equipment, etc.;
- energy storage systems (8.9%): cylindrical lithium-ion batteries, dry batteries, primary/secondary lithium batteries, nickel-metal hydride batteries, lithium-ion batteries, energy storage modules and systems;
- other (12.2%).
Net sales break down geographically as follows: Japan (43.2%), China (13.4%), Asia (14.7%), Americas (18.7%) and Europe (10%).