CD and OBB accused by European Commission of harming RegioJet, may face CZK 1 bn fine
Emails show that CD and OBB agreed on excluding RegioJet from purchasing used passenger cars.
The European Commission has accused Czech Railways and the Austrian railway carrier OBB of concluding secret agreements on used passenger rail cars with the intention to harm RegioJet.
The Commission said today that the state-owned carriers intended to distort competition in the passenger rail market. It has therefore sent a Statement of Objections to both. EU authorities have been investigating the case for six years.
“CD and OBB engaged in a collective boycott to maintain their market position and to prevent RegioJet’s expansion both in the Czech Republic and on the international rail route between Prague and Vienna,” the Commission said.
If the Commission’s preliminary view is confirmed, the behavior of CD and OBB would be in breach of Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. This prohibits anti-competitive commercial practices such as collusion. Both carriers may face CZK 1 billion fine.
We reported on the case in an earlier article.
Edited and translated by Lucie Trávníčková.