The Commission carries out unannounced inspections of companies in the sector. Finnish forest companies are industry waste in Europe.
the European Commission suspects a cartel in the pulp sector in several of its Member States. The Commission has carried out unannounced inspections of companies and suspects that they may have infringed EU competition rules.
According to Stora Enso’s communications, the inspectors arrived at the company’s headquarters in Helsinki earlier on Tuesday. The company has nothing else to comment on at this stage.
UPM states in its press release that the Commission is conducting an unannounced inspection of the company’s premises. The inspection began on Tuesday, the company said.
UPM states that it has no information on the outcome of the audit at this stage. UPM says it supports the Commission in its investigation.
Finns forest companies are waste from the pulp industry in Europe. In addition to Finland, they have production in many other countries.
The Commission recalls that unannounced checks are not automatically meant that companies have violated Union rules.
“The fact that the Commission carries out such inspections does not mean that companies are engaging in anti-competitive behavior, nor does it affect the results of the investigation itself,” the Commission statement said.
The price of pulp has risen sharply this year.
The Commission also states that it respects the right of companies to defend themselves, in particular their right to be heard.
There is no deadline for investigations into anti-competitive practices, the release states. The duration of investigations depends on a number of factors, such as the details of each case and the extent to which companies cooperate with the Commission.
The news is updated.
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