Rewe record fine

German Chamber of Commerce warns of serious consequences

(Bild: stock.adobe.com/Екатерина Арцыбашева - stock.adobe.com)

The record cartel fine against the German grocery chain Rewe continues to stir up a lot of dust. The German Chamber of Commerce in Austria also finds the "disproportionate" ruling of the Supreme Court incomprehensible. It warns of dramatic consequences for Austria as a business location.

The Supreme Court obviously wanted to act as a preventative deterrent with the amount of the fine. However, according to the Managing Director of the German Chamber of Commerce in Austria, Thomas Gindele, the court has done the entire Austrian business location "a disservice" with its ruling.

The Supreme Court in Vienna

(Bild: APA/Georg Hochmuth)

"Austria loses legal certainty"
The "completely excessive fine" imposed by the Supreme Court would deter companies from investing in Austria in the future. "It is also not confidence-building if a strict but appropriate judgment has already been made and is then followed up," says Gindele. The red-white-red economy, which is already under enormous pressure, would now lose another locational advantage - legal certainty and reliability, warns the German chamber representative. 

Around 6000 German companies are economically active in Austria and their investments account for a good third of Austria's total economic output. Around 600,000 Austrian employees are directly and indirectly employed by German companies in Austria and through Austria's foreign trade relations with Germany, Gindele points out. 

As reported, in 2018, the then subsidiary Merkur Warenhandels AG (now Billa Plus) took over retail space for a food retail store in the WELAS Park shopping center in Wels, where Weiß Handels GmbH had previously operated a food retail store. This transaction was not initially notified as a merger to the Federal Competition Authority (BWB). 

Fine increased from 1.5 million to 70 million euros
Rewe took the legal view that there was no notifiable merger and subsequently made the notification in August 2022 during the proceedings. In May 2023, the Cartel Court confirmed the existence of a notifiable merger, but dismissed the BWB's request for a fine and declaratory judgment due to "lack of punishability". The BWB and the Federal Cartel Prosecutor appealed against the decision. The Supreme Court (OGH), as the higher cartel court, upheld the appeals in November 2023 and ordered the Cartel Court to impose a fine of a "significant" amount.

The Cartel Court then imposed a fine of €1.5 million on Rewe. BWB and the Federal Cartel Prosecutor lodged a further appeal against this. The Supreme Cartel Court has now increased the fine from EUR 1.5 million to EUR 70 million.