The Cypriot Administrative Court annuls a decision that imposed a fine of €20.7M on petroleum companies (ExxonMobil / Hellenic Petroleum / Petrolina / Coral)

The joined cases were brought before the Administrative Court of Cyprus (hereinafter the “Court”) by ExxonMobil Cyprus Ltd, Hellenic Petroleum Cyprus Ltd, Petrolina (Holdings) Public Ltd and Coral Energy Products Cyprus Ltd (hereinafter the “petroleum companies”) against the Commission for the Protection of Competition (hereinafter the “CPC”) for the annulment of the latter’s Decision No. 51/2017, dd. 30/10/2017 (hereinafter the “Contested Decision”). With the Contested Decision, the CPC imposed a total fine of €20,775,630 on the petroleum companies for violating Article 3(1)(a) of the Law on the Protection of Competition (Law 13(I)/2008). The Court annulled the Contested Decision, after concluding that it was unlawful in its entirety. One of the main issues examined by the Court was the