The EU Commission fines a cartel in the gas insulated switchgear sector (GIS cartel)

Cartel fined in the gas insulated switchgear sector On 24 January the Commission adopted a prohibition Decision against members of the Gas Insulated Switchgear cartel with fines totalling some €750 million. The cartel from 1989 until the Commission’s inspections in May 2004, and was nearly global in coverage. The anticompetitive practices consisted principally of market allocation, customer allocation and bid rigging for public tenders. I. The product Gas Insulated Switchgear (GIS) is used to control energy flow in electricity grids. It is heavy electrical equipment, used as a major component for turnkey power substations. GIS is sold both as a standalone product and as part of GIS based turnkey power substations. The product is specialised and, therefore, custom made. Clients normally