CADE should charge five airlines with cartel activity.
Lufthansa, which exposed a collusion scheme regarding fuel surcharges, is expected to go unpunished; Air France and KLM have already agreed to pay R$14 million in damages. The other companies are subject to penalties ranging from 0,1% to 20% of their cargo revenue.
247 – On August 28th, the CADE (Administrative Council for Economic Defense) is expected to condemn five airlines for allegedly forming a cartel in cargo transportation, according to... information from Folha.
The investigation was opened following a complaint by the German airline Lufthansa in 2006, which confessed to being part of a collusion with Brazilian and foreign companies regarding the value of an item called "fuel surcharge," which makes up part of the freight price charged to customers.
Lufthansa would be protected from punishment by the leniency agreement. Air France, KLM (now Air France-KLM), ABSA Aerolíneas Brasileiras (now TAM Cargo), Swiss, Alitalia, American Airlines, United Airlines, and Varig Log were also investigated.
In February of this year, Air France and KLM reached an agreement with CADE (Brazil's antitrust authority), in which they admitted their involvement and committed to paying R$ 14 million in compensation. Therefore, they were spared conviction.
The other companies are subject to penalties ranging from 0,1% to 20% of their revenue in the cargo sector -- in the case of Varig Log, for example, the fine could be from R$ 760 to R$ 228 million. Executives will face fines of at least R$ 50.