EU Ending Ocean Carrier Antitrust Exemption
The European Commission will not extend the legal framework that exempts liner shipping from EU antitrust rules, it said in an announcement Oct. 10. The commission said the antitrust rules, known as the Consortia Block Exemption Regulation (CBER), "no longer promotes competition in the shipping sector" and will expire on April 25, 2024.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Export Compliance Daily combines U.S. export control news, foreign border import regulation and policy developments into a single daily information service that reliably informs its trade professional readers about important current issues affecting their operations.
The end of the CBER doesn't mean that cooperation "between shipping lines becomes unlawful under EU antitrust rules," the commission said. "Instead, carriers operating to or from the EU will assess the compatibility of their co-operation agreements with EU antitrust rules based on the extensive guidance provided in the Horizontal Block Exemption Regulation and Specialisation Block Exemption Regulation."
The decision follows a review process that was launched in August 2022, the EC said. The review process was "aimed at gathering evidence on the functioning of the CBER since 2020" ahead of its expiration in April 2024. The evaluation invited feedback from stakeholders on CBER and sent out questionnaires about the impact of CBER to carriers, shippers, freight forwarders, ports, and terminal operators, it said.
The Commission published its findings on the CBER, finding that the effectiveness and efficiency of the CBER was low or limited for the 2020-2023 period.
"Given the small number and profile of consortia falling within the scope of the CBER, the CBER brings limited compliance cost savings to carriers and plays a secondary role in carriers' decision to cooperate," the commission said. "Furthermore, over the evaluation period, the CBER was no longer enabling smaller carriers to cooperate among each other and offer alternative services in competition with larger carriers."
The World Shipping Council, which represents major global carriers, said it's reviewing the basis for the decision and looks forward to "further dialogue to ensure regulatory clarity."
John Butler, CEO of the council, said the group appreciated the EU's "recognition of the many benefits of vessel sharing to European industry and consumers, even if we disagree with the logic behind the recommendation to discontinue the CBER. The shift to general EU antitrust rules will create a period of uncertainty as carriers adjust to the new legal structure. Nevertheless, vessel sharing agreements will remain a fully legal and supported way for carriers to ensure efficient and sustainable transport for Europe."