Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, ANTITRUST NEWS: EC issues statement of objections to DuPont, Honeywell over refrigerant, (Oct 22, 2014)

By Greg Hammond, J.D.

The EC has sent a Statement of Objections to Honeywell International Inc. and E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co., reflecting the preliminary view that several agreements entered into by the two companies may have violated EU antitrust rules. According to the EC, DuPont and Honeywell allegedly cooperated to limit the production of a new refrigerant for use in car air-conditioning systems.

Honeywell and DuPont are the only two suppliers of R-1234yf, the only commercially available refrigerant that meets EU standards on air conditioning systems in motor vehicles. The EU adopted new standards on automobile air conditioning systems in 2006, with the aim of reducing harmful emissions and combating global warming.

The EC is concerned that the agreements entered into by Honeywell and DuPont—regarding R-1234yf production arrangements—may have reduced their decision-making independence, resulting in anticompetitive effects on refrigerant competition. Specifically, it asserts that the two companies’ agreements limited the available quantities of R-1234yf that would have otherwise been on the market, and further limited the related technical development of the refrigerant. If found to be true, the EC suggests that the cited behavior may have infringed Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, as well as Article 53 of the European Economic Area Agreement that prohibits anticompetitive agreements.

Companies: Honeywell International Inc.; E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co.

News: Antitrust