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Ukraine's grain fumigation market will be de-monopolised
According to Ukrainian Financial Server, Ukraine's Anti-Monopoly Committee (AMC) has commissioned the Ministry of Agrarian Policy to hold till the en of this year another tender to determine new participants of the grain disinfection market, the AMC First Deputy Head Olexandr Melnychenko has informed.
He said Ukraine's grain quarantine market at the moment was monopolised, as the Irish company Pest Control had been acknowledged as the only rightful participant of this lucrative market. As a result, the company has raised prices for its services far above the level of world ones - $1.35 per tonne, while around the world these services cost $0.4 to $0.6 per tonne.
According to Melnichenko, Pest Control has nevertheless agreed to negotiations with AMC and has paid all the fines, claimed by the Committee.
The AMC started investigation regarding the monopolised position of Pest Control Ltd in the Ukrainian fumigation market, and, accordingly, establishment of too high prices for these services and artificial limitation of competition in the market, in the first half of 2001. However, the investigation stretched on, because the Irish firm was ignoring enquiries of AMC. The company either failed to provide the necessary information for the investigation in due terms, or provided it in incomplete volume, for which it was fined by the Committee twice for the maximal sum, stipulated by Ukrainian legislation for such kind of infringement - 34,000 hryvnias (5.33 hryvnias = $1).