The Reykjavík District Court convicted three Icelanidc oil companies yesterday for price fixing in the case of the City of Reykjavík vs. Esso, Shell and Olís.
Reykjavík District Court ruled that Ker, previously Esso, Shell and Olís, have to pay the City of Reykjavík and the bus company Straetó bs. ISK 78 million (EUR 846,854, USD 1.1 million) in compensation. This is reported in all the main media.
The ruling said the former CEOs of the three oil companies, Kristinn Björnsson, Einar Benediktsson and Geir Magnússon, had broken competition laws with a joint agreement on pricing of oil products from 1993 to 2001.
The fishing company Brim has announced that it is now also considering suing the oil companies.
The case of the Icelandic government vs. Ker, Shell and Olís is espected to begin soon.
Olís CEO Gísli Baldur Gardarsson told Fréttabladid that he is not surprised that the oil companies had been convicted for price fixing in the case of the City of Reykjavík and Straetó bs. because they had admitted to it beforehand.
Gardarsson said other companies and institutions would not be successful in their case against the oil companies, as, he said, the oil companies had only admitted to price fixing when dealing with the City and Straetó bs.
Earlier this month Reykjavík District Court ruled that Ker would not have to pay compensation to a carpenter who pressed similar charges against the company.
Gardarsson told Fréttabladid that he is content with yesterday’s ruling because the amount the oil companies have to pay in compensation is only half the amount originally demanded.
To read more about the price fixing of the Icelandic oil companies, click here.
