Italy’s Consiglio di Stato has overturned a EUR 4 million antitrust fine imposed on ferry operator Caronte & Tourist in 2022 for alleged abuse of a dominant position in the RoPax maritime transport market in the Strait of Messina. The ruling reverses a previous decision by the Lazio Administrative Court, which had upheld the penalty.
The court identified several flaws in the Italian Competition Authority’s decision. It ruled that the Authority had failed to prove that the market was effectively closed to competition or that significant barriers prevented new entrants.
The judges also found that the Authority had used a government study for a purpose different from that originally disclosed during the investigation, infringing the company’s right to defend itself.
In addition, the court rejected the Authority’s economic analysis, finding its methodology for assessing the company’s revenues and costs unreliable. It also criticised the unusually long preliminary investigation, which lasted 855 days and made it difficult for the company to retrieve the requested accounting records.
As a result, the Consiglio di Stato annulled the antitrust decision and ordered the Competition Authority to cover the legal costs of both court proceedings.