South Africa: Tribunal to pursue price-fixing in Eskom tender

The Competition Tribunal has refused an application to dismiss a complaint against companies accused of alleged price-fixing and tender collusion in a ZAR240 million (US$3.4 million) tender issued by State-owned power utility Eskom in March 2015.

The tender was for the supply, installation, and dismantling of scaffolding and thermal insulation for 15 of Eskom’s coal-fired power stations and was to run over five years.

The Competition Commission launched an investigation into the matter after a complaint was lodged by Eskom in March of 2016.

In its complaint, Eskom claimed the four bids received were the subject of a collusive agreement as: the same person signed all the bids; technical, financial, and other requirements were identical; the first respondent, SGB Cape’s prices were the lowest, while two of the joint ventures (JVs) submitted the same prices and the rate differences between the first respondents and the JVs were consistent; and the terms and conditions of the JVs were identical and developed by the same attorney.

With the Tribunal’s decision to dismiss the application to throw out the complaint, the Commission is consequently required to make available specified nonprivileged and unrestricted portions of the Commission’s record to the respondents and to provide a supplementary affidavit outlining whether the JVs were incorporated or not, as well as the provisions relied upon to show collusive tendering and price-fixing agreements involving Tedoc, Mtsweni, and Superfecta.

Full Content: Mail & Guardian