APPEAL COURT: “MOEK” PJSC VIOALTED THE ANTIMONOPOLY LAW

FAS found that the company breached the pricing procedure for registering the volume of heating energy for which a consumer must pay

At the end of 2017, FAS received a complaint from “Health” Moscow Prosthesis-and-Rehabilitation Centre - a branch of “Moscow Prosthesis-and-Orthopedic Enterprise”, of the Ministry of Labour, regarding “MOEK” PJSC.

The Antimonopoly Service established that “MOEK” PJSC and the unitary enterprise concluded a heating supply contract. According to the contract, the amount of supplied heating energy and heat carrier is determined on the basis of readings of a heating meter, which fully complies with the normative legal acts issued by the Government of the Russian Federation.

Nevertheless, “MOEK” PJSC determined the volume of heating energy by calculations, which increased the volume of the consumed energy by several times, which affected the heating costs.

Such actions of “MOEK” PJSC increase considerably the financial obligations of the petitioner.

The Antimonopoly Service issued a binding order to the company. “MOEK” PJSC must have terminated the violation of the Federal Law “On Protection of Competition” within a month. The company, however, decided to appeal the FAS decision at Court.

On 24 January 2019, the Appeal Court supported the decision of the competition authority and confirmed that “MOEK” PJSC had violated the Federal Law “On Protection of Competition”.