WBHO will oppose the referral of a case by the Competition Commission to the Competition Tribunal in which it is alleged that the company colluded with Group Five by fixing contractual conditions for road improvements.
The JSE-listed construction and engineering group’s company secretary, Shereen Vally-Kara, said on Monday, WBHO did not agree that a meeting between itself and Group Five in 2006 was a contravention as alleged by the commission, “… and we have in any event already settled this project as part of the fast-track settlement process in 2013”.
The commission began investigations into the construction sector in 2009 “after receiving evidence that collusion was pervasive in the industry”. It then launched a fast-track settlement process in 2011 to speed up resolution of the cases.
WBHO’s rebuttal came after the commission on Monday issued a press release stating it had referred to the tribunal the “last case” arising from its probe into bid-rigging in the construction sector. The commission said WBHO had colluded with Group Five by fixing contractual conditions relating to the N17 link road between New Canada and Soccer City in Johannesburg.
Full content: BD Live
Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.
