Decision by the General Court of the European Union regarding earlier cartel case

In 2007, a subsidiary of the Trelleborg Group was accused of involvement in a marine hose cartel. In January 2009, the European Commission imposed a penalty of EUR 24.5 M on Trelleborg as a result of this matter.

Immediate action was taken in connection with the accusations, and the individuals who were later found guilty of involvement in the cartel case, despite the Group’s clear guidelines and zero tolerance approach to this type of activity, were then immediately relieved of their positions.

Every specific event related to this case was communicated in press releases (2007, 2009), a year-end report (2009) and in annual reports (2007-2012).

Although Trelleborg accepts the judgment in actual matter of fact, Trelleborg appealed the European Commission’s decision to the General Court of the European Union, upon the advice of leading legal experts, on the grounds that the decision was partially deemed to diverge from Union law applicable at that time regarding interpretation of the limitation period.

However, the General Court of the European Union today affirmed the European Commission’s judgment and penalty amount.

The Trelleborg Group has made provisions for process and litigation costs as well as the penalty based on an analysis of the legal position that gave rise to appealing the European Commission’s decision. However, the judgment handed down by the General Court of the European Union entails that previous provisions are insufficient and the Trelleborg Group will therefore allocate an additional SEK 155 M, which will be recognized as a non-recurring cost in the second quarter of 2013.

“We do not share the General Court of the European Union’s view of the legal position, but regardless of this fact, the judgment means that we can finally put an end to an issue that we have lived with for many years and we can now move forward,” says Peter Nilsson, President and CEO, Trelleborg.

The Trelleborg Group takes all violations of applicable law very seriously and an extensive action program has been in place for several years based on the Group’s zero tolerance approach to corruption and breaches of competition law. The program includes strict regulations and procedures, a comprehensive training program in which about 6,000 managers have participated to date, and the Group’s managers verify in writing every year that they are aware of, and comply with, the Group’s regulatory framework.

Trelleborg has no further information to announce in addition to the information above.