Close Menu
    Latest Category
    • Finance
    • Tech
    • EU Law
    • Energy
    • About
    • Contact
    EUbusiness.com | EU news, business and politicsEUbusiness.com | EU news, business and politics
    Login
    • EU News
    • Focus
    • Guides
    • Press
    • Jobs
    • Events
    • Directory
    EUbusiness.com | EU news, business and politicsEUbusiness.com | EU news, business and politics
    Home » Brussels ends antitrust block exemption for liner shipping

    Brussels ends antitrust block exemption for liner shipping

    npsBy nps10 October 2023 No Comments3 Mins Read
    — Filed under: Competition EU News Headline1 shipping Transport
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email
    Brussels ends antitrust block exemption for liner shipping

    Liner shipping – Photo By kees torn

    (BRUSSELS) – The Commission decided Tuesday not to extend the legal framework which exempts liner shipping consortia from EU antitrust rules, concluding that it no longer promotes competition in the shipping sector.

    The EU executive will therefore allow the ‘Consortia Block Exemption Regulation’ or ‘CBER’ to expire on 25 April 2024. The decision follows a review process launched in August 2022, aimed at gathering evidence on the functioning of the CBER since 2020, in view of its expiry on 25 April 2024. The CBER allows shipping lines, under certain conditions, to enter into cooperation agreements to provide joint cargo transport services, also known as ‘consortia’.

    In August 2022, the Commission launched a call for evidence inviting feedback from stakeholders on the performance of the CBER. On the same day, it sent targeted questionnaires to the most interested parties in the maritime liner shipping supply chain (i.e., carriers, shippers and freight forwarders, ports, and terminal operators) on the impact of consortia between liner shipping companies as well as of the CBER on their operations.

    Prior to its evaluation, as part of its sectoral monitoring activities, the Commission had regular exchanges with market participants as well as with competition and regulatory authorities in Europe, the US and other jurisdictions, on the challenges faced by the shipping sector. It also: (i) sent questionnaires to carriers on the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on their operations and on the maritime supply chain; and (ii) commissioned an independent fact-finding study.

    Today, the Commission has published its Staff Working Document summarising the findings of its evaluation. Overall, the evidence collected from the stakeholders points towards the low or limited effectiveness and efficiency of the CBER throughout the 2020-2023 period.

    Given the small number and profile of consortia falling within the scope of the CBER, the CBER brings limited compliance cost savings to carriers and plays a secondary role in carriers’ decision to cooperate. Furthermore, over the evaluation period, the CBER was no longer enabling smaller carriers to cooperate among each other and offer alternative services in competition with larger carriers.

    Based on the feedback received, the Commission has decided not to extend the CBER and to let it expire on 25 April 2024. The expiry of the CBER does not mean that cooperation between shipping lines becomes unlawful under EU antitrust rules. Instead, carriers operating to or from the EU will assess the compatibility of their co-operation agreements with EU antitrust rules based on the extensive guidance provided in the Horizontal Block Exemption Regulation and Specialisation Block Exemption Regulation.

    More information is available on the Commission’s competition website, in the maritime transport section, as well as in the relevant Consortia Block Exemption Regulation – guide.

    Add A Comment
    Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

    You must be logged in to post a comment.

    nps
    • Website

    Related Content

    Deforestation - Image by Robert Jones from Pixabay

    EUDR saga: Parliament votes to undermine enforcement and EU credibility

    Sponsor: WWF European Policy Office9 July 2025
    EuroCommerce

    EU Stockpiling Strategy: Retail and wholesale essential partners in EU crisis resilience

    Sponsor: EuroCommerce9 July 2025
    Medical supplies - Image by Ahmad Ardity from Pixabay

    EU strengthens crisis readiness with stockpiling and medical countermeasures strategies

    Euro - ECB-Photo by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash

    Euro continues to hold its ground – Euro currency news daily

    CCBE logo

    Legal Advisor, Council of Bars and Law Societies of Europe, CCBE

    Chemical production nature clouds - Image by andreas N from Pixabay

    EU to set up Critical Chemical Alliance

    LATEST EU NEWS
    Medical supplies - Image by Ahmad Ardity from Pixabay

    EU strengthens crisis readiness with stockpiling and medical countermeasures strategies

    9 July 2025
    Euro - ECB-Photo by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash

    Euro continues to hold its ground – Euro currency news daily

    9 July 2025
    Chemical production nature clouds - Image by andreas N from Pixabay

    EU to set up Critical Chemical Alliance

    8 July 2025
    Bulgaria euro - Photo © European Union 2025

    Bulgaria takes its place as 21st member of the eurozone

    8 July 2025
    Cars CO2 emissions- Photo by Alexey Demidov on Pexels

    Brussels seeks views on CO2 emission standards for cars and vans, car labelling

    7 July 2025

    Subscribe to EUbusiness Week

    Get the latest EU news

    CONTACT INFO

    • EUbusiness Ltd 117 High Street, Chesham Buckinghamshire, HP5 1DE United Kingdom
    • +44(0)20 8058 8232
    • service@eubusiness.com

    INFORMATION

    • About Us
    • Advertising
    • Contact Info

    Services

    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms
    • EU News

    SOCIAL MEDIA

    Facebook
    eubusiness.com © EUbusiness Ltd 2025

    Design and developed by : 

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    Sign In or Register

    Welcome Back!

    Login to your account below.

    Lost password?