EU hands $84.5 million cartel fine to makers of car starter batteries

Dec ‌15 (Reuters) - The European Commission has fined ‍three ‌makers of starter batteries for cars and ⁠a trade association ‌around 72 million euros ($84.54 million) for participating in a long-running cartel, in breach of ⁠EU antitrust rules, it said on Monday.

The commission said ​battery makers Clarios, Exide, FET ‌and Rombat, and ⁠trade association EUROBAT had for more than 12 years entered into anticompetitive deals ​and engaged in concerted practices related to the sale of automotive starter batteries in the European Economic Area.

"This cartel ​restricted ‍competition and ​may have led to higher prices for the manufacturing of cars and trucks in Europe," the commission said.

Clarios was not fined, as it had revealed the cartel ⁠to the Commission.

The largest fine, of 30 million euros, ​was handed to Exide

Automotive starter batteries are primarily used in vehicles powered by combustion engines, such as ‌passenger cars or trucks.

($1 = 0.8516 euros)

(Reporting by Louise Breusch Rasmussen, editing by Bart Meijer)