Bundeskartellamt’s response to the public consultation on the Block Exemption Regulation for Shipping Consortia (Regulation (EC) No 906/2009)

From 9 August 2022 to 3 October 2022 the European Commission carried out a public consultation to evaluate the Block Exemption Regulation for Shipping Consortia, see here. The current version of this regulation, also referred to as the “Consortia Block Exemption Regulation”, entered into force in 2009 and was renewed for another five years in 2014 and most recently for another four years in 2020.

The evaluation also addresses the question as to whether the regulation has fulfilled its purpose since it was last extended in 2020. The Commission then has to determine whether the regulation should expire or be prolonged subject to any adjustments. The Consortia Block Exemption Regulation is due to expire on 25 April 2024. In response to the consultation the Bundeskartellamt calls on the Commission to significantly amend the regulation’s scope of application or repeal the Consortia Block Exemption Regulation. The main idea behind this is to safeguard opportunities for cooperation between smaller carriers whereas large carriers are no longer to be privileged by the Consortia Block Exemption Regulation.
The comments submitted by the Bundeskartellamt within the framework of the consultation are available here.