Nine local independent power producers were found guilty of concerted practices by the Supreme Administrative Court on Monday as it overruled previous rulings in a drawn-out fair-trade case.
The court sided with the Fair Trade Commission, saying in its verdict that the joint action of the power firms — which account for 76 percent of state-owned Taiwan Power Co’s (Taipower, 台電) outsourced electricity — had prohibited normal market competition, disrupting supply and demand.
The nine firms, which have provided electricity to Taipower since 1995 to help ensure stable supply, were jointly fined NT$6.32 billion (US$212.74 million at the current exchange rate) by the commission in 2013 for colluding on pricing.
Photo: CNA
The firms — Mailiao Power Corp (麥寮汽電), Ho-Ping Power Co (和平電廠), Ever Power IPP Co (長生電力), Chiahui Power Corp (嘉惠電力), Hsin Tao Power Corp (新桃電力), Star Energy Corp (星能電力), Sun Ba Power Corp (森霸電力), Kuang Power Co (國光電力) and Star Buck Power Corp (星元電力) — petitioned the commission in 2014 and the fine was reduced to about NT$6 billion.
The independent companies from 2008 to 2012 colluded to stay out of negotiations with Taipower over pricing adjustments, constituting concerted practice and resulting in a negative impact market functions, the court said.
The companies appealed to the Taipei High Administrative Court, with further trials and retrials resulting in rulings in their favor because the evidence failed to prove concerted practice, it said.
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