Dutch court clears path for MTB’s claim against Heineken

The Netherlands | In its long-running legal spat with Heineken, Macedonian Thrace Brewery (MTB), best known for its Vergina beer, scored a victory: The Amsterdam Court of Appeal ruled on 16 February 2021 that MTB can pursue Heineken for damages in relation to anti-competitive practices and market abuse by its Greek subsidiary.

MTB can now bring a legal claim in the Dutch courts against not only Heineken, but also Athenian Brewery, its Greek unit.

MTB’s lawsuit against Heineken follows a ruling by the Hellenic Competition Commission (HCC) in 2015 that found Athenian Brewery had abused its dominant position in the Greek market for more than 16 years. Athenian was fined EUR 27 million (USD 30 million).

In 2017, the independently owned Greek brewer MTB filed a EUR 100 million (USD 105 million) claim for damages against Heineken in the Netherlands. It argued that the case should be heard in the Dutch courts because Athenian Brewery’s illegal activities had been carried out under the supervision and with the knowledge of executives at Heineken’s headquarters.

Demetri Chriss, Director of Business Development at MTB, was quoted as saying: “Heineken’s attempt to distance itself from the bad behaviour of its Greek operating company, Athenian Brewery, has failed. Heineken and Athenian Brewery will now both be held accountable in the Netherlands for the market abuse that was documented so powerfully in the HCC’s historic ruling.

In Greece, the competition authority ruled that Heineken’s Athenian Brewery “implemented a single and targeted policy that sought to exclude its competitors” from the Greek beer market by offering “significant payments” and “economic motives” to retailers and wholesalers.

Though this has been a difficult year for many businesses, MTB, a 120,000 hl beer firm, has weathered the covid-19 storm well, thanks to its strong support in Greece.

Before covid-19, there were more than 50 micro- and craft breweries, while per capita consumption was 35 litres annually. In 2020, per capita consumption dropped to 25 litres, says Carlsberg in a recent report, indicating that beer consumption was down nearly 30 percent because of the pandemic and the decline in tourism.