ECJ issues opinion that Heineken has to answer for market abuses of Greek subsidiary

Luxembourg | The Advocate General of the European Court of Justice (ECJ), on 27 September, issued her opinion that the damages claims, resulting from market abuses by Heineken’s Greek subsidiary, should be decided by a court in the Netherlands.

In her opinion, Juliane Kokott stated there is a clear “close connection” between the claims brought against both Heineken and its 98.8 percent-owned subsidiary, Athenian Brewery, and that “no additional evidence” is required to establish that the Netherlands is the appropriate jurisdiction to hear these claims.

Ms Kokott’s opinion should clear the way for the Amsterdam District Court to rule on Heineken’s ultimate liability for damages this month.

Carlsberg’s claim is over EUR 300 million

The EUR 160 million+ claim brought by Macedonian Thrace Brewery (MTB), an independent Greek brewery, could create a precedent for Heineken which faces a near identical claim from Carlsberg for over EUR 300 million (USD 330 million). Heineken has been sanctioned repeatedly for market abuses in the EU and elsewhere around the world.

The MTB litigation and the Carlsberg claim both follow on from the Greek competition regulator’s 2015 ruling that Heineken’s subsidiary was guilty of longstanding and widespread anticompetitive misconduct. Heineken still refuses to accept that any law was broken in Greece. But the global brewer disclosed in its latest annual report that it recognises a potential liability of EUR 478 million (USD 527 million) in response to the damages claims from rivals MTB and Carlsberg.

Demetri Chriss, Director of Business Development at MTB, said: “We are very happy with this crystal-clear opinion, which chimes with what we’ve been saying all along, that Heineken and Athenian Brewery are responsible for throttling competition in Greece. The opinion leaves no doubt that the Dutch court can deal with the claims against both Athenian Brewery and Heineken.”