'Bid Rigging in Machine Tool Purchases' by Two Companies... Fair Trade Commission Imposes Heavy Fines

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Companies that colluded in a bidding process for purchasing machine tools were sanctioned by the Fair Trade Commission.

On the 3rd, the Fair Trade Commission announced that it would impose corrective orders and a fine of 174 million KRW on Korea Yamazaki Mazak and Dukwang Machinery for their joint unfair practices.

Machine tools refer to machines that cut materials, drill holes, or grind to manufacture parts, including lathes, milling machines, machining centers, and grinders.

According to the Fair Trade Commission, Korea Yamazaki Mazak and Dukwang Machinery colluded by jointly preparing bid proposals and sharing bid prices in five machine tool purchase bids issued by Chungnam Technopark and Jeonnam Technopark from December 2019 to October 2022.

Chungnam Technopark and Jeonnam Technopark are foundation corporations established by local governments to support small and medium enterprises and foster regional industries through industrial technology discovery.

The Fair Trade Commission determined that the collusion among these companies led to increased winning bid prices, resulting in budget waste for public institutions, and thus decided to impose sanctions.

The Fair Trade Commission stated, "We will continue to strengthen monitoring of bid rigging in the public sector and take strict measures when violations of the law are detected."