The Chairman of the Czech Competition Authority, Petr Mlsna, has made decisions regarding appeals from companies AŽD Praha s.r.o. and EPLcond a.s. against fines imposed for their participation in a cartel involving suppliers for public procurement contracts related to railway crossings and stations.

In June, fines exceeding 157 million CZK were initially imposed for a cartel agreement concerning nearly 30 public contracts managed by the Railway Administration. Besides AŽD Praha and EPLcond, other companies such as ATE, s.r.o., MONZAS, a.s., První SaZ Plzeň a.s., and STARMON s.r.o. were also found to be involved in the cartel. All affected companies acknowledged their guilt and complied with the conditions for settlement with the Czech Competition Authority, but AŽD Praha and EPLcond appealed the amount of their fines.

In his decision, the Chairman disagreed with the initial ruling, stating that it did not respect the principles of justice and proportionality, particularly regarding the level of each company's involvement in the cartel and the value of the contracts involved. AŽD Praha was involved in only two contracts worth around 30 million CZK, while other cartel participants were associated with contracts valued between approximately 270 and 870 million CZK. Consequently, the fine for AŽD Praha was adjusted to 17,862,000 CZK after accounting for the settlement discount. Conversely, EPLcond, which was involved in contracts exceeding 300 million CZK, saw its fine increased to 24,047,000 CZK, as the initial calculation was based on the company's turnover from a different accounting period.