January 23 (SeeNews) - Romania's competition authority said it has fined the local subsidiary of Swiss multinational healthcare company Roche with 59.9 million lei ($13.9 million/12.8 million euro) for abuse of dominant position.
The fine was issued on the basis of the findings of two investigations started in 2017, the Competition Council said in a statement on Wednesday.
During the first investigation, the competition authority has found that between 2017 and 2019, Roche Romania pursued a commercial strategy that aimed to eliminate its competitors in tenders and delay the entry of drugs similar to its own on the market.
The second investigation has revealed that during the same period, Roche Romania pursued a strategy that aimed to prevent the sale of cheaper drugs containing the active substance Erlotinib.
F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG is a Swiss-based multinational healthcare company that operates worldwide under two divisions: pharmaceuticals and diagnostics. It is present in Romania since 2005 through both divisions.
(1 euro=4.7786 Romanian lei)