Heineken has been ordered to pay over €100m ($112.3m) in damages in a competition case against Macedonian Thrace Brewery (MTB).
A statement from MTB today (21 October) said the Amsterdam District Court had ordered Heineken to pay the Vergina brewer €111m in damages.
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
The decision, it said, “brings to a close long-running proceedings that began when MTB sued Heineken in the Amsterdam District Court in 2017”.
MTB told Just Drinks the local court’s decision was the final ruling in the case.
Earlier this year, it emerged Heineken could be liable for damages exceeding €83m (then $96.2m) in the proceedings.
The damages claim arose from a decision by Greece’s antitrust body in 2015, which found Athenian Brewery (AB) held a dominant position and used it across 16 years to restrict competitors such as MTB.
AB challenged the regulator’s decision through the Greek courts but failed at each stage.
In the Dutch civil case, the Amsterdam court already ruled Heineken and AB must follow the Greek infringement decision.
An appeal by Heineken was rejected by the Dutch Supreme Court in June. MTB at the time said the move would allow for the Amsterdam District Court to issue its final ruling on damages.
“Justice has been served,” Demetri Chriss, director of business development at MTB, said.
Chriss added: “For nearly three decades, Heineken has done everything in its power to avoid being held accountable for the damage it has caused MTB, but the Amsterdam District Court’s judgment goes a long way in setting the record straight.
“This is one of the most significant milestones in MTB’s history as it recognises that hard work, careful planning and dedication can overcome even the most egregious of abuses by a multinational behemoth like Heineken.”
To calculate the damages, the court accepted the economic model presented for MTB by consultancy Oxera.
According to Heineken, the district court has awarded MTB €43m combined with €68m of “statutory interest”.
In its own statement, the Dutch brewer said it “respects the court and the legal process”.
“At the same time, Heineken respectfully disagrees with important aspects of the Court’s decision,” it added.
“In our view, damages claims of this scale should be grounded in evidence and reflect the commercial realities of the market. The damages assessment relies in part on assumptions about MTB’s sales, pricing and profitability in a hypothetical market scenario. In our view, those assumptions should be carefully tested against the available economic evidence and market developments during the relevant period. We do not believe the damages awarded adequately reflect those considerations.
“We believe an appeal is the appropriate legal step to ensure that these issues are fully reviewed.”
