Unipetrol to receive € 8.775 as European Union court scraps cartel fine

The European Union General Court today overturned a € 17.55m cartel fine for Unipetrol (174,6 CZK, 0,00%) and its former subsidiary Kaucuk. In 2006, Unipetrol together with KAUČUK was fined € 17.55m due to the participation in a cartel of the producers of rubber between 1998 and 2002. The amount of the fine was divided equally between Unipetrol and Kaucuk with each being obligated to pay 50% of the fine, or € 8.775m (ca. CZK 241m). The court said the commission based the Unipetrol’s fine on insufficient
evidence.

Our view:
The decision of the European Commission court is a positive surprise and means a one-off cash influx of € 8.775 for Unipetrol. Based on current €/CZK exchange rates, Unipetrol should receive CZK 214m. The only question mark hangs over the timing of the payment which is unlikely to happen before 4Q11, in our view. Market reaction on the news (+2.2%) seems excessive as the money inflow translates into only 0.7% of Unipetrol’s current market cap. Due to the annulled penalty, Unipetrol is expected to book an extraordinary income which can increase our net income estimates by 14% for 2011. The decision can be appealed a final time to the EU Court of Justice.