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The Competition Commission has referred a matter of alleged price discrimination by Saint-Gobain Construction Products SA to the Competition Tribunal.
The company is part of French multinational Saint-Gobain, which has a presence in 75 countries.
It is alleged that Saint-Gobain contravened the Competition Act by engaging in price discrimination against PE African Brick Centre, a small and medium enterprise (SME) hardware store in Gqeberha, Eastern Cape.
Saint-Gobain is believed to have sold a natural gypsum-based plaster called Cretestone to the complainant at prices which are 20% higher than those of other larger hardware stores located in the same region.
Saint-Gobain is a supplier of various construction products including Cretestone which is used for plastering to give walls a smooth finish.
According to the commission, the company is a dominant supplier of gypsum-based plaster in the Eastern Cape.
This is the first complaint referred by the commission to the Tribunal for prosecution under the new price discrimination provisions of the Competition Act.
These provisions aim to protect SMEs and companies owned by historically disadvantaged individuals against price discrimination by dominant suppliers.
