Official Journal of the European Communities 15.6.91 No L 152/40 COMMISSION DECISION of 19 December 1990 relating to a proceeding under Article 86 of the EEC Treaty (IV/33.133-D: Soda-ash — ICI) (Only the English text is authentic) .~ (91/300/EEC) THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having i'egard to the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, Having regard to Council Regulation No 17 of 6 February 1962, First Regulation implementing Articles 85 and 86 of the Treaty (1), as last amended by the Act of Accession of Spain and Portugal, and in particular Articles 3 and 15 thereof, Having regard to the Commission Decision of 19 February 1990 to open a proceeding on its own initiative pursuant to Article 3 of Regulation No 17, Having given the undertaking concerned the opportunity to make known its views on the objections raised by the Commission, pursuant to Article 19 (1) of Regulation No 17 and Commission Regulation No 99/63/EEC of 25 July 1963 on the hearings provided for in Article 19 (1) and (2) of Council Regulation No 17 (2). After consulting the Advisory Committee on Restrictive Practices and Dominant Positions, PART 1 THE FACTS A. Summary of the infringement (1)  The present Decision arises out of investigations carried out by the Commission in March 1989 pursuant to Article 14 (3) of Regulation No 17 at the premises of Community producers of soda-ash. By means of the said investigations and subsequent enquiries under Article 11 of Regulation No 17 the Commission discovered documentary evidence showing that an infringement of Article 86 had been _committed by Imperial Chemical Industries plc (ICI). (2) The infringement can be summarized as follows: (1) OJ No 13, 21. 2. 1962, p. 204/62. (2) OJ No 127, 20. 8. 1963, p. 2268/63. Infringement of Article 86 by ICI From about 1983 until the present time ICI has abused the dominant position which it holds in the market for soda-ash in the United Kingdom by applying to its major customers a system of loyalty rebates and discounts by reference to marginal tonnage (‘top-slice’ rebates), contractual arrangements tending to ensure an effective exclusivity of supply for ICI and other devices which have had the object and effect to tying the said customers to ICI for the whole of their requirements and of excluding competitors. B. Background 1. ICI’s position in the United Kingdom soda-ash market (3) Details of the product and the soda-ash market reference are set out in Part IB of Commission Decision 91/297/EEC (ICI-Solvay) (3). ICIis the only soda-ash market producer located in the United Kingdom. The ‘Page 1000’ agreement of 1945 (replacing an earlier cartel agreement) recognized that Solvay and ICI would not compete in each other’s traditional markets. ‘ (4)  To this day, neither Solvay nor any other producer in continental western Europe has marketed soda-ash in the United Kingdom. ICI enjoyed a complete monopoly in the supply of soda-ash to the United Kingdom wuntil the late 1970s when import penetration from the United States began. Two United States producers, TGI and Allied where active on the market and imports reached 77 000 tonnes in 1982 (some 10 % of the market) before anti-dumping measures were adopted and reduced the United States presence to around 30Kt per year. TGI soon abandoned the market and the only alternative (3) See page 1 of this Official Journal.