Article 1
Solvay et Cie SA, now Solvay SA (Solvay), infringed Article 86 of the EEC Treaty (now Article 82 of the EC Treaty) from 1983 until around the end of 1990 by a course of conduct aimed at excluding or severely limiting competition and consisting of: (a) the conclusion of agreements with customers which required them to purchase the whole or a very large proportion of their requirements of soda ash from Solvay for an indefinite or excessively long period; (b) the granting of substantial rebates and other financial inducements referable to marginal tonnage over and above the customer's basic contracted tonnage in order to ensure that they bought all or most of their requirements from Solvay; (c) making the granting of rebates dependent upon the customer agreeing to buy the whole of its requirements from Solvay.