On 3 January 2025, the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (“CCCS“) provided positive guidance that the joint establishment and operation of Beverage Container Return Scheme (BCRS) Ltd. (“BCRS Ltd.“) by Coca-Cola Singapore Beverages Pte. Ltd., F&N Foods Pte Ltd, and Pokka Pte. Ltd. (collectively, “Parties“) is unlikely to infringe section 34 (which prohibits anti-competitive agreements between businesses) and section 47 (which prohibits abuse of a dominant market position) of the Competition Act 2004 (“Competition Act“).
This is the first Notification for Guidance (“NG“) where CCCS applied the streamlined process outlined in CCCS’ Environmental Sustainability Collaboration Guidance Note (“ESCGN“) issued on 1 March 2024 to assess collaborations pursuing environmental sustainability objectives without harming competition. For more information on the ESCGN, please refer to our Client Update here.
This Update discusses this development, highlighting key points from CCCS regarding collaborations with environmental sustainability objectives.
Pertinent Facts
The Parties and BCRS Ltd. (collectively, “Applicants“) applied to CCCS for guidance on whether the joint establishment and operation of BCRS Ltd. by the Parties is likely to infringe section 34 or section 47 of the Competition Act. BCRS Ltd., a not-for-profit company, is the licensed Scheme operator by the National Environment Agency (“NEA“). It is responsible for designing and operating the Scheme, which includes collecting, sorting, and recycling beverage containers. The Scheme is set to launch on 1 April 2026. Under this Scheme, pre-packaged beverages in plastic and metal containers ranging from 150 millilitres to 3 litres will have a refundable deposit of S$0.10. This deposit will be fully refunded when empty beverage containers are returned at designated return points, such as reverse vending machines at larger supermarkets. For a summary of the Scheme, please refer to our publication here.
The Applicants’ NG followed earlier competition advice provided by CCCS to NEA on mitigating potential competition concerns during the Scheme’s development. The NG allowed the Applicants to clarify and address any remaining competition concerns regarding the joint establishment and operation of BCRS Ltd.. CCCS completed its assessment within 30 working days, following the expedited timeline under the ESCGN.
Significance
To ensure compliance with the Competition Act, businesses are advised to familiarise themselves with the ESCGN when planning collaborations with environmental sustainability objectives. For those seeking greater legal certainty, it is recommended that they notify their collaborations to the CCCS for guidance or a decision via the following link https://www.go.gov.sg/approach-cccs. Under the streamlined process for the assessment of agreements pursuing environmental sustainability objectives, CCCS will undertake a two-phase approach for such assessment, with a Phase 1 review expected to be completed within 30 working days for simple cases, plus an additional Phase 2 review of 120 working days for complicated cases.
Our Comments
This first case to be reviewed under the ESCGN recognises that collaboration between competitors is permissible to achieve sustainability goals and demonstrates that competition law is not a drag on these goals but in fact goes hand in hand, facilitated by CCCS’ streamlined review process. It also highlights that even if CCCS had previously provided competition advice to government agencies on various initiatives, this is not a blanket approval, and parties involved in the initiative will still need to assess their collaboration to assess if competition law risks arise which call for guidance from CCCS.
For more information, please refer to the following link on the CCCS website:
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