Commercial Solvents Corporation v Commission

Commercial Solvents Corporation v Commission (1974) Cases 6/73 and 7/73 is an EU competition law case, concerning monopoly and abuse of a dominant position.

Facts
Commercial Solvents Corp (also Istituto Chemioterapico Italiano SpA was being sued) ceased selling aminobutanol to Zoja, which was used to make an anti-tuberculosis drug. CSC decided to start making the drug itself, and so stopped selling to Zoja.

Judgment
The ECJ held that CSC was dominant and abused its position.

25. ... an undertaking which has a dominant position in the market in raw materials and which, with the object of reserving such raw material for manufacturing its own derivatives, refuses to supply a customer, which is itself a manufacturer of these derivatives, and therefore risks eliminating all competition on the part of this customer, is abusing its dominant position.