3 September 2025 — The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has launched civil cartel proceedings in the Federal Court against four Sydney-based mobile crane hire companies and four of their senior executives, alleging coordinated market allocation and attempted price fixing between 2020 and 2024.
The proceedings name Borger Crane Hire & Rigging Services, MCR Melrose (trading as Melrose Cranes), Two Way Cranes, Ultra-Lift Cranes, along with Borger Cranes’ General Manager Shawn Borger, Melrose Cranes’ former Managing Director Gregg Melrose and former General Manager Ryan Melrose, and Two Way/Ultra-Lift’s Managing Director Frank Zammit.
According to the ACCC, the companies allegedly used WhatsApp chat groups – including those titled “Crane Companies” and “Big 3” – to coordinate which customers and building sites would not be supplied with mobile crane services, and on some occasions attempted to fix hire rates.
The watchdog claims Melrose Cranes and Gregg Melrose made three attempts in 2022 to align crane hire rates with rivals, while Borger Cranes and Shawn Borger allegedly sought to fix “cross-hire” rates — the fees charged when one crane operator rents from another.
“These were the largest mobile crane operators in Sydney, regularly servicing major infrastructure projects and residential work,” ACCC Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb said in a statement. “When companies collude to limit supply or fix prices, it reduces competition in the market and harms businesses and consumers.”
The alleged conduct is said to have affected a wide range of construction and infrastructure projects across Sydney, and in some cases arose during enterprise bargaining negotiations with the CFMEU or in relation to customers with unpaid debts.
The ACCC is seeking declarations, pecuniary penalties and costs against the four companies and executives, as well as disqualification orders for three of the individuals and compliance orders against Borger Cranes, Two Way Cranes and Ultra-Lift Cranes.
The case underscores the ACCC’s focus on cartel enforcement in critical sectors such as construction and infrastructure, where mobile crane services are considered essential inputs.
