VIENNA, March 27, 2026 — Austria’s cartel court has imposed a €103,000 fine on construction company Bauunternehmung Marko for participating in anti-competitive agreements in the building and civil engineering sectors.
The penalty was issued at the request of the Austrian Federal Competition Authority as part of its long-running investigation into a nationwide construction cartel.
According to the authority, the company was involved in price-fixing, market-sharing arrangements and exchanges of sensitive information with competitors affecting public and private tenders in Styria between May 2013 and July 2016.
The conduct formed part of a broader cartel spanning Austria’s construction industry, where companies coordinated bids to reduce competition and secure contracts. The arrangements included agreements on which firm would win tenders, coordinated bid prices, the submission of cover bids and, in some cases, agreements that certain competitors would refrain from bidding.
Authorities said the collusion affected numerous construction projects across Austria, particularly in road construction. Investigations into the sector are still ongoing, although several cases have already resulted in final decisions.
Under Austrian cartel law, companies can face fines of up to 10% of their annual turnover for anti-competitive conduct, depending on the seriousness and duration of the infringement as well as the company’s cooperation with investigators.
