Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — The Uzbek-Chinese cement plant Shangfeng-Bridge of Friendship has been fined 4.9 billion soums for dumping and unfair competition, according to the press service of the Committee for the Development of Competition and Consumer Protection of Uzbekistan.

Previously, Shangfeng-Bridge of Friendship received complaints from 13 cement producers in the Ferghana, Andijan, and Namangan regions. The complaints alleged that Shangfeng was selling its products in the domestic market at prices below cost, causing financial difficulties for other producers.

The committee noted that from March to July, the plant illegally sold 122.7 thousand tons of cement through direct contracts, despite legislation requiring the enterprise to sell its products through exchange trading.

Additionally, the plant is accused of earning an illegal profit of 81.1 million soums by selling 2.7 thousand tons of cement at prices above exchange quotations.

A special commission of the Committee for the Development of Competition and Consumer Protection of Uzbekistan reviewed the case and fined the plant 4.9 billion soums.

The Competition Committee demanded that the plant eliminate the identified violations and referred the collected VAT and profit tax data to the tax authorities for further investigation.

It should be noted that Shangfeng-Bridge of Friendship has the right to appeal the commission’s decision to the Committee’s Appeals Board or to a court.

Shangfeng-Bridge of Friendship, launched at the end of April, has a production capacity of 2.5 million tons of cement per year. The company was founded by Chinese companies Zhejiang Shangfeng Building Materials (29%) and Conch International Holdings Hong Kong Limited (51%), as well as the local company Jo’ydam Ta’mir Qurilish (20%).