La Jornada (Mexico City)
Carlos Slim’s Company rejects $138.5 million fine issued in Ecuador
By Miriam Posada / Mon, 10 Feb 2014 21:56
The company Conecel owned by América Móvil rejected the fine of $138.5 million which was issued by the Superintendency for Control of Market Power of Ecuador, finding that Carlos Slim’s company took part in “market power abuse” during 2012, and announced that in its defense, will use the legal resources that the law allows.
In an announcement, Conecel noted that the fine is unjustified and that it responds to “a complaint from the state owned operator Corporación Nacional de Telecomunicaciones (CNT) that refers to 5 pieces of land (of the thousands rented by Conecel) and in which the CNT alleges that it could not expand its network. In the same area in which these 5 pieces of land are located, there are options and alternative pieces of land, just as adequate, in which the installation of the required infrastructure could be done just as well. There has not been, therefore, any barrier to entry or restriction on competition for any operator.”
The company, which operates in Ecuador as an affiliate of Claro, considered that “the magnitude of the fine is disproportionate, violates the constitutional principles of proportionality, and impacts the legal securities on which the processes of investment are based.”
“Conecel will use the legal resources that the law allows, in the attempt to achieve a resolution in accordance with the law, which will guarantee due process within the framework of legal securities.”
