EU carries out antitrust inspection at premises of pharma Sanofi

The European Commission has carried out unannounced inspections at the premises of French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi in Germany and France, the Brussels-based body said on Tuesday.

“Unannounced inspections are a preliminary investigative step into suspected anticompetitive practices,” the commission added.

“The commission has concerns that the inspected company may have violated EU antitrust rules that prohibit abuses of a dominant market position,” as set out in Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, it said.

"In particular, the commission is investigating possible exclusionary practices that may amount to anticompetitive disparagement."

Commission officials were accompanied by their counterparts from national competition authorities.

Sanofi confirmed the inspections and stated that it is confident that compliance with the relevant rules and regulations will be confirmed. The company is cooperating fully with the European Commission, it said.

Sanofi did not comment further on the ongoing investigation.

The commission emphasized that the inspections did not imply any guilt on the part of the company.