Summary
On 20 March 2020, Coles Group Limited lodged an application for authorisation, including requesting urgent interim authorisation, for Coles, Woolworths, ALDI and Metcash to cooperate in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, to ensure the supply and fair and equitable distribution of Retail Products to Australian consumers. See section 3.1 of the Application, linked below.
Coles also lodged the application on behalf of any other grocery retailer who wishes to engage in the conduct in the future, providing the ACCC is notified.
Retail Products are defined as fresh food, groceries, household products, and liquor.
On 23 March 2020, the ACCC granted interim authorisation. On 26 March 2020 the ACCC revoked the interim authorisation granted on 23 March, and substituted it with a conditional interim authorisation.
On 9 June 2020, to narrow the scope of the authorised conduct, the ACCC revoked conditional interim authorisation granted on 26 March, and substituted it with another conditional interim authorisation.
On 15 July 2020, the ACCC issued a draft determination proposing to grant conditional authorisation until 31 March 2021.
On 3 September 2020, the ACCC issued a final determination granting conditional authorisation until 31 March 2021. The final determination document can be found below.
Applicant(s)
- Coles Group Limited
- Woolworths Group Limited
- ALDI Stores
- Metcash Limited
Authorisation number(s)
- AA1000477-1
Applications
| Document title | Date | |
|---|---|---|
| Coles to ACCC providing further information ( PDF 545.04 KB ) | 22 Jun 2020 | |
| Parties with protection of the interim authorisations dated 23 and 26 March 2020 ( XLSX 37.11 KB ) | 3 Apr 2020 | |
| Application Received ( PDF 135.4 KB ) | 20 Mar 2020 |
Decisions
| Document title | Date | |
|---|---|---|
| Final Determination ( PDF 694.96 KB ) | 3 Sep 2020 | |
| Draft Determination ( PDF 669.89 KB ) | 15 Jul 2020 | |
| Interim Authorisation Decision Statement of Reasons – Further Replacement of Revoked Decision ( PDF 266.74 KB ) | 9 Jun 2020 | |
| Interim Authorisation Decision Statement of Reasons – Replacement of Revoked Decision ( PDF 265.56 KB ) | 26 Mar 2020 | |
| Interim Authorisation Decision Statement of Reasons - Revoked ( PDF 260.71 KB ) | 23 Mar 2020 | |
| Show all documents (2 more) | ||
Consultations
| Document title | Date | |
|---|---|---|
| ACCC to Interested Parties re Draft Determination ( PDF 222.1 KB ) | 15 Jul 2020 | |
| ACCC to Interested Parties re Coles’ request to narrow the scope of the proposed conduct in its application ( PDF 369.85 KB ) | 12 May 2020 | |
| ACCC to Interested Parties re Draft Determination and Interim Authorisation Decision ( PDF 306.87 KB ) | 3 Apr 2020 |
ACCC correspondence
Submissions - before draft decision
Submissions - after draft decision
| Document title | Date | |
|---|---|---|
| Coles Group Ltd ( PDF 123.27 KB ) | 5 Aug 2020 | |
| Cattle Council of Australia ( PDF 223.22 KB ) | 31 Jul 2020 | |
| Australian Food & Grocery Council ( PDF 232.5 KB ) | 31 Jul 2020 | |
| Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman ( PDF 3.66 MB ) | 30 Jul 2020 | |
| Woolworths Group Limited ( PDF 91.2 KB ) | 30 Jul 2020 | |
| Australasian Association of Convenience Stores (AACS) ( PDF 622.07 KB ) | 17 Jul 2020 | |
| Show all documents (3 more) | ||