The Georgian Competition and Consumer Agency (GCCA) has issued five recommendations aimed at enhancing the competitive environment in the market for waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) management services.
The recommendations follow an investigation initiated pursuant to a complaint submitted by "EPR Georgia". The complainant alleged an infringement of Article 6 of the Law of Georgia on Competition (Abuse of Dominant Position) and did not find an infringement.
The complaint concerned the execution of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) obligations. The complainant alleged that the Extended Producer Responsibility Association had obstructed its member companies from exiting the organization, thereby creating barriers to establishing or joining alternative EPR organization.
Although the investigation revealed no statutory violation, the GCCA issued five formal regulatory recommendations, subject to mandatory review-aimed at improving market dynamics and fostering competition within the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) management sector.
The recommendations addressed to the respondent association and producers call for the establishment of transparent rules and clear timelines for membership withdrawal. They also outline procedures to facilitate access to import data for electrical and electronic equipment, subject to prior producer consent.
Further measures focus on strengthening inter-system coordination across administrative registries, evaluating the feasibility of a unified digital platform, refining commodity code classifications, and introducing adjustment mechanisms for operational forecasting data.
Specifically, the Agency recommended optimizing the commodity code schedule for electrical and electronic equipment and enabling periodic adjustments to the target parameters defined in PRO operational action plans.
The Agency’s recommendations aim to improve the procedures in the EPR services market, preserve mobility for producers, and reinforce a competitive market structure. The Agency will conduct periodic compliance monitoring to oversee the implementation of these recommendations.
