The penalties for companies that breach the competition rules can be very severe. For cartel infringements, the largest fine imposed on a single company is over €896 million; the largest fine imposed on all members of a single cartel is over €1,3 billion. In June 2006 the Commission revised its guidelines for setting fines in competition cases. These revised guidelines will often lead to fines for cartels being significantly higher than previously.
However, companies that have participated in illegal cartels have a limited opportunity to avoid or reduce a fine. The Commission operates a leniency policy whereby companies that provide information about a cartel in which they participated might receive full or partial immunity from fines.