Shipping vessel sharing pacts gets exemption from CCI ambit

NEW DELHI: The government has decided to exempt vessel sharing pacts among shipping companies from the purview of fair trade regulator Competition Commission of India ( CCI). However, the government has declined to provide similar exemption for voluntary discussions agreement among shipping industry players.

Vessel sharing agreement (VSA) and voluntary discussions agreement (VDA) are common practices in the shipping industry. While VSA allows for entities to share space in each other's vessels, VDA provides for exchange of market information between the parties.

The shipping industry has been seeking exemption for these pacts from CCI, which keeps a tab on unfair trade practices at market place.