Kuala Lumpur: Eight companies will file an appeal against the decision of the Malaysia Competition Commission (MyCC) regarding the RM92.8 million penalty imposed on them over allegations of involvement in a bid-rigging cartel for open tenders.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the companies involved are Dutamesra Bina Sdn Bhd, IDX Multi Resources Sdn Bhd, Mangkubumi Sdn Bhd, Menang Idaman Sdn Bhd, Meranti Budiman Sdn Bhd, Pintas Utama Sdn Bhd, NYL Corporation Sdn Bhd, and Kiara Kilat Sdn Bhd.

IDX Multi Resources Sdn Bhd director Rahmat Hidayat Mohamed, representing all eight companies, stated that they will seek a stay of the decision pending the appeal process and will file a notice of appeal with the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) soon. Prior to this, MyCC announced its proposed decision through a media statement in April 2024. As a result, all the companies submitted a judicial review application in May 2024 at the High Court, with the judicial review decision scheduled for April 30, 2025.

Rahmat Hidayat highlighted that MyCC issued a media statement regarding the financial penalty on February 28, before the judicial review decision. He mentioned that the notice of appeal submitted to CAT is based on strong arguments, including the fact that the project procurement in 2019 was conducted via an open tender involving 200 companies, ensuring broad competition.

He further stated that the companies consider MyCC’s decision and the imposed penalties to be baseless and will challenge MyCC’s findings to defend their reputations and uphold integrity.