GREEN CARTELS: RETHINKING COMPETITION LAW IN INDIA (Part I)

In April 2025, the European Commission fined 15 major automakers for colluding in the form of a ‘green cartel’ about recycling certain products.  This again calls into question the idea of green agreements, which represent an important intersection of Competition Law and Sustainable Development, and the balanced approach regulators have to take to reconcile these two important areas of public interest. The 2015 session of the United Nations General Assembly, which adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, outlined how regulatory changes regarding competition law can contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Many national and regional competition regulators realised the need to shift more towards an incentive-based approach, which not only helps achieve sustainability goals but also enables prudent regulation that incentivises commercial practices to further these green objectives. This is where the origin of green cartels began as a regulatory measure. Many regulators have introduced various guideline