German carmakers fined nearly $33M in South Korea

BERLIN (AA) – German carmakers BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Audi have been ordered to pay millions in fines in South Korea.

The German companies are accused of colluding to introduce a system that leads to higher nitrogen oxide emissions, the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) in Seoul announced Thursday.

According to the commission, Mercedes-Benz Group is to pay 20.7 billion won ($15.9 million), BMW 15.7 billion won ($12.4 million) and Audi 5.9 billion won ($4.6 million).

This brings the total amount for the German automakers to 42.3 billion won ($32.9 million).

Volkswagen Group, which owns Audi, does not have to pay a fine, according to the decision, because the affected models were not sold in South Korea.

The commission also accused the German automakers of distorting competition through their collusion. In addition, they are said to have hindered the development of new diesel cars with more advanced technologies through their actions.

Mercedes-Benz Korea denied the commission's accusations in a statement to the South Korean national news agency Yonhap on Thursday.

The company referred to an identical case dealt with by the European Commission. However, it said the EU Commission had not decided on any penalties because the company had voluntarily submitted a report on the matter.