Companies are under increasing pressure to ensure they are operating in a sustainable manner and, in turn, contributing to broader goals of sustainable growth (e.g. achieving CO² reduction goals). However, meeting such objectives often requires companies to cooperate with competitors in order to achieve the necessary scale or combine the required know-how. It is in this context that the Dutch Authority for Consumers and Markets (the "ACM") recently published draft guidelines in respect of so-called sustainability agreements entered into between competitors or vertically linked companies (the 'Draft Guidelines on Sustainability Agreements – Possibilities within competition law', hereafter the "Guidelines").
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