Collaboration takes various forms in the logistics sector and competition considerations always arise.

Published: 20 January 2026
Author: Kiran Desai

Cross-border logistics often necessitates collaboration—whether through joint ventures, shared infrastructure, or data-sharing agreements. While such cooperation can reduce costs and enhance sustainability, it must be carefully structured to avoid laws prohibiting anti-competitive agreement. Information exchange, particularly on pricing or capacity, is a red flag for regulators.

The EU Commission’s decision in Case AT.40795 – Food delivery services, identifies that a 15% equity stake between two otherwise independent entities is deemed sufficient to constitute a structural link capable of facilitating collusion, highlighting the antitrust risks posed by cross-shareholdings.

Green alliances present a nuanced challenge. Sustainability initiatives are laudable, but if they become a pretext for limiting competition—such as agreeing on delivery volumes or restricting access to urban hubs—they risk enforcement action. Businesses should adopt robust compliance protocols and seek legal advice before entering collaborative arrangements. Before engaging in what can be material upfront investments, parties can engage with regulators to have their proposed agreement cleared by the competition authorities.

A stumbling block for green alliances to benefit from the clearance criteria can be that the sustainability scheme must either have unlimited participation, be non-exclusive or at least not meaningfully foreclose competition. This can be a challenge when larger market participants want to move forward but need to have the scheme open to the smaller players, as this can complicate the scheme’s implementation and increase costs. This and other considerations mean that an element of the deliberation phase of a proposal should include a competition assessment to put in place guiderails that ensure the scheme’s adopted design and implementation plan are capable of being cleared and robust should any complaints arise.