The Federal Court has fined Qteq and its executive chair Simon Ashton $5 million and $1 million respectively for attempted cartel conduct, in a case brought by the ACCC.
The penalty awarded against Ashton is the highest penalty awarded for a competition law breach by an individual in Australia.
In April 2025, the Federal Court found that, on five occasions between 2017 and 2019, Ashton and Qteq attempted to induce suppliers in the oil and gas services industry to enter into contracts, arrangements, or understandings containing one or more cartel provisions.
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“These attempted cartel contracts, arrangements or understandings included provisions not to supply services to large oil and gas companies, to rig a multi-million-dollar tender, and to market share,” ACCC chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb said.
“Cartels represent a significant threat to competition in the Australian economy, especially in such an important and sizeable industry, and enforcing cartel laws remains an enduring priority for the ACCC.
“Each of Qteq’s attempts to secure these illegal arrangements was unsuccessful only because the other parties rejected Qteq’s offers.
“As this case demonstrates, if you try to make cartel agreements with competitors, you will be met with strong enforcement action by the ACCC—even if your attempts do not succeed.”
“We invite other businesses who have information about potential cartel conduct or attempted cartel conduct to contact the ACCC anonymously, so we can investigate their concerns,” Cass-Gottlieb said.
In addition to ordering Ashton to pay a penalty of $1 million, the Court also imposed a non-indemnification order which will prevent him from making any insurance claim relating to the pecuniary penalty.
In imposing the non-indemnification order on Ashton, Justice Bromwich said, “The penalties imposed on Mr Ashton would have no real deterrent effect if he did not have to pay them himself.
“The objective of deterrence is especially important in relation to Mr Ashton given that he was, on the available evidence, the driving force for most of the conduct by Qteq, and stood to benefit from that conduct.”
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“Individuals involved in cartel conduct face serious consequences, which can include imprisonment and substantial fines or penalties,” Cass-Gottlieb said.
“We are focused to ensure that senior executives are also held accountable for the conduct of a business, especially for serious misconduct or where there appears to be a poor compliance culture, and welcome the orders made by the Court in this matter.”
