The European Union's General Court decided Tuesday to reduce the European Commission's fine on Arkema France (AKE.FR) by around half but upheld the fines on Total SA (TOT) and Elf Acquitaine, which were joint guarantors for Arkema's fines.

The fines were imposed in May 2006 over the operation of a cartel in the acrylic glass sector between 1997 and 2002.

At the time, Total and Elf Acquitaine were the parent companies of Arkema. Arkema was floated on the stock exchange in 2006.

The Court decided to reduce the fine on Arkema to EUR113.3 million from EUR219.1 million.

However, the Court said it was dismissing the appeals by Total and Elf Acquitaine.

In its 2006 decision, the Commission held Total jointly liable for the payment of EUR140.4 million of Arkema's fine. It held Elf Acquitaine jointly liable for the payment of EUR181.4 million of the fine.

The General Court's decisions can be appealed to the European Court of Justice.

-By Laurence Norman, Dow Jones Newswires; 32-2741-1481; laurence.norman@dowjones.com

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