THE former chief executive of Patrick, Chris Corrigan, was vindicated yesterday when the Federal Court dismissed claims against him of price fixing and collusion.

Since the case was launched two years ago, he has attacked the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's claims that he colluded to fix prices at ports in four cities as "reprehensible", accusing it of trying to "rebuild their reputation at the expense of mine".

Speaking from his home in Italy, Mr Corrigan said he welcomed the final chapter of his long stoush with the ACCC and its chairman, Graeme Samuel.

They have been engaged in a public row since November 2004 when Mr Samuel described Mr Corrigan as having run a "cosy duopoly" before he sold Patrick for $6.2 billion to Toll Holdings two years later. "I think the judgment confirms what I always said about Graeme Samuel's ACCC, and I've got nothing further to add on the matter," he said.

Asciano (formerly Patrick Stevedores Holdings) and DP World Australia (formerly P&O Ports) have been ordered to pay penalties of $1.9 million each after their business of unloading imported cars at ports was found to have breached competition law.

Asciano has been allowed to pay in four instalments of less than $500,000 after crying poor to the court.

Federal Court judge, Peter Jacobsen, said yesterday he would approve the penalties recommended to him by the ACCC and the companies as part of an out-of-court settlement.

Mr Corrigan and three other directors of Patrick and P&O have escaped censure or fines. In the original case they faced fines of up to $50,000 for each breach.

The penalty came about after the ACCC stopped chasing the companies over the much more serious allegations of price fixing and collusion.

In return for the commission's dropping the claims, which alleged more serious breaches of competition law, the rivals agreed to admit to a lesser offence.

The companies would have faced a maximum penalty of $10 million had the commission succeeded in its initial case. Both sides now agree the rivals should have applied to the regulator for permission to share their motor vehicle facilities and to jointly acquire others in 2001.

As part of the out-of-court settlement, on June 10 the Australian Amalgamated Terminals joint venture lodged an application with the commission for clearance to share facilities, a process that is expected to take six months.

The commission concedes the stevedores' agreements were not clandestine and that the establishment of AAT was legal.