Brussels, 05/09/2012 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 4 September 2012, the European Commission opened formal proceedings to investigate whether Gazprom, the Russian producer and supplier of natural gas, might be hindering competition in Central and Eastern European gas markets (Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria and the Baltic States). The Commission is concerned that Gazprom may be abusing its dominant market position in upstream gas supply markets in Central and Eastern European member states in breach of EU anti-trust rules.
The Commission is investigating three suspected anti-competitive practices in Central and Eastern Europe. Firstly, Gazprom may have divided gas markets by hindering the free flow of gas across member states by, for example, introducing export restrictions. Secondly, Gazprom may have prevented the diversification of supply of gas by adding job and infrastructure requirements to its contracts; and thirdly, Gazprom may have imposed unfair prices on its customers by linking the price of gas to oil prices. Such behaviour, if established, may constitute a restriction of European right of competition and lead to higher prices and deterioration of security of supply, to the detriment of consumers.
The investigation follows an official complaint by Lithuania and evidence collected by the Commission in surprise inspections in September 2011 of the offices of various gas suppliers in a number of member states (see EUROPE 10462) and other information collected at a later date. No investigations have yet been launched on other big gas companies subject to the spot checks (German companies E.ON and RWE, Austria's OMV and Poland's PGNiG), apart from an investigation currently ongoing of the Bulgarian gas company, BGH, explains a spokesperson for EU Competition Commissioner Joaquín Almunia. Gazprom has shown a cooperative attitude. The Commission says that it has no information about how the investigation might affect gas supplies in the run-up to winter. It says member states are much better equipped today to deal with any supply problems than they were at the time of last crisis, when Russian gas supplies became erratic in 2009. (FG/transl.fl)