AGCM

PRESS RELEASE

FUELS:  ANTITRUST TO GOVERNMENT AND PARLIAMENT - AGREEMENT WITH MANAGERS WEAKENS SECTOR-BASED REFORM AND FAILS TO ADDRESS THE GAP BETWEEN AVERAGE EUROPEAN AND ITALIAN PRICES

While confirmation of the company/distributor contract forms is a step forward, the agreement shys away from other Antitrust Authority proposals included in earlier versions of the draft law on competition.

The Government-managers agreement dilutes the fuel distribution reforms incorporated in earlier versions of the draft law on competition and avoids closing the gap between Italian prices and average European prices.  This is the essence of an Antitrust Authority report submitted to the Government and Parliament to request the passage of truly liberalizing laws that favor consumers and the market.  
In terms of its fundamentals, the agreement's only positive element is represented by the liberalization of the contract forms used for the management of fuel distribution stations.  Eliminating the exclusivity restriction helps cultivate a more competitive distribution system and foster a wholesale supply market for automotive fuel provision.
The modifications that were introduced to thwart a gas station strike, according to the Antitrust Authority, will cause setbacks in modernization of the fuel distribution system through the application of aggressive “self-ization” and will impede competition-based development in the sector.
Their removal from the annual draft law on the market and competition is hoped for either during the Council of Ministers' direct analysis of the measure or during parliamentary review.
One of the Antitrust Authority's greatest concerns is the lifting of the Regional/Municipal prohibition on the introduction of competition-restricting regulations, which is especially worrisome in relation to the use of self service pre-pay during business hours and the proliferation of fully-automated stations. The law prohibiting local authorities from requiring new stations to distribute both standard fuels and methane and/or GPL was also removed. In practical terms, the Government-managers agreement contrasts with the uniform local application of liberalization principles, a recommendation forwarded by the Antitrust Authority on multiple occasions and included in the original version of the draft law on competition.

Rome, 30 September 2010