The issue of high fuel prices and that of the contents of the "transparency decree" which he brought on the day of the petrol station strike, continue to be discussed. During the hearing in the Chamber of Deputies' Productive Activities Committee on the provisions contained in the transparency decree, the president of the Antitrust Authority, Roberto Rustichelli, expressed some doubts.
Although the AGCM has “welcomed a further strengthening of the visibility measures of the prices practiced by individual distributors“, at the same time believes “that there is no need to introduce a mechanism for calculating and disseminating average reference values for fuels, given that the benefits for consumers appear uncertain, while there is a possible risk of a reduction in competitive incentives".
But that's not all, because the president of the Antitrust, Roberto Rustichelli, raises further doubts on the innovations promoted by the Government with the decree.
The Authority believes that the introduction of the obligation for operators to indicate, alongside the selling price charged, the average regional price calculated by the Ministry, appears likely to present some possible contraindications.
According to Rustichelli, in fact, "the arithmetic mean of the regional price is very little representative of the actual competitive context in which a fuel distribution plant operates, since a fuel distribution plant is actually in competition only with plants located a few kilometres away".
In short, according to the Antitrust, the display of the average regional price is of little use to the consumer given that the "regional dimension" is far excessive for those distributors that could actually be alternatives to a given plant.
It could easily happen that, for reasons related to costs and logistics, the density of distributors, as well as the level of demand, the price in a given sub-area is different from the regional average, which would therefore constitute an indicator that is not representative of the local situation and, as such, of little use to the consumer.
Furthermore, according to Rustichelli, “the double signage planned, beyond the possible additional costs for the traders, could even confuse some consumers".
Finally, for the president of the AGCM, “the diffusion of a regional average price among retailers risks reducing price variability, as it could be used by companies to automatically converge on a focal price, i.e. a clear parameter to follow to avoid a discount war that would benefit consumers".
NEW FACT-FINDING INVESTIGATION
Following the criticisms leveled at the Government on the contents of the transparency decree, the president of the AGCM announced that an investigation has been launched into the competitive dynamics of the automotive fuel supply chain, in order to analyze the price trend and some specific phases of the oil supply chain. The results of this investigation, as stated, will take approximately 2-3 months.
The Authority's fact-finding investigation is aimed at examining the competitive dynamics of the extraction and refining phases, as well as analyzing the price developments that have occurred in the various distribution phases, in order to better understand the formation dynamics and verify the existence of any further areas for intervention.
Let us remember that not long ago, the Antitrust had already started some investigations against Eni, Esso, IP, Kuwait Petroleum Italia and Tamoil.
Article published on 27 January 2023 - 18:29
