Friday

29th Mar 2024

EU raids 20 energy firms in six member states

  • Experts say gas and electricity prices in the EU remain high partly due to lack of competition (Photo: European Community, 2006)

EU antitrust officials have raided around 20 of the biggest European energy firms in six member states, under suspicion of abusing their market position.

France's Gaz de France, Germany's RWE and E.ON, Austria's OMV and Belgium's Fluxys were among those involved in the "surprise inspections" reported by the European Commission on Wednesday (17 May), along with gas companies in Italy and electricity firms in Hungary.

Read and decide

Join EUobserver today

Get the EU news that really matters

Instant access to all articles — and 20 years of archives. 14-day free trial.

... or subscribe as a group

Brussels regulators were trying to find out whether the firms were guilty of "restrictive business practices and/or abuse of a dominant market position," particularly concerning access to pipelines and storage facilities, commission spokesman Jonathan Todd informed.

He added that the raid as such did not suggest the companies were "guilty of any anti-competitive behaviour."

The probe comes as part of the EU executive's attempt to crackdown on monopoly practices in the bloc's energy sector, announced by competition commissioner Neelie Kroes in February.

Jean-Francois Bellis, professor of competition law at Brussels' Free University commented "The commission has made greater competition in the energy sector a priority but it is finding that prices aren't moving. So it's normal that it takes action," according to AFP.

Meanwhile, the British energy market regulator, Ofgem, hailed Wednesday's move.

"The commission is rightly baring its teeth," said Ofgem chief Sir John Mogg, adding "It is now demonstrably serious about tackling anti-competitive practices in the European energy markets. And it needs to be," UK daily Guardian reported.

Under EU rules, the commission could fine companies it finds guilty of abusing their market power up to 10 percent of their total annual turnover.

But it will probably take several months before Brussels regulators decide to file any charges against the firms targeted by the raids.

'Swiftly dial back' interest rates, ECB told

Italian central banker Piero Cipollone in his first monetary policy speech since joining the ECB's board in November, said that the bank should be ready to "swiftly dial back our restrictive monetary policy stance."

Opinion

EU Modernisation Fund: an open door for fossil gas in Romania

Among the largest sources of financing for energy transition of central and eastern European countries, the €60bn Modernisation Fund remains far from the public eye. And perhaps that's one reason it is often used for financing fossil gas projects.

Latest News

  1. Kenyan traders react angrily to proposed EU clothes ban
  2. Lawyer suing Frontex takes aim at 'antagonistic' judges
  3. Orban's Fidesz faces low-polling jitters ahead of EU election
  4. German bank freezes account of Jewish peace group
  5. EU Modernisation Fund: an open door for fossil gas in Romania
  6. 'Swiftly dial back' interest rates, ECB told
  7. Moscow's terror attack, security and Gaza
  8. Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. Nordic Council of MinistersJoin the Nordic Food Systems Takeover at COP28
  2. Nordic Council of MinistersHow women and men are affected differently by climate policy
  3. Nordic Council of MinistersArtist Jessie Kleemann at Nordic pavilion during UN climate summit COP28
  4. Nordic Council of MinistersCOP28: Gathering Nordic and global experts to put food and health on the agenda
  5. Friedrich Naumann FoundationPoems of Liberty – Call for Submission “Human Rights in Inhume War”: 250€ honorary fee for selected poems
  6. World BankWorld Bank report: How to create a future where the rewards of technology benefit all levels of society?

Join EUobserver

EU news that matters

Join us