Six months have passed since the settlement of the European Commission and Gazprom in the course of the antitrust investigation. According to Jacek Saryusz-Wolski, it did not bring the expected improvement in the market situation, and the Commission avoids answering questions on this subject.
Jacek Saryusz-Wolski, a Member of the European Parliament, addressed a question to the European Commission regarding the consequences of the decision on her agreement with Gazprom closing the antitrust investigation against this company.
Gazprom undertook to change its market behavior in exchange for the Commission not imposing a penalty on it. This decision was criticized by the Polish government and the company PGNiG. Deputy Saryusz-Wolski asked about the effects of the settlement after six months of its validity.
He asked how many companies met the criteria for changing the revision clause. Gazprom was to change the model of cooperation with customers and set prices in a more transparent manner. However, the Commission refused to provide information on specific companies. The EC admitted that most of them accepted the change of the clause, and the Commission has no information about the entities that rejected it. The Commission also revealed that Gazprom had revoked the clauses prohibiting the re-export of its raw material from the countries of destination.
– After the European Commission has settled with Gazprom in antitrust proceedings against the Russian monopolist, I decided to check what the situation is like six months later – explains Jacek Saryusz-Wolski to BiznesAlert.pl. Did the Commission actually restore competition in the Central and Eastern European region under investigation? It is difficult to determine this, because the Commission does not answer key questions.
– The EC once again avoids the answer, hiding behind the classification or lack of information. This dodging game additionally emphasizes the error that the EC made by signing the settlement, the more that competition on the gas markets of our region has not been restored, and Gazprom continues to enjoy the monopoly position – said our interlocutor.