Investigations launched

Competition authorities target high gas prices

Consumers may be paying too much for natural gas, the competition authorities suspect.

(Bild: APA/dpa/dpa-Zentralbild/Z1022 Patrick Pleul)

Wholesale natural gas is currently 50 percent cheaper than last year. However, tariffs for households and smaller businesses have fallen much more slowly, criticizes the Federal Competition Authority. It is therefore taking a close look at domestic gas suppliers and has launched investigations.

"Gas is still one of the five biggest drivers of inflation. Despite falling wholesale prices, prices for end customers are constantly high. The price decline is also lagging behind in a European comparison," says Natalie Harsdorf-Borsch, Head of the Federal Competition Authority (BWB), who now wants to take a close look at the suppliers. "This will be a sector inquiry, and we will present an interim report in June."

There are indications that the potential tariff reductions are being passed on only hesitantly. In the first quarter, gas was traded at half the price it was a year ago. Even for April, the price was 39 percent lower at an average of just EUR 27.87 per megawatt hour. Customers notice little of this.

Secondly, gas should actually have become cheaper for consumers even faster than electricity because energy suppliers have always argued that they buy gas on the market at shorter notice than electricity. According to the BWB, the fall in wholesale costs should therefore have been quickly passed on to customers. The gas suppliers must now provide information on how far in advance they purchase, how they set their prices, etc. At the same time, the electricity market continues to be investigated together with E-Control; the investigation has been extended until the end of the year because the electricity price brake will not expire until then.

Natalie Harsdorf-Borsch, Head of BWB: "We will make significant progress this year."

(Bild: APA/EVA MANHART)

Already 180 million euro fines against the construction cartel
However, the competition authorities are currently most concerned with the construction cartel: because they have been charging excessive prices for public contracts for years through collusion, a large part of the construction industry has been sentenced to high fines totaling 180 million euros. So far, the proceedings against nine large companies have been concluded, with Porr alone having to pay a fine of 62.35 million euros. Five further proceedings are ongoing and 13 companies are still under investigation.

"We will make significant progress this year," promises BWB boss Harsdorf-Borsch. The Strabag case is pending. It was "only" sentenced to pay 45 million euros because it supported the investigation as a key witness. However, it subsequently emerged that Strabag had not disclosed everything after all, which is why a higher penalty is now likely to follow and the leniency status is gone.

In general, the BWB is very successful for taxpayers: in the previous year, the authority cost just under 6 million euros, but enforced fines of 51 million euros to the state in 2023 alone.