Executive bodies of the Samara region and the “Gazprom “Group pursued a competition-restricting agreement

The 2016-2020 programme for developing gas supply and gasification in the Samara region was approved taking into account the exclusive interests if economic entities – members of the “Gazprom Group.

On 10 May 2017 FAS found that the Governor of the Samara region, the Ministry of Energy and Housing & Energy Economy of the Samara region, “Gazprom” Group, “Gazprom Mezhregiongaz” Ltd. violated Part 4 Article 16 of the Federal Law “On Protection of Competition”.

The executive bodies took all possible efforts to support the Programme: facilities of the “Gazprom” Group are included as the facilities of the regional status, and the land plots for their construction are allocated on the priority basis. At the same time Samara regional executive bodies gave instructions to exclude from the Programme gas-distribution facilities of other companies, planned for construction near the facilities of “Gazprom” Group.

The agreement between the authorities and “Gazprom” PJSC provided for constructing duplicating gas supply facilities to already connected subscribers, i.e., transferring subscribers from “independent” gas-distribution companies – members of the “Gazprom” Group (for instance, TETs VAZa).

Constructing a doubling gas-supply source for TETs VAZa can push “SVGK” Ltd. from the market, to the networks of which TETs VAZa is connected.

Head of FAS Department for Regulating the Fuel-and-Energy Complex, Dmitry Makhonin: “Implementing the Gasification Programme of the subject of the Russian Federation exclusively in the interests of a single gas-distribution organization leads to inefficient use of already existing infrastructure and can adversely affect competition, particularly, through growing prices for the services of gas companies”.