Andreas Mundt, President of the Federal Cartel Office, is urging mineral oil companies to pass on any relief resulting from the introduction of fuel discounts to consumers. Speaking to the “Rheinische Post” on Wednesday, Mundt noted that observations made during the May and June fuel discount periods had clearly shown that the tax reduction benefits had largely reached the public.
The Cartel Office plans to closely monitor the impact of any new tax reductions in conjunction with the market transparency body. The Cartel Office President called on the oil and gas industry to pass on the tax relief to drivers as completely and swiftly as possible, though Mundt clarified that the companies could not be compelled to fully transfer the tax cuts.
Mundt expressed more skepticism regarding the federal government’s planned implementation of a fuel price cap as a measure against sharp increases at gas stations, describing it as a significantly more complex intervention from a competition standpoint. He stressed that the crucial factors would be how such a maximum price is determined and whether it appropriately accounts for rising procurement and production costs. Mundt warned that if the cap were set too high, it risked becoming a market benchmark, causing sellers to align their prices with that maximum rather than competing against each other. Conversely, he cautioned that if the price were too low, unintended incentives could arise, potentially harming production or the supply of the German market. The complexity of fuel price formation was underscored by the ongoing investigations within the refining sector, according to the Cartel Office President.
