GREECE Trends and Developments Contributed by: Victoria Mertikopoulou, Ifigeneia Argyri and Maria Paziotopoulou, Kyriakides Georgopoulos Law Firm
opening of a store within a specific geographical distance (ie, 1,000 metres in areas outside Ath - ens and Thessaloniki and 300 metres inside Ath - ens and Thessaloniki) where retail stores of other members of the alliance were already active. iv) Settlement Decision 870/2024 – investigation into breast pumps and breast milk handling/stor - age equipment, baby-mouth accessories and feeding products, strollers and infant car seats (RPM) The HCC unanimously imposed fines totalling EUR314,389 on three companies for infringing Article 1 of Law 3959/2011 and Article 101 of the TFEU. Following an ex officio investigation, the companies involved were found to have engaged in resale price-fixing practices for varying peri - ods between 2013 and 2023 in the context of a vertical agreement implemented through their distribution networks. According to the reason - ing of the decision, the companies systemati - cally monitored retail prices and made requests to retailers to correct them, which retailers complied with. Ultimately, the HCC accepted the settlement proposals, imposed the fine and required the companies to cease the infringe - ments and avoid similar practices in the future. Regulatory and advocacy initiatives Regulatory interventions The HCC has been very active when it comes to regulatory interventions, using said tool to assess the prevailing market conditions in terms of effective competition in the sectors under investigation. i) Regulatory intervention in the petroleum sec - tor ‒ preliminary views published In this vein, the HCC launched a (currently ongo - ing) regulatory intervention in the petroleum sec -
tor in Greece in November 2022, leveraging its preliminary findings from the respective mapping study on competition conditions in the indus - try launched in March 2022. In this context, the HCC published its preliminary views in August 2024, summarising its first conclusions on the conditions of competition in the petroleum sec - tor further to an in-depth study thereof. More specifically, the report states that the refin - ing stage is dominated by a duopoly with high concentration, significant barriers to entry, and limited competitive pressure from imports, lead - ing to increased refining margins and profits. The wholesale stage is characterised by moderate- to-low concentration, with wholesalers holding bargaining power but also constrained by the lack of alternative sources of supply at the refin - ing stage. Barriers to entry such as vertical inte - gration in combination with economies of scale and scope and storage restrictions are deemed to limit competition. Another noteworthy issue observed is the inclu - sion of exclusivity agreements in some of the co-storage contracts. These exclusivity agree - ments may ‒ in certain circumstances ‒ create conditions of non-effective competition, as they limit the access of interested third parties to stor - age facilities. Finally, the study indicates that the retail stage includes numerous gas stations, but barriers to entry such as investment costs and low profit margins, along with limited import competition, restrict effective competition. It remains to be seen how the final conclusions of the HCC’s regulatory intervention in the petroleum sector will be formulated after considering the com - ments of interested parties on these preliminary views in the public consultation, which closed in November 2024.
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