Energy giants in legal battle over ‘price-fixing’

8 March 2005

MADRID – Endesa, the biggest Spanish power company, has begun legal action against two major rivals, Iberdrola and Gas Natural SDG, for alleged price-fixing.

Earlier, the Spanish daily El Pais cited unnamed Endesa sources as saying that the company had filed an official complaint with energy regulator CNE and anti-trust body SDC against Gas Natural and Iberdola for allegedly manipulating pool prices to gain higher revenues.

An Endesa spokeswoman confirmed the legal action but declined further comment. Neither Iberdrola nor SDC would comment on the reports.

Iberdrola reiterated that it was planning to sue Endesa for libel following the accusations which, it said, “have absolutely no grounds”.

Since Friday, Endesa has publicly accused Iberdrola in the Spanish media of abusing its dominant position on the wholesale electricity market.

Endesa alleged its competitors were taking advantage of a subdivision of the electricity pool market to obtain higher prices than those available through normal daily pool auctions, and that Iberdrola had gained EUR 119 million from the alleged price-fixing.

The Spanish wholesale electricity market daily fixes the price paid by distributors.

Ninety-five percent of the electricity in the country is negotiated on this market, which is regularly criticised for violating competition rules.

[Copyright EFE with Expatica]

Subject: Spanish news