Mexico City — The Federal Economic Competition Commission (Cofece), Mexico’s antitrust regulator, imposed a multimillion-dollar sanction on oil & gas companies, executives, and the Mexican Association of Gasoline Business Owners (Amegas) over the manipulation of regular and premium fuel prices in Mexico during the administrations of Enrique Peña Nieto and Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
In an interview with Bloomberg Línea, Andrea Marván Saltiel, president of the regulatory authority, stated that Cofece’s investigation uncovered six agreements regarding fuel price manipulation.
“One agreement was national, and was made within the Mexican Association of Gasoline Business Owners (Amegas). The association convened a forum, and during that forum, attended by hundreds of gas station owners, it was agreed not to lower public gasoline prices and to stick to the maximum rates,” she explained.
After completing the investigation and gathering the companies’ defense arguments, the regulatory authority fined 52 gas stations, Amegas, and 18 executives a total of MXN$437 million for illegally conspiring to harm Mexican consumers by manipulating regular and premium gasoline prices from 2014 to 2021.
The other agreements were regional price coordination schemes.
Marván Saltiel explained that the accused companies and executives have 15 days to challenge the ruling. If they do not, the tax authority, Servicio de Administración Tributaria (SAT), will be responsible for collecting the fine, which would be sent to the Federal Treasury.
Regarding the possible revocation of gasoline sale permits for the involved companies and executives, the Cofece president noted that such a move will be considered, as Energy Regulatory Commission (CRE) rules were violated. She added that there was “a lot of cooperation and good information exchange” with the authority led by Leopoldo Melchi García.
Bloomberg Línea reached out to Amegas for comment but received no response.
During his administration, López Obrador regularly revealed the gas stations and brands with the highest and lowest prices in the country during his morning conferences, in a section called “Who’s Who in Prices.”
The Companies Involved
With the assistance of Amegas to avoid lowering prices between 2014 and 2017, 15 gas stations and two executives from Grupo Combustibles and the Colón gas station company received a fine of nearly MXN$28 million, according to Cofece in a statement.
Gas station groups Megasur, Enerkom, and Lodemo, along with three executives, received 72% of the sanction, and were fined MXN$315 million for price manipulation between March 2020 and June 2021 in Mérida, Yucatán.
Gas station groups Casimiro, Hernie, Express-Bajío, Insurgentes, Presidentes, Arandas, and Villas de Irapuato, Guanajuato, along with six executives, were fined MXN$70 million for illegal actions committed between January and November 2018.
Nandalumi gas stations, Iván Hugo Combustibles, and two executives in Chiapas received a MXN$12 million fine for price manipulation between January and December 2018. Casper and Centauro gas stations, located in Guanajuato, and two executives were fined nearly MXN$4 million.
Three gas stations from Grupo Hidrocarburos Hidalgo, Grupo Gesa, Grupo Flores, and three executives in the state of Hidalgo were fined MXN$8 million.
