The European Commission today decided to refer Malta to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) for allegedly breaching EU rules about fuel ground handling services at Malta International Airport.
Following various warnings issued by the Commission over the past years, the EU executive decided to move to the last stage of its legal procedures on this issue against Malta. It contends that “incorrect application of the rules results in a lack of effective competition for the supply of fuel at the airport of Luqa, possibly leading to additional costs to airlines and, ultimately, passengers.”
The Commission said that it considers that the Maltese authorities are not ensuring independent verification of the separation of accounts, while one of the two suppliers of fuel handling services is also the manager of the storage and fuel supply facilities.
Aviation fuel is currently supplied by state owned company Enemalta which also owns the storage facilities. Following the libearlisation of the market, Shell had also tried to start distributing fuel but is claiming that Enemalta is preventing it through uncompetitive measures to carry on with its business.
According to EU rules, the ground handling services market at airports is to be open to competition, including the checking in of passengers, handling of baggage and refuelling of aircraft.
The legislation allows member states to limit the opening-up of the market to a maximum number of suppliers for four categories of ground handling: ramp handling (marshalling aircraft, loading and unloading food and beverages, etc.), baggage handling, freight and mail handling, and fuel and oil handling.
If a member state chooses to limit its market opening, they must comply with certain conditions, particularly in terms of selecting suppliers (e.g. there must be a transparent and non-discriminatory European call for tender). In addition, suppliers who carry out other activities in addition to ground handling services are required to ensure separation of accounts.
According to the Commission, Malta is not respecting these rules.
MINISTRY STATEMENT
The Ministry for Infrastructure, Transport and Communications SAID that Malta has repeatedly informed the Commission that the Government has taken all necessary measures afforded to it at law, in order to ensure the full implementation of the Directive.
"Besides ensuring the successful conclusion of a tendering process to ensure that Malta has at least two operators to provide groundhandling services at the Malta International Airport, Malta also appointed an independent examiner to confirm that there was proper separation of accounts by Enemalta in line with the requirements of the Directive. The report of the independent examiner which has been forwarded to the Commission so far confirms that the accounts of Enemalta have been effectively separated."
The ministry added that notwithstanding these measures and despite Shell Aviation having been appointed as the second licensed operator for aviation fuels in June 2004, Shell has refrained from providing groundhandling fuel services at the airport due to an ongoing dispute between Shell and Enemalta Corporation on the fee established for the use of the existing central infrastructure which belongs to Enemalta.
"As pointed out in Malta’s replies to the Commission, Shell Aviation had and still has the right to provide groundhandling fuel services without any legal impediment from the Government," the ministry said.