At 56c per litre, the price of petrol in Malta net of duties and taxes is the highest in the European Union this week, according to the information published by the European Commission on consumer prices of petroleum products net of duties and taxes in its Weekly Oil Bulletin issued on June 12.
The EU28 weighted average price of petrol net of duties and taxes is 48c, that is 8c less than in Malta.
The price of diesel net of duties and taxes is 53c, while the weighted average price of diesel net of duties and taxes in the EU28 is 48c.
So, in the case of diesel, the price in Malta is also higher than that of the EU28, but it is not the highest in the EU. There are three other EU member states – Denmark, Estonia and Greece – where the price of diesel net of duties and taxes is higher than in Malta.
Why is Enemed Company Limited in a position to get a more competitive price for diesel, but not for petrol? Is it because in the case of diesel there are two other private importers of diesel, even though these peg their prices to those of Enemed?
How much profit is Enemed making on the sale of petrol? For how long is it going to be allowed to infringe Article 37 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), with its ad hoc monopoly in the petrol sector?
There is no reason why Maltese consumers should be the worst in Europe when it comes to the purchase of petrol in Malta
It is hoped that the new Minister for Energy will look into the matter and take steps so that the monopoly and dominant position of Enemed in the petrol sector is addressed.
There is no reason why Maltese consumers should be the worst in Europe when it comes to the purchase of petrol in Malta.
In which EU member state are consumers kept in the dark concerning what brand of petrol they are purchasing? In which EU member state consumers have no choice in the purchasing of petrol?
This is not what consumers voted for 13 years ago when they voted to join the European Union. How long are the European Commission and the European Parliament going to take to see that the government of Malta is in conformity with the TFEU?
Maltese consumers are not second-class EU citizens, and they should not be treated as such, neither by their own government nor by the EU institutions.
Alfred Farrugia is president of the Malta Automobile Club.