Fuel seller: Estonia's higher fuel prices conclusion could be based on wrong data
Terminal board member Alan Vaht said that the Competition Authority's conclusion fuel cost more in Estonia than other countries might be based on the wrong dataset, as well as that he does not agree with Alexela's prediction of a €2 per liter fuel price.
Competition Authority head Evelin Pärn-Lee said Monday at a sitting of the Riigikogu Anti-Corruption Select Committee that, when looking at price charts reflecting fuel prices excluding taxes, Estonia's price ceiling remained significantly higher for a long period after the start of the war in Ukraine than in Latvia, Lithuania or Poland.
Alan Vaht, a member of the management board of Terminal, said Wednesday on Raadio 2 that he had also attended the committee session and later made an unexpected discovery when he took a closer look at the Competition Authority chief's charts.
"That graph showed that fuel prices at gas stations in Estonia, excluding taxes, have been significantly higher than in Latvia and Lithuania since 2022. I started wondering how that could be possible."
Vaht said the Competition Authority based its analysis on price data collected by the European Commission's Oil Bulletin.
"I looked behind those figures and, lo and behold, the table contained incorrect excise rates — a lower excise rate had been deducted. It would be worth making a public inquiry to the Ministry of Economic Affairs about how this is possible. Very fundamental conclusions are being drawn on this basis and those (higher prices before taxes — ed.) also create an emotional response among consumers."
Vaht said he has a precise dataset covering the period since 2022 and when the correct excise rates are deducted, the result shows that fuel prices at Estonian gas stations were lower than indicated in the chart.
According to him, the Competition Authority should not be criticized for what happened; rather, the Ministry of Finance or the Ministry of Economic Affairs should "take the blame."
ERR has asked the Competition Authority for comment on Vaht's claims.
Vaht also commented on remarks made by Heiti Hääl, owner of Alexela Grupp, on ERR's "Impulss" program that fuel prices at Estonian gas stations would rise above €2 per liter on Thursday.
"We'll see, but I don't really believe it. Based on global market prices, diesel at the pump should actually have exceeded €2 per liter already on March 9 or 10. The Estonian market competition is simply such. We have our own price war and that keeps prices down. So I don't believe we'll see prices above €2 this week. Competition is keeping prices lower."
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Editor: Marcus Turovski
