July 13, 2008	Sunday	Rajab 9, 1429

ISLAMABAD, July 12: The Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) has launched an investigation against owners of CNG stations for “operating like a cartel” by fixing the price of the utility.

The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) has referred the matter to the CCP.

The CCP has sent a questionnaire to the president of the CNG Station Owners Association, Malik Khuda Bux, to reply by July 21 as to why they were acting like a cartel and that why action should not be taken against them.After the banks, who were fined by the CCP for operating like a cartel, the commission prima facie determined that CNG station owners were involved in cartelisation as they were determining the price of their product. “Every gas station has been asked not to sell gas below a certain price and this is an anti-competition practice and needs to be thoroughly checked,” a source said.

Sources said that Ogra officials had warned CNG station owners not to act like a cartel, but when they ignored the warning, the regulatory body referred the case to the CCP for investigation. Since the issue relates to public interest, the CCP is expected to decide the matter by the end of next week.

The sources said CCP had also taken up a case against Mobilink cellular company for alleged involvement in an anti-competition behaviour over its Blackberry telephone set and its service.

The company has linked its service with the sale of the Blackberry phone having ‘Sim locking’ features.