A PYMNTS Company

Bulgarian Regulator Fines Russia’s Lukoil For Abusing Dominant Position

By  |  February 19, 2023

Bulgaria’s antitrust commission has fined Russian oil giant Lukoil for “abusing its dominant position” in the Balkan nation.

Lukoil owns Bulgaria’s sole oil refinery, the largest in the Balkans. The Bulgarian Competition Authority fined Lukoil 67 million lev (around $36 million).

Read more: Bulgaria Accuses LUKOIL’s Bulgarian Fuel Trader Of Inflating Prices

The regulator said Lukoil Bulgaria had “abused its dominant position by exerting pressure on the wholesale fuel prices,” thus hindering competition and “harming consumers’ interests”.

Austria’s OMV and Bulgaria’s Insa Oil have accused Lukoil of charging them pump prices and refusing them discounts, even for bulk purchases, since the end of 2021.