No irregularities have been noted in the price of gasoline on the North Shore by the Competition Bureau of Canada.
The federal organization visited the North Shore last February. Investigators made visits to several regions of Quebec, including the North Shore, to better understand how gasoline prices are determined.
“I must specify that these steps by the Office have not made it possible to demonstrate any irregularity in this sector [Côte-Nord] », Specifies Marianne Blondin, spokesperson for the Office, by email.
“That said, we continue to monitor the retail gasoline market carefully and will take action against illegal practices if we find credible indications that an offense has been committed under the Competition Act,” she adds.
The Competition Bureau does not have the authority to set gasoline prices. Its role is to investigate price fixing and other anti-competitive behavior.
Port-Cartier
In January 2024, the mayor of Port-Cartier, Alain Thibault, complained about gasoline prices in his municipality. He then denounced abusive prices. The differences could go up to 10¢ with Sept-Îles. The Port-Cartier Chamber of Commerce also denounced this difference. She then asserted that Port-Cartier consumers were being taken “hostage by the territory’s big oil companies. »
On Sunday October 13, the Journal was able to note that the price of gasoline in Sept-Îles and Baie-Trinité was $1.54, while in Port-Cartier, it was $1.62.
The mayor says he understands that it is difficult for the Competition Bureau to prove that there may have been collusion.
“I am disappointed, but somewhere, I understand that it is extremely complicated to demonstrate that there was possible collusion,” he said.
However, he maintains that the price of gasoline is abusive in Port-Cartier
“When we look at the price of gasoline, it is not normal that it is lower in Sept-Îles than in Port-Cartier. It makes no sense and it has no logic,” he says.
Alain Thibault still welcomes the fact that the Office took action by carrying out an investigation on the ground.
The Competition Bureau says it is aware of people’s concerns about retail gasoline prices in various regions. He invites anyone who has information regarding price fixing or any other anti-competitive activity in the retail gasoline sector to contact them by filing a complaint.
Let us recall that last January, questioned by the JournalCAA-Quebec stated that it had not observed a trend towards a higher price in the region. The organization stated at the time that the large price differences between gas stations in different cities can be explained by the fact that they are not in competition, due to the great distances on the North Shore.
