The quality of petrol and diesel fuel has improved: irregularities were found in 1.7% of the filling stations probed by the Trade Inspection. The first-time ever inspection of LPG revealed a darker picture: 7.9% of the examined stations sold LPG of poor quality. In 2007, the TI scrutinised the whole fuel distribution chain for the first time

Diesel fuel, petrol and, for the first time, LPG and light fuel oil were all scrutinised by the Trade Inspection in 2007. Another novelty was the inspection of transport fuel; it was, however, carried out only on request of the Police and at the production sites and fuel warehouses. The new Act on the fuel quality monitoring and scrutinising system, in force since the beginning of the last year, enabled fuel scrutiny to be performed at each stage of distribution: at the production site, the warehouses, the wholesalers’ premises, during shipment and at the filling stations.

The results show that the quality of liquid fuels offered by filling stations has improved since 2006: only 1.72% of the samples taken in 2007 did not meet applicable standards (compared to 2.39% in 2006). In the case of diesel fuel, quality requirements were not met only by 0.62% of the samples (1.36% in 2006), and in the case of the petrol poured into fuel tanks - 2.3% (compared to 2.8% the year before).

The inspection of LPG quality, conducted in 2007 for the first time, did not bring such positive results. Out of the 316 filling stations which were probed, 7.9% offered LPG not meeting appropriate quality requirements. The situation was the worst in Lubelskie voivodship (20.37%) and the best in Małopolskie and Śląskie, where no irregularities were found. The results of inspections at wholesalers’ premises were even worse: 4 of 14 samples taken at 11 wholesalers were noncompliant. The LPG examinations had been carried out since August, only in 9 voivodships and in a limited scope. This was caused by the delays in adopting the implementing regulations to the Act. Consequently, the results of the inspections cannot be considered as representative for the entire country.

The TI scrutinised, also for the first time, the quality of fuels transported in tank trucks. These inspections were conducted only on request of the Police and with its participation. In the case of LPG, irregularities were found only in 1 in 59 samples collected from tank trucks.

The Trade Inspection also probed selected filling stations whose customers complained about poor quality fuels, stations selected by the law enforcement bodies and the ones where irregularities were found in the previous years.

Out of the 2257 samples of diesel fuel and petrol taken at 1129 filling stations in 2007, 113 were found to be noncompliant: 58 in the case of diesel fuel (5.28%) and 55 in the case of petrol (4.75%). Irregularities were most frequent at the filling stations which had been found to sell noncompliant fuels in the previous years: 17.8% (7.55% in 2006). The smallest number of breaches of quality requirements was noted in Małopolskie (2.14% of the samples) and Wielkopolskie (2.8%) voivodships, while the worst results were obtained in Świętokrzyskie (8.82%) and Śląskie (8.11%).

In the case of wholesale facilities, 129 samples were collected. The TI inspectors’ reservations concerned only 5% of the diesel fuel samples (compared to 8% in 2006); no petrol samples exceeded the appropriate quality parameters (in 2006 - 2.3%).

As a result of the scrutiny conducted in 2007, the Trade Inspection submitted 116 notifications on suspected violation of law to the prosecution offices. To date, formal proceedings were initiated in 92 cases: 12 bills of indictment were filed to the courts, 29 cases were dismissed, the remaining proceedings are in progress. In addition, the TI issued 16 orders for noncompliant liquid fuels to be withdrawn from the market and submitted to the President of the Energy Regulatory Office (ERO) 88 notifications about filling stations and wholesale companies which had violated the terms of the licence to trade in liquid fuels and the provisions of the Act on energy law. Among the notifications, 22 concerned filling stations probed in 2006. The President of ERO has the power to prohibit entrepreneurs who violate licence terms from selling fuels.

Additional information:
Małgorzata Cieloch, Spokesperson for UOKiK
Pl. Powstańców Warszawy 1, 00-950 Warsaw
Tel. (+48 22) 827 28 92, 55 60 106, 55 60 314
faks (+48 22) 826 11 86
E-mail mcieloch@uokik.gov.pl

Anna Jawoszek, Spokesperson
General Inspectorate of Commercial Inspection
ul. Niedźwiedzia 6E, 02-737 Warsaw
Tel.: (+48 22) 827 06 55, 0 695 90 20 88
E-mail anna.jawoszek@giih.gov.pl