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Energy

Mongolia opens an artificial-shortage case against a fuel retailer

The Anti-Monopoly Office is investigating Sod Mongol Group over petrol held in storage while 7 of its stations stood closed. Its citation has a statutory name: an artificial shortage created by misleading consumers.

Mongolia opens an artificial-shortage case against a fuel retailer

The inspection runs under the emergency headquarters set up by prime-ministerial decree No. 162 on 3 August, with industry minister Gongoryn Damdinnyam heading the working group and state inspectors from the Anti-Monopoly Office attached. Seven Ulaanbaatar stations are named in the case file, numbers 1, 2, 3, 13, 39, 42 and 43 in the company's network. The investigation continues; no response from the company had surfaced in the wires by publication.

The same day, the ministry counted what the country holds: 20,504 tons of AI-92 in Ulaanbaatar and 12,207 tons in the provinces, with 49,000 tons imported since August began and 56 wagons carrying 3,000 tons arriving a day earlier. Distribution runs around the clock to roughly 1,500 stations.

“creating an artificial shortage of goods, works or services by misleading consumers”

Quality came under the same lens. Of 8 samples taken from Tes, Shunkhlai, Petrovis and San Petroleum, 4 were Euro-5 petrol, 3 Euro-2 and one AI-95, and all passed laboratory checks, Ch. Chuluunbat said in presenting the results.

The office's citation reads, in the law's wording, "creating an artificial shortage of goods, works or services by misleading consumers." Liability sits under article 10.2(7) of the Law on Violations.

Rationing ended with the weekend of 15 and 16 August, and the pump price of AI-92 has stood at 3,040 tugriks a liter, about $0.85, since 11 August. The Price Council has still not convened; no session has surfaced in the parliament or cabinet feeds.