As fuel prices soar, US regulators target oil and gas mergers | Wall Street Journal Business and Economic News

While making this decision, oil prices have become a political burden on US President Joe Biden, and new concerns have heightened concerns that Hurricane Ida may further push up oil prices.

The Federal Trade Commission is studying ways to crack down on mergers and acquisitions in the oil and gas industry, and is investigating whether the gas station franchise network is pushing up natural gas prices as part of the Biden administration’s efforts to crack down on gas station price increases.

She stated in a letter to the White House Economic Counsel Brian Diss on August 25 that FTC Chairman Lina Khan is instructing staff to find new legal theories to challenge the merger of retail gas stations and investigate the possibility of national chain stores. Collusion to push up prices.

The FTC also plans to implement “prior approval” requirements to prevent oil and gas mergers, including in the retail gas market, which may be illegal.

“In the past few decades, retail gas station chains have repeatedly proposed illegal mergers, which shows that the agency’s practices have not prevented the company from proposing anti-competitive deals,” Khan said.

She added that the Federal Trade Commission is planning to increase its investigations into the abuse of the retail gas station franchise market.

“We need to determine whether the power imbalance in favor of large national chains allows them to force franchisees to sell gasoline at higher prices to benefit the chain at the expense of franchisees’ convenience store operations,” Khan said.

Khan said that “significant consolidation” in the industry in recent years has prompted the decision to tighten requirements. But while making this decision, oil prices have become a political burden on President Joe Biden, and new concerns have heightened concerns that Hurricane Ida may further push up oil prices.

The Gulf region has 16% of US crude oil production, 2% of natural gas production, and 48% of national refining capacity. After a Category 4 storm made landfall in Louisiana, gasoline futures rose sharply on Monday morning.