Spain: BP warns against Repsol's 40% retail market share
Repsol's 40% share of the Spanish market is the biggest restraint for small retailers to flourish, according to Luis Aires Dupré, BP's President for Spain and Portugal, .
In a recent interview in EL País, Dupré explained the Spanish market was highly competitive and growing in size was the only way to survive.
“We want to keep growing (...), but the legislative changes do not make it an easy task. The fact that supply and brand contracts have to be renewed yearly, when our model is based in franchises, makes it incredibly difficult. In a one year period you are not able to amortize those costs,” he explained to El País.
Spain´s government imposed new regulations for the fuel retailing market last month aimed at aiding small retailers, increasing competition and eventually reducing the market share major retailers hold.
Dupré believes it is unjust for regulators to treat them as market leaders, when they only have a 7.5% share, while Cepsa has around 18% of the market, and Repsol almost 40%. “We are not part of an oligopoly,” he said.
BP suffered a tough 2014 which saw their revenues and retail points reduced. Their network shrunk by 6.3%, falling from 680 service stations to 637 by the end of 2014. Last year there were a total of 10,712 gas stations across Spain – 46% of them were operated by Repsol.
