The Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine has considered that the tariffs of JSC Ukrzaliznytsia for leasing cars are market-driven and does not see anti-competitive actions in the company’s pricing.
According to a report of the committee published on Dec. 5, the fee for the use of Ukrzaliznytsia’s cars is calculated using the single formula equal for all economic entities. The elements of the formula do not raise objections from the point of the economic analysis, and the tariffs of Ukrzaliznytsia are comparable with the similar tariffs of private operators.
The committee also confirmed the fact of natural monopoly of Ukrzaliznytsia on the market where railway transport is leased. The company has almost 100% share of the market where locomotive services are provided the railways of common use (due to the absence of the legislative base). The committee said that there is competition between Ukrzaliznytsia and private operators on the market where railway cars are leased, although the market cannot develop more due to the impossibility of allowing private locomotive operators to use the railways of common use.
According to the committee, the share of Ukrzaliznytsia of the car rental market (relative to the working fleet) is 43 percent of the gondola car market, 56 percent of the grain hopper market, 78 percent of the covered car market, 64 percent of the cement car market, 21 percent of the tanker market and 54 percent of the pellet car market.
“The development of competition in market of the freight transportation by rail is hampered by the inability of private operators to use locomotive traction on the railways of common use as a result of the lack of a proper regulatory base,” the committee said.
In order to resolve the current situation, the committee put forward the following proposals: to allow private operators of locomotive traction to use the railways of common use (requires the development of an appropriate regulatory base), adopt a new version of the law of Ukraine on railway transport and create an independent regulator in the sphere of transport.
