On November 19, 2024, the French Competition Authority (“FCA”) submitted a Report (“FCA Report”) to the Ministers for Energy and the Economy, on the national regulated tariffs for electricity (tarifs réglementés de vente d’électricité – “TRVs”).[1] The FCA recommended to take practical measures to prepare the termination of the TRV mechanism, anticipating regulatory changes at the national and European levels in favor of market-based pricing.
On May 3, 2024, the French Directorate General for Competition Policy, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control[1] (“DGCCRF”) published its 2023 annual report (the “Report”).[2] The Report highlights the DGCCRF’s importance in cartel and other anti-competitive behavior detection in France, as well as its new roles, including taking part in the enforcement of the Digital Markets Act (“DMA”).[3]
On February 27, 2024, the French Competition Authority (“FCA”) published its roadmap for 2024-2025 as every year,[1] outlining its enforcement priorities for the year ahead. The FCA emphasized the need to take action in the same key areas of interest as in 2023[2]: (i) the digital economy, (ii) sustainability and the ecological transition, and (iii) the protection of purchasing power.
On March 3,2023, the French Competition Authority (“FCA”) published its roadmap for 2023-2024, outlining its enforcement priorities for the year ahead.
Appointment of a sustainability expert
As of September 1, 2022, Elise Provost was appointed first formal head of the French Competition Authority’s (the “FCA”) sustainable development network. Since this network is also responsible for flagging sustainability-related cases to the FCA’s General Rapporteur (i.e., the head of the FCA’s investigation unit), Elise Provost was also appointed adviser to the General Rapporteur as of September 1, 2022.
Background
On July 13, 2022, the French Competition Authority (“FCA”) published an interim document for public consultation on competition in the cloud computing sector as part of a sector inquiry launched in January 2022.[1] The FCA’s investigation seeks to delineate the relevant markets for cloud computing services, identify actors that may enjoy “particular positions”[2] on the market, and assess practices that could hinder competition on the merits in an industry projected to expand in France by 14% annually to reach €27 billion by 2025.[3] The consultation closed on September 19, 2022, and the FCA has announced its final conclusions for early 2023.[4]