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Fit Group is prohibited from harassing and offering fuel to Shell and BR flag stations. Company used MP that allows flagged fuel stations to sell gasoline from different distributors to entice flagged resellers.
Provisional Measure 1063, by President Jair Bolsonaro, which frees flagged fuel stations to sell gasoline from different distributors was barely approved and has already generated war between cartels of fuel distributors! Grupo Fit Combustíveis (a distributor linked to the former Refinaria de Manguinhos, which today operates under the fancy name Refit), tried to take advantage of the MP and ended up prohibited from harassing, enticing, offering and distributing products to retail stations contractually linked to the Shell brand, from Raízen , and BR Distribuidora, which now goes by the name of Vibra Energia.
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The determination for the Shell station was issued by Judge Miguel Ferrari Junior, of the 43rd Court of the Central Civil Forum of São Paulo, in the preliminary decision dated 27 August. In case of non-compliance by companies belonging to Fit, a fine of R$ 10 will be applied. Appeal is possible.
In Rio, in addition to prohibiting Fit from enticing service stations, the judgment also determined that the company refrain from using BR's visual identity in its sales material at service stations, under penalty of a daily fine of 1 million reais. Fit, which belongs to the same group that controls Refit (formerly Manguinhos), declined to comment on the matter.
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Grupo Fit took advantage of the Provisional Measure to harass gas stations contractually linked to the Shell flag, owned by Raízen, and BR Distribuidora
As reported in the lawsuit, Grupo Fit took advantage of Provisional Measure 1063/2021, edited by the federal government on August 11, to send a commercial letter to dealers under exclusivity contracts with the company Raízen, the exclusive distributor of fuels and lubricants of the Shell brand in Brazil.
In the document, the Fit group states that "the loyalty that the large distributors preach so much is false, they offer fuel to non-flagged stations at prices below cost, lower than those practiced at flagged stations in the same area of influence".
In addition, the company says it offers “fair prices and better quality”, in addition to making available a “legal consultancy made up of renowned lawyers” to advise on exclusivity contracts. In the document, Grupo Fit also states that “no contract clause may be abusive insofar as it is confronted with this unfair imbalance of loyalty”.
Dealers may sell fuels from other suppliers as long as they do not break contractual terms
The new government rule allows, among other openings, the breaking of brand protection – which, in practice, means that the dealer can sell fuel from other suppliers, different from the brand he represents, as long as he does not break contractual clauses.
Raízen's main argument in the lawsuit is precisely the incentive to breach contracts. According to the company linked to Shell, Grupo Fit's offer is a way of "harassing and enticing" exclusive resellers, "encouraging the breach of contracts and the practice of unfair competition and misleading advertising, a situation that worsened a few days ago, through very serious attitude, elaborately elaborated to try to take advantage of the initial disinformation of the market agents, especially the Dealer Posts”.
The São Paulo court issued an injunction in favor of Raízen, saying that the Provisional Measure even allows gas stations to sell products from other suppliers, but also says that this does not change existing contracts. The flag stations enter into exclusivity contracts for supply. The judgment of São Paulo also understood that it could be harmful to the consumer looking for a certain gas station because of the flag.
Raízen claims that, in addition to the harassment of Shell resellers, the Fit Group it also put pressure on Vibra Energia's dealers (BR Distribuidora). The carioca company contacted BR brand gas stations offering pre-registration for those interested in reselling its fuel. BR, in turn, counterattacked with an extrajudicial notification, says Raízen.
The initial is signed by lawyers Arystóbulo de Oliveira Freitas, Ricardo Brito Costa, Thiago Marciano de Belisario and Silva Igor Goya Ramos.
End of brand loyalty at fuel stations and direct sale of ethanol from plants are approved; measures promise to stimulate competition and curb the increase in gasoline prices
Direct sale of ethanol and the end of loyalty to the brand at approved fuel stations promise to put an end to the cartel, stimulate competition and lower the price of gasoline, which has been suffering consecutive spikes.
A Provisional Measure to allow mill owners to sell ethanol directly from the plant to gas stations was approved by the Government on Wednesday morning (11/08), and may become the 'solution' to contain and curb the rise in gasoline prices .
The text also establishes a white flag for gas stations, that is, it allows gas stations that display brands from a specific distributor to start selling fuel from other suppliers, as long as the consumer is informed. Lread the full article by clicking here.
