Bottled gas distributor strike in Spain: there will be no deliveries to homes or businesses on these dates

The drivers say they will continue to take action until the "demands of the sector" are met

Europa Press

Madrid

Wednesday, 23 October 2024, 21:32

The general assembly of the Spanish federation of liquefied petroleum gas distributors (Fedglp) on Monday approved the call for strikes in the home and business delivery service of butane cylinders from 5 November onwards and until the "demands of the sector" are met.

During the period of industrial action, distribution agencies will not make home deliveries to individuals or businesses, although they guarantee a supply to points of sale. Likewise, this suspension of the service will not affect users in situations of social vulnerability, educational, health and social care centres, homes for the elderly, or non-profit institutions.

The initial schedule of the temporary suspension of the delivery service to be followed by the distribution agencies will start on 5 November and continue throughout the month on 13, 21 and 29 November. In December, the stoppages will also take effect on the 5th, 11th, 17th and 23rd).

Among its demands, the organisation has asked Spain's Ministry for Ecological Transition to modify and update Order IET/389/2015, which updates the system for the automatic determination of maximum sales prices - before taxes - of bottled liquefied petroleum gas and a "fair and appropriate update of the commission per cylinder distributed by operators."

"Lack of response"

In a statement the federation regretted the stoppages, which it justified by "the lack of response from the ruling authorities and operators". The statement added that the distributors are working with a system for updating remuneration that has not actually been updated for "over a decade."

The statement went on: "The distribution agencies are not seeking to harm the end consumer, who should not be affected by the claims of the industry sector, but rather to ensure that the cylinder commissions they receive are updated and distributed fairly and in accordance with the reality of the service in order to try to reverse the continuous deterioration of the business activity and promote its modernisation, in line with the objectives of sustainable development and the challenge of digitalisation."

According to Fedglp, distribution agencies have for years been bearing the "increasing operating costs that make it unsustainable to continue the service under the current conditions."

The federations complaints can be summed up as follows: "Rising fuel prices, increasing labour costs and environmental requirements, coupled with stagnant remuneration, prevent distributors from continuing to operate without incurring losses."

In this sense, the Fedglp has expressed its "full confidence" that this measure will force both the operators in the sector and the competent authorities "to review and update the current regulations in order to guarantee a remuneration that covers the real costs of the service." "The federation will continue to have dialogue with all parties involved and hopes that the demands will be met as soon as possible," the statement concluded.

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