The German Federal Court of Justice finds that there is no uniform product market for heat energy sources on the retail level and rather defines the market merely for the supply of end consumers with natural gas as the relevant product market (Erdgassondervertrag)

I. Background The decision is the (temporary?) end of a series of conflicting German court decisions that disagree on the issue whether there is one uniform market for heat energy sources or separate markets for each of the relevant sources (fuel oil, coal, district heating, natural gas, electric heating). The issue is of high importance because if a uniform market for heat energy sources is assumed, the municipal gas utilities that supply gas over their own local distribution networks could no longer be seen as dominant undertakings under Sec. 19 German Act against Restraints of Competition (ARC) (and Art. 82 EC) and would thus not be subject to the application of those provisions. In other words, defining the product market as a uniform market for heat energy sources would mean a