Incentives were established for those who provide information. B) Specifically, for the fuel sector, the following were established:

(a) Electronic register for the inventory of all fuel tanks.

(b) Obligation to install an inflows-outflows control system, in addition to service stations, in tax warehouses and customs warehouses for LPG storage.

(c) Obligation to install a Global Positioning System (GPS) on tank trucks and floating logistics and other ships transporting marine fuel.

(d) In order tolimitadulteration, obligationtotax mark (trace)fuels, includingLPG,by employingnewmoleculartracers.

(e)Sealing of fueltankersforwhichanexporthasbeendeclaredtoensurethattheydonotenter the territoryofthecountry

(f) Severe penalties for fuel smuggling and fuel adulteration, fraud of the inflows-outflows system and storage of fuel in illegal tanks. Inparticular:(i) the imprisonment sentencesforsmugglingoffencehavebeentoughened, (ii) provision has been made for the temporary sealing, for up to 3 months, of service stations and other fuel trading facilities and the publication of the details of offenders for fuel adulteration infringements; iii) strict fines were introduced for the non-installation as well as the fraud of the inflows-outflows system, the non-registration in the Tank Register and the non-installation of GPS in the tank trucks and the floating logistics

(g) a fine was set for obstructing customs control

(h) financial and other incentives have been introduced for those who help to uncover important smuggling cases

 

For the implementation of the above, a series of Ministerial Decisions have already been issued and at the same time the electronic monitoring and control systems are being implemented. In addition, by article 58 of Law 4818/2021, a comprehensive regulatory framework was introduced for the first time in Greek legislation to limit unfair profitability in times of crisis, by establishing a maximum percentage of gross profit margin throughout the fuel trading chain. Also, for the first time, it is allowed to disclose the trade name of companies that violate the measures put in place to limit unfair profitability, with the aim of directly protecting consumers.

III. Strengthening and coordinating operational actions. Operational action to combat smuggling is based on two axes: firstly, the prosecution of criminal organisations, and secondly, the control of delinquency and increased compliance. Having made strategic and systematic interventions, identified weaknesses of the control bodies have been remedied, the poor results of previous years have been reversed and significant progress has been made on both axes, with tangible results. Specifically: Regarding the prosecution of criminalorganizations: During the periodfrom 1.1.2021to30.4.2022, 22arrests were madebytheprosecutingauthorities(I.A.P.R.., S.D.O.E., Hellenic Police),276,758liters of liquidfuels, 4,200,000kg of LPG and 10tanktrucks were seizedand79VAT numbersofnon-existent orinactivechemicalsolventtradingcompaniesweredeactivated. Indicative of the progress achieved is that while seizures, by all law enforcement authorities, of liquid fuels were 67,795 liters in 2019, 92,927 liters in 2020, they amounted to 198,669 liters in 2021 and 78,089 liters already in the first four months of 2022 (SEK data, tables 1 and 2).

Regarding the control of delinquency – compliance of the market:  In implementation of the provisions of Law 4758/2020 and Decision A. 1079/2022 of the Governor of IAPR, the 1st Customs of Piraeus, in the context of an action of IAPR to limit smuggling and by utilizing the data analysis of the inflows outflows system, proceeded to a control of a gas station in Nikaia. Analyses by the GeneralChemical State Laboratoryrevealedthat the service station inquestionhadadulteratedfuels; as a result, on1.7.2022, thefirstsealing of a servicestation for fueladulterationwasimposed,foraperiodoftendays. This will be followed by the publication of the details of the offender, the infringement and the sanctions for one year, in accordance with the current regulatory framework.

Sealing of a service station,

modern electronic control tools were made available to the prosecuting authorities,

a comprehensive and strict system of sanctions was established,

the framework for the effective planning and supervision of the operational action of the prosecuting authorities was created

Press release Results of the intensive effort to fight smuggling and unfair profitability in the fuel market. In the context of the intensification of actions against smuggling and unfair profitability in the fuel market, a wide-ranging government meeting was held, in which participated the Ministers of Finance, Mr. Chr. Staikouras, Development and Investment Mr. Ad. Georgiadis, Shipping and Insular Policy, Mr. I. Plakiotakis, the Deputy Minister of Finance Mr. Ap. Vesyropoulos, the Deputy Minister of Citizen Protection, Mr. El. Oikonomou, the Secretary General of Tax Policy and Public Property, Mr. Emm. Mastromanolis, the Secretary General of Energy and Mineral Resources, Mrs. Al. Sduku, the Secretary-General for Trade and Consumer Protection, Mr Sot. Anagnostopoulos, the Secretary General of Fiscal Policy, Mr. Ath. Petralias and the Governor of the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (IAPR), Mr. G. Pitsilis. The government's planning against smuggling and unfair profitability in the fuel market is implemented on the basis of three main axes: I. Strategic planning and central operational supervision. II. Systematic legislative and regulatory interventions. III. Strengthening and coordinating operational actions.  This planning has yielded significant and measurable results compared to previous years, has dealt critical blows to criminal smuggling networks and has limited unfair profitability at all stages of fuel trading.

I. Strategic planning and central operational supervision First of all, by an Act of the Council of Ministers, the "Governmental Committee for Strategic Planning and Operational Supervision for the Restriction of Smuggling in Products subject to Excise Duty and Consumption Tax" was established, with the task of defining the national strategy and defining the individual objectives for the reduction of smuggling, in all excisable products (fuel, alcohol, tobacco) and the monitoring of their implementation, the operational supervision of the law enforcement authorities and the monitoring of the implementation of the fuel inflows-outflows system. Then, by Law 4758/2020, the law that established a coherent and comprehensive framework for the restriction of smuggling, the Coordinating Operational Center for Smuggling (SEK) was upgraded and staffed with experienced and specialized personnel, which was placed under the supervision of the Government Committee. These strategic interventions achieved effective supervision and coordination of law enforcement authorities, optimal information management and ultimately maximization of the effectiveness of operational action.

II. Systematic legislative and regulatory interventions A) In 2020, law 4758/2020 established for the first time an integrated approach to limit smuggling and fuel adulteration. With this law and its implementing decisions: The General Chemical State Laboratory carried out 3,912 laboratory chemical analyses, for all law enforcement authorities, from which 251 irregular (against specifications) samples were found.

Table 1. Seizures of liters of liquid fuels, on an annual basis

Table 2. Seizures of a quantity of liters, per type of liquid fuel. The very good performance of the law enforcement authorities is not only observed in the fuel sector but in the total of excisable products, since in 2021 their effectiveness more than doubled compared to previous years (from 12.5% on average in the four-year period 2017-2020, to 27% in 2021, an increase of 116%,

Table 3. Effective actions of the Services in excisable products 67.795 92.927 198.669 78.089 2019 2020 2021 4M2022 Seizures of liquid fuels 120.330 61.586 16.753 50.462 21.610 6.017 DESIGNER FUELS (LT) GASOLINE (LT) OIL (LT) Seizures by type of liquid fuel 2021 4M 2022

Control and limitation of unfair profitability in the fuel market Based on the latest aggregated data of the General Secretariat of Trade of the Ministry of Development and Investments, the Interagency Market Control Unit (DIMEA) has significantly increased the number of controls in the fuel market and has confirmed a significant number ofoffenses.

Table 4. Combating unfair profitability - General Secretariat of Commerce and DIMEA. In addition, DIMEA has imposed, to date, fines of 2,042,000 euros for unfair profitability in all wholesale and retail sectors in the market

The rapid increase in the efficiency and effectiveness of law enforcement agencies, despite the adversity caused by the pandemic, is neither circumstantial nor accidental, but is due to the clear orientation, proper planning and effective supervision, the improvement of investigative methods and the use of advanced analytical control tools, and above all to the strong political will to limit smuggling, adulteration and, in general, delinquency in the entire fuel supply chain. Good performance does not create complacency and the concerted government effort against smuggling is intensifying, with the issue always remaining very high on the government's agenda. The completion of the implementing regulatory framework of Law 4758/2020 and the electronic applications continues. In addition, at the extended interministerial meeting, decisions were taken for immediate initiatives, such as the assimilation of the excise tax coefficients of industrial LPG with LPG for other uses, the mandatory use of electronic means of payment for all transactions of excisable goods and the notification of receipt from other member states or from within the country, of solvents and other new type products used in fuel adulteration. The great interministerial government effort to combat smuggling and fuel adulteration is ongoing, has already borne fruit and will continue unabated to protect households and businesses. The Fuel Handling and Storage Control Units of the Ministry of Environment and Energy carry out daily inspections at gas stations in Attica and Thessaloniki. The tests are carried out with mobile laboratory units (van).  The units of the Fuel Movement and Storage Control Centers (KEDAK) carried out preventive checks with 6,471 samplings and imposed fines worth 1,763,050 euros, (liquid fuels, due to adulteration. Based on the data of SEK, from 1.1.2021 until 30.4.2022, in the fuel sector they were made in total by IAPR, the Hellenic Police. and the S.D.O.E. 19,282 checks and 1,868 offenses were found. In addition, in the same period of time:…