Previous attempts of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) to declare city gas networks common carriers have been challenged in court.
To help resolve the issue, the board issued a fresh draft regulation earlier this year – PNGRB (Guiding Principles for Declaring City or Local Natural Gas Distribution Networks as Common Carrier or Contract Carrier) Regulations, 2023 – and sought stakeholders’ views.
In its views posted on the PNGRB website, the ministry and some city gas companies have said that the draft doesn’t contain “guiding principles” but is “procedural in nature”.
“Owing to the similarity to the 2020 regulations, notifying the 2023 regulations may lead to litigation again since the 2023 regulations also fails to address the grounds raised in the petitions challenging the 2020 regulations,” the ministry said.
