Government of Rio de Janeiro intends to publish new regulations on biomethane prices and, in partnership with the Spanish company Naturgy, build new gas pipelines in the state

Naturgy's tariff revision will enable the construction of new gas pipelines in the region to connect the biomethane plants to the company, while the government of Rio de Janeiro will make the new regulation for biomethane prices in the state

The undersecretary of Oil and Gas in Rio, Daniel Lamassa, commented on the future of the fuel market in Rio de Janeiro and, this Wednesday (01/06), the forecast is that the state government will deliver the new regulation of biomethane prices until the second half of June. Furthermore, there will be inclusion of new gas pipelines for interconnection with the fuel production plants in the tariff revision of the company Naturgy. 

Government of Rio de Janeiro will publish new regulation to define maximum biomethane prices until the second half of June 

The government of the state of Rio de Janeiro expects to publish the new regulation for biomethane prices, aiming to inject the product into the state's gas network, by the second half of the month of June. And, while this regulation is developed, the representatives expect that the resumption of the tariff review by Naturgy, controller of CEG and CEG Rio, will include the construction of gas pipelines to interconnect the state's biomethane plants to the distribution network.

The new regulation for biomethane prices is being increasingly required in the state, since the 2014 and 2018 decrees did not update the value, which today is up to R$ 1,20 per m³, thus providing a lag in relation to at international prices.

In addition, according to projections by the Secretariat of Oil and Gas in Rio, the capacity being used in the region is not the maximum and there would still be room for a compulsory injection of around 650 m³/day into the network of Naturgy, CEG's parent company. and CEG Rio. And, one of the main problems for the injection of biomethane into the state grid not happening as expected is the high fuel prices.

In this way, the new state regulation aims to create legal certainty to encourage the attraction of new investments in the state, with fair and safe prices for new ventures. The state of Rio de Janeiro is currently producing only 10% of its potential, of 1,3 million m³/day, and the government is now looking to expand this production. 

Rio de Janeiro will be able to rely on new gas pipelines to interconnect biogas production to expand fuel injection in the state network

The tariff review by Naturgy and its subsidiaries throughout this month of June also aims to include the construction of new gas pipelines to connect biomethane production to the gas network in the state. And, according to Lamassa, this is yet another strategy of the state government to ensure the attraction of new investments for the production of biomethane in the region, with a focus on the sustainability market, which is increasingly on the rise in the national energy scenario. 

Thus, the undersecretary of Oil and Gas of Rio, Daniel Lamassa, confirmed the project and said that “This year Agenersa (Rio de Janeiro Regulatory Agency for Energy and Sanitation) will carry out the fourth and fifth tariff revision of Naturgy. In the latter, we will include the construction of gas pipelines to interconnect the biomethane plants”.

In addition, he recalled, among the incentive measures for renewable fuel adopted in Rio, the reduction of ICMS on biogas, which went from 18% to 12% and reaffirmed the commitment of the government of Rio de Janeiro regarding the growth of the fuel segment during the year 2022.