New Law in Paraná Opens Natural Gas Market to Reduce Dependence on Compagas and Lower Prices

The New Law Signed in the State of Parana Opens the Natural Gas Market and Creates the Possibility of Direct Purchase with Suppliers in the Region, Which Boosts the Drop in Prices of the Resource and the Reduction of Dependence on Compagas

On last Monday, (05/30), Governor Carlos Massa Ratinho Junior signed the state law (Complementary Law 247/2022) that incorporates the New Natural Gas Law into the legislation in the state of Parana. With it, certain consumers will lose dependence on Compagas and have the possibility of a free market for trade, which could reduce fuel prices in the region and increase competitiveness in commercialization.

Consumers in the State of Parana Will Now Have the Possibility of a Free Market for Purchasing Natural Gas and Will Be Able to Negotiate Directly with Suppliers

Governor Carlos Massa Ratinho Junior enacted the New Gas Law in the state of Parana, ensuring the opening of the natural gas commercialization market for certain consumers. Consequently, they will be able to negotiate directly with suppliers of the fuel and will not be entirely dependent on Compagas for gas supply in the coming months, which ensures an increase in competitiveness and a possible reduction in prices.

Now, those consumers who use from 10,000 m³ of natural gas per day will be able to transition to the free market and purchase the resource directly from suppliers, with Compagas, the state-owned company, only receiving compensation for the distribution of the energy source. Those utilizing thermal plants will be able to purchase starting from 100,000 m³ of gas per day.

Thus, these consumers will benefit from the possibility of purchasing fuel at lower prices than those offered by the state-owned company in Parana. In addition, the new law ensures that the free market for natural gas in the state of Parana will be regulated by the Regulatory Agency for Public Services (Agepar), based on the guidelines of the National Petroleum Agency (ANP).

This ensures strong competition expansion among companies in the region and, furthermore, should prevent market concentration and increase competition, promoting the entry of new suppliers in the sector. As a result, the end consumer will be significantly benefited over the coming months with the commercialization of the resource in the state.

New Free Market Gas Law in Parana Will Ensure Tariff Reductions, Along with Decreased Fuel Prices and Increased Competitiveness

In addition to determining the opening of the market for fuel commercialization in the state of Parana, the New Gas Law also guarantees other changes in the region. Among these is the authorization regime for new gas pipelines, following the model of the railway system, and the requirement that a company provide third-party access to its infrastructures and update the existing regulation from 2009, thus ensuring greater dynamism in the gas segment in the region. 

According to economist Marcelo Curado, representative of the Civil House in the Intersecretarial Committee of the State Gas Plan, tariff reductions will also occur in the future: “Periodic tariff reviews will now happen every five years. It’s a regulatory modernization and aligns with what is already happening in other states, including in other sectors related to infrastructure. Furthermore, in a longer timeframe, it is possible to enhance the distributor’s planning and reconcile a more efficient regulatory agenda, also protecting the consumer market from very frequent updates.”

With this, the state of Parana is now seeking to ensure more equitable natural gas commercialization for the end consumer, as well as to attract the arrival of new companies in the field, as the opening of trade may draw the attention of fuel suppliers to the Parana region in the coming months.