The Hindu Business Line : Tech norms for city gas network to be released shortly

New Delhi, Sept. 11 The Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) is going to release the technical specifications shortly to facilitate the bidding process for city gas distribution (CGD) networks.

At the third Round Table on ‘City or Local Natural Gas Distribution Networks’ organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry in association with the PNGRB, Mr L. Mansingh, Chairman, PNGRB, said technical bids would be called within the next month.

He was hopeful of issuing authorisation to the prospective city gas distributor by the end of March 2009.

Mr Mansingh said there had been a conscious effort to minimise the discretionary powers of the regulator at all levels.

The entire effort is to create a transparent, regulatory framework through the process of consultation and feedback, he said.

PNGRB has come out with the processing of EOIs leading to authorisation for CGD projects.

The public consultation process for about 70 cities has already been completed.

The regulations concerning authorisation, exclusivity of marketing and infrastructure, and tariff determination have also been notified.

Ensuring fairness

Mr Mansingh clarified that adequate measures are being taken to ensure that gas producers do not favour their own transportation and distribution entities, discriminating against other players. Enough regulations are specified through the Affiliate Code of Conduct where the CGD players will have non-discriminate third-party access to the gas pipeline infrastructure.

Mr B.S. Negi, Member (Infrastructure), PNGRB, urged prospective bidders to ensure that their bid is compliant with all the listed requirements.

Both Mr Mansingh and Mr Negi, however, stressed that entities should pay serious attention to the obligations outlined in the regulation and factor these into their bid.

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