In the early hours of Wednesday (March 17th), the House of Representatives rejected all the Senate amendments and approved the bill on the new regulatory framework for the natural gas sector (PL no. 4,476 / 20). ATGás (Association of Natural Gas Pipeline Transportation Companies) considers the House of Representatives’ decision to be the right one and affirms that the original text issued by the Commission for Mines and Energy, the fruit of a seven-year debate within the sector, will benefit the entire oil and gas sector, Brazilian industry and the end consumer.

Federal representative Laercio Oliveira (PP-SE), the rapporteur of the project, recommended before voting began that all the amendments be rejected. His position was in agreement with the views of a number of organized civil society institutions, including ATGás itself.

Oliveira observed at the time that, "Lamentably, the amendments introduced by the Senate make damaging changes to the approved [in September 2020] text, to the point of jeopardizing the hard-won agreement with the natural gas industry". He added that, once it is sanctioned, the proposal has the ability to transform a market that, in his opinion, has been acting as a monopoly for a great many years.

He concluded, "Today we are delivering to the country a modern project that will promote competition".

Federal representative Paulo Ganime (Novo-RJ), author of the petition for the bill’s proceedings to be conducted on an urgent basis by the House of Representatives, also praised the approval of the terms issued by the Commission for Mines and Energy. In a speech of thanks, the parliamentarian also thanked the industry for its work and efforts to obtain approval by the House of the legislative material in its original format.

The president of ATGás, Rogério Manso, congratulated the floor of the House of Representatives for their understanding and approval of the bill and stated that the new legal framework will stimulate competitiveness in the sector and yield benefits for all the consumers.

Manso declared that, “Following ample discussion between the sector and the legislative body, the bill for the New Gas Law was drawn up and was approved in the early hours of this morning. The decision of the floor of the House of Representatives to defend the original text, developed with the participation of authorities on the subject within the sector, was a wise one. We believe that the introduction of this law makes room for the freeing up of investments and competitive prices for the end consumer. Everyone wins: the gas sector, the consumers and the country”.