UZBEKISTAN INTRODUCES NEW LAWS ON GAS SUPPLY
Several legal acts regulating the supply and export of natural gas have been introduced in Uzbekistan. These are largely designed to exercise tighter control over the use of gas within and outside of the country. The “blue fuel” is one of the main necessities of the people of Uzbekistan and neighboring countries, especially during the winter season. The new regulations have therefore drawn significant attention in local media sources, which discuss the meaning of these laws and what they may imply for consumers.
In December 2012, Uzbek authorities adopted the law “On gas supply” which regulates the supply and use of gas within the country. For instance, the law introduces a system of advance payments for the gas to be used every month. Specially designed equipment will be installed in Tashkent and Tashkent district houses in 2013-2014, followed by the rest of the country at the expense of JSC Uzbekneftegaz. The law does not specify the quality of the fuel to be provided or the stability of the actual supply. Many experts think that this fact may serve as a pretext for providing poor quality service or irregular supply to the population by the relevant authorities.
Furthermore, the law extensively covers the responsibilities of the gas consumers, but is very vague about the responsibilities of the “service providers.” The law also lacks guarantees to protect the rights of consumers, but at the same time leaves ample space for speculation about the responsibility of the new government body specifically designed for regulating matters related to gas supply – the committee on gas supply.
Furthermore, based on a resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers adopted on December 26, 2012, Uzbekistan bans transit of liquefied gas through Uzbek customs via automobile transport starting from January 1, 2013. This resolution was adopted “for the purpose of ensuring state security, protection of public order, life and health of the population and of the environment.” In accordance with the mentioned law, the state customs committee and the Ministry of Internal Affairs are authorized “to take relevant measures to turn the liquefied gas into state profit in case of illegal transit of the abovementioned gas across the territory of Uzbekistan.” Many independent experts think that this resolution will mainly affect neighboring Tajikistan. According to the Ministry of Energy and Industry of Tajikistan, around 74,000 tons of liquefied gas was imported to Tajikistan from Uzbekistan over the last eleven months. Uzbekistan has previously refused Tajikistan to transit gas from Turkmenistan by pipelines or roads.
Meanwhile, Dushanbe continues negotiations with Tashkent to renew the contract for gas supply to Tajikistan. On New Year’s Eve, Uzbektransgaz stopped the delivery of gas to the neighboring country, according to representatives of Tajik authorities, twelve hours before the end of the year. A representative of the company admitted that Tajikistan received only 132 million cubic meters (mcm) of gas instead of the 155 mcm identified in the contract.
It should be noted that Uzbekistan cuts gas supply to Tajikistan every winter until the contract is renewed and every spring to comply with its obligations on gas supply to China. Many experts view such behavior on Uzbekistan’s part as a way to demonstrate its disapproval of certain projects Tajikistan has undertaken lately. The major consumers of Uzbek gas in Tajikistan are the country’s largest strategic plants; the Tajik aluminum company TALCO and the Tajik cement producing plant Tajikcement.
The latter produces material used directly for the construction of the Rogun hydropower dam which Uzbekistan views as a threat not only to its water supply but as an environmental threat to the whole Central Asian region. Thus, by disrupting the gas supply, Uzbekistan creates obstacles to Tajikistan’s realization of this specific project.
On a different note, the quality of gas supply not only outside Uzbekistan, but also within the country has deteriorated lately. In spite of all disruptions in the gas supply to neighboring states, Uzbekistan’s population does not benefit from a reliable supply of gas, especially during winter. The local population has few chances to hold the state responsible for failed services, even though the majority of the population regularly pays for gas and other utilities.
The gas situation in Uzbekistan has not changed much over time – Uzbekistan has been an unreliable partner for its neighbors and a poor supplier of services for its own population. With the newly adopted laws, however, it seems that the Uzbek authorities is taking additional steps to exercise political leverage over the projects of a neighboring state and simultaneously ensure the extraction of state revenues from its own population.
