The decree, which took effect on July 1, derogates from the gas law, which bans “any and all practices using pricing and fees as social protection instruments, and/or the direct or indirect subsidizing of consumers,” and sets the price of natural gas delivered to households is to remain unchanged until March 2012.
The decree was cleared both by the country’s antitrust authority and the Senate’s special committees but rejected by the plenum. It will now be sent to the Chamber of Deputies, which has the final say.