2024-09-27 16:06:30
Political control due to gas cost overruns. In the Departmental Assembly, a debate on political control over the provision of home gas service throughout the department took place. Acuña and Murcia, summoned deputies, questioned the management of Surgas and Alcanos.
DIARIO DEL HUILA, CLOSE UP
By: Gustavo Patino
Political control due to gas cost overruns. Last Wednesday, a political control debate on the provision of home gas service in the department was held in the Departmental Assembly of Huila. The debate, convened by deputies Jesús ‘Chucho’ Murcia and Armando Acuña, sought to clarify the multiple complaints that have arisen in recent months about the excessive increase in rates, the lack of coverage in rural areas and the lack of competition between the service providing companies.
Present in the debate were representatives of the two main companies that operate in the department, Alcanos de Colombia SAESP and SurGas SAESP, representatives of the Superintendence of Public Services, delegates of the Energy and Gas Regulation Commission – CREG, as well as the Secretariat. of Vías e Infraestructura del Huila, the entity in charge of regulating and supervising the operation of these companies. The deputies presented a discouraging panorama of the provision of the service, which has affected thousands of users in the municipalities of Neiva, Garzón, Pitalito, and other rural areas.
For years, the citizens of Huila have been denouncing the difficulties in accessing home gas service, especially in rural areas. Although the Huila Departmental Development Plan includes the expansion of gas service to 20,000 new families as one of its main objectives, progress has been very limited.
Low coverage rates
Jesús ‘Chucho’ Murcia, deputy summoning the debate, expressed his concern about the low coverage rates and the slow progress of projects aimed at expanding the service. «The Huila Grande Departmental Development Plan is focused on reaching 20,000 new users in the department. However, so far we do not have good progress rates. There is a project that was aimed at benefiting 10,000 families, but today it is at 75% because we do not have a tariff resolution from the CREG since 2021,” said Murcia.
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Furthermore, the deputy indicated that the coverage problem is not only limited to the lack of projects, but also to the exclusion of many rural areas that, despite having the main gas pipeline nearby, cannot access the service. «They skip paths that are much easier to classify by going to more distant ones. There are some paths left incommunicado with the main tube nearby, but without the possibility of connecting,” Murcia denounced.
One of the issues that generated the most controversy during the debate was the high rates that users are paying for home gas service. According to the deputies, there are significant differences in the cost of a cubic meter of gas depending on the area and the type of transportation used by companies.
Tacit monopoly
Deputy Armando Acuña explained that Alcanos uses a distribution network system that does not reach the most remote rural areas, while SurGas uses stationary gas stations with tanks that allow more efficient distribution in these areas. “The network system that Alcanos uses is not enough to reach many rural populations, while SurGas installs stationary plants on the sidewalks, which facilitates access,” Acuña said.
This difference in distribution systems creates a disparity in costs. As the gas pipeline that supplies the department reaches the municipality of Hobo, the rest of the municipalities in the center and south of the department of Hula are supplied by tank trucks, which generates extra costs in the rate, especially in rural areas. Some users are paying much higher rates compared to those who receive it through distribution networks. According to Murcia, in some cases the cost per cubic meter of gas has reached 18,000 pesos, a disproportionate price that mainly affects farmers.
«In a village in Garzón, the new projects are charging 18,000 pesos per cubic meter. A farmer is receiving a bill of between 120,000 and 150,000 pesos, when before he paid between 60,000 and 80,000 pesos. This is due to a poor projection by SurGas, which has generated an extra cost that users cannot assume,” said Murcia.
Economic impact
The economic impact of these cost overruns has been devastating for many rural families, who are forced to pay unsustainable rates for a basic service. The deputy mentioned that this problem has generated strong discomfort among the population, who feels that the companies providing the service are not acting with transparency.
Another issue that was discussed during the debate was the lack of competition between the companies providing gas service in the department. Both Alcanos and SurGas operate in specific areas of Huila, respecting what the deputies described as a “tacit agreement” not to intervene in the other’s territory. This, according to Sergio Losada, Garzón councilor who also participated in the debate, is harming users, since it prevents other companies from entering the market and offering better services or more competitive rates.
«The two companies respect each other and even share the territory. SurGas operates in the south and center of the department, and Alcanos in the center, west and north. This creates a monopoly in the gas service, which limits competition and harms users. According to the law, there should be an offer in terms of companies providing public services, but they are not allowed to do so,” denounced Losada.
Stagnation in expansion
The councilor also highlighted that this lack of competition has generated stagnation in the expansion of gas service, especially in rural areas. «There are serious problems in the municipalities where Alcanos operates, since its network distribution system does not reach many rural populations. On the other hand, SurGas installs stationary plants that allow the communities to be irrigated, but they are not allowed to enter Alcanos’ territory,” he explained.
User complaints about high reconnection costs and other additional charges that companies have been charging were also discussed during the debate. Armando Acuña criticized the companies for not adequately informing users about these charges, which in many cases are disproportionate.
«Companies must inform the user clearly and allow them to reach a payment arrangement. However, what they are doing is abusing users with charges that they do not explain. For example, reconnections are very high and the only ones that can do them are the companies themselves, which charge an excessive cost,” Acuña said.
In addition, the deputy mentioned that companies are charging users for inspections of internal installations and for changing meters, without offering accessible payment options. «Every five years the company says that you have to do a review and they also charge for that. If they find any damage or say that the meter needs to be changed, the user assumes the cost, which is generating great dissatisfaction,” he added.
Debt due to the pandemic
Both Losada, Acuña and Murcia pointed out to Diario del Huila that one of the situations that generated serious doubts regarding the actions of the companies providing the service, is the lack of clarity regarding the payment of the debt generated by the government order. national not to increase rates during the Covid 19 pandemic. The three officials questioned the lack of clarity in billing by Surgas and Alcanos, so that users understand how much they have paid and how much they are missing. Acuña also pointed out that clarity is needed regarding the 1,300 million pesos delivered by the Departmental Government to contribute to this debt. “How much was covered with that amount?” questioned the deputy.
Both Acuña and Losada referred to the participation of Ecopetrol and the department of Huila in the actions within these companies, especially in Alcanos, with these two entities together being the majority partners within this company, they should generate more benefits for the huilense, “but no, the company only dedicates itself to thinking about how to generate economic profits and does not worry about making social investment by expanding coverage.”
Overcharging?
Likewise, Armando Acuña made a worrying complaint. He stated that the companies were charging in receipts, as determined by the Creg, on the total value of an infrastructure project when it was developed, but they did so without taking into account that these projects have investment not only from the companies, but also from the department, “they said no, it was only their investment, but why are the rates so high, it is because if the project was worth 10 pesos, they are considering that value, but of those 10 pesos only five were invested by the company “The rest was invested by the departmental government, the municipality, the user, so be careful, be careful, they are scoring goals for us there, it is what I consider and that deserves an investigation.”
Surveillance of companies
The political control debate in the Departmental Assembly made it clear that there are serious problems in the provision of home gas service in Huila, both in terms of coverage and costs. Based on the discussions, several commitments were agreed to improve the situation and guarantee a fairer and more accessible service for all Huilenses.
In this way, an investigation will be requested from the Superintendency of Public Services to review the high tariff costs and additional charges that have affected users. In addition, the Energy and Gas Regulatory Commission (CREG) will be urged to expedite the approval of pending tariff resolutions for expansion projects, such as the one that benefits 10,000 families and is stuck at 75%.
Expanding coverage in rural areas The companies committed to improving coverage in rural areas, especially in those areas that have been excluded from the service. To this end, it was agreed to install stationary plants on sidewalks, a strategy used by SurGas, which has proven to be more efficient in these areas.
An effort will be made to allow the entry of new companies to promote competition in the provision of gas service, which is expected to result in more competitive rates and better service. Companies will need to be more transparent in billing and provide accessible payment options to users, especially when it comes to reconnection charges and internal installation reviews.