Gas business management will be decentralized to district level.

(Baonghean) - In Nghe An, there are currently 829 retail stores selling liquefied petroleum gas (also known as gas or LPG) with 17 different gas brands. With that system, according to the assessment, it basically meets consumer demand. However, to closely manage business activities in this field in a large area, the Industry and Trade Department advised the Provincial People's Committee to decentralize management to the district level.

Concerns when implementing the new Decree

Although Decree 19/2016/ND-CP of the Government on liquefied petroleum gas trading (replacing the previous Decree 107/2009/ND-CP) has been effective since May 2016, in the past few months, Mr. Tran Van Vien, a gas dealer in Vinh City, has not been really confident in applying some new regulations. According to Mr. Vien's analysis, his facility currently has over 200,000 gas cylinders and tanks of about 80 m3. If the new regulations under Decree 19/2016 are applied, his dealer model can re-register as a distributor, with cylinders (also known as bottles) meeting the standards but tanks must reach about 300 m3.

This is difficult because businesses have to invest tens of billions of dong more and cause waste, because the gas source in the tank is circulated for households to use, so upgrading the tank is unnecessary. Not to mention that if upgrading the tank, the warehouse must be upgraded (or rented), the conditions to ensure safety...

Many gas stores also operate on the same premises as other businesses. (Photo taken on Phong Dinh Cang Street - Vinh City).

There are also concerns about the application of Decree 19/2016/ND-CP regarding the number of agents of gas distributors or general agents and regulations on filling stations, storage conditions, etc. In addition, if strictly applied, most gas stores in Nghe An will have to reconsider. For a long time, many establishments have taken advantage of houses to store cylinders, without separate warehouses, trading gas with many other items, gas stores are concentrated in densely populated areas, many people passing by have not ensured safe distances. According to statistics from the Ministry of Industry and Trade, over 90% of the number of stores in Nghe An do not have separate warehouse systems, but gas cylinders are mainly stored right at the store or house for circulation and consumption.

At the same time, the quality of labor at stores is still low, the training in liquefied gas business and fire prevention training is not close to reality. There are still illegal gas decanting and brand fraud in the area, causing many difficulties in management, inspection and control for relevant authorities. The lack of regulations on transparency of information on gas business activities of wholesale traders, general agents and agents makes it difficult for consumers to grasp information on prices, product brands and distribution systems of gas traders... All are issues worth discussing around the implementation of the new decree on gas business management. However, from the perspective of gas retail stores, Decree 19/2016/ND-CP does not regulate much compared to previous regulations.

Management will be decentralized to district level.

Regarding the issues of regulating gas business conditions according to Decree 19/2016/ND-CP, the Ministry of Industry and Trade is listening to businesses and continuing to seek opinions from relevant agencies to be able to propose appropriate adjustments to the Government. In terms of management and implementation, the Department of Industry and Trade has consulted and submitted to the Provincial People's Committee the document "Draft decision to promulgate regulations on decentralization of granting certificates of eligibility for liquefied petroleum gas business" for gas retail stores in Nghe An province after consulting with relevant departments, agencies and People's Committees of districts, cities and towns. The content of the draft is to decentralize the granting of certificates of eligibility for liquefied petroleum gas business for retail stores to the People's Committees at the district level for management and licensing.

Gas business activities will be decentralized to districts, cities and towns.

The reason given by the Ministry of Industry and Trade is that Nghe An has the largest area in the country, a complex terrain, and gas stores are mainly small-scale retail stores scattered throughout the province. When applying the new decree, the issuance of certificates of eligibility for liquefied petroleum gas business to retail stores requires direct inspection and assessment of each facility to ensure compliance with the prescribed conditions. Another issue affecting the decentralization of gas business licensing and management to the district level is that the Fire Police force has now formed professional departments according to regions, closer to the facilities. This is the core force along with the Ministry of Industry and Trade and functional branches to perform the role of controlling in licensing and training on fire prevention and fighting in liquefied petroleum gas business (belonging to the list of conditional business lines).

A typical example is the Vinh City Fire Police Department, which coordinates with the Industry and Trade Department to manage 131 liquefied petroleum gas stores. Every month and every quarter, the Department proactively checks the conditions to ensure gas business safety. At the same time, every year, it coordinates with the government and store owners to organize professional training for 100% of employees (326 people) involved in gas business.

According to the analysis of Ms. Ho Thi Ha - Deputy Head of Trade Management Department, Department of Industry and Trade, up to now, 829 gas stores in the province have been licensed by the Department of Industry and Trade. In fact, due to the large area of ​​the province and uneven distribution of stores, direct appraisal at the establishments has encountered many difficulties and limitations, while causing waste of time and travel costs for gas businesses and individuals who live far away and have to submit their applications directly to the Department of Industry and Trade. Decentralizing the granting of gas business licenses to districts will further strengthen the management of gas business activities in the area under their management.

This is also a direction to increase efficiency in business management in the new period. On that basis, the Department guides the districts to publicly post and explain, guide organizations and citizens on the provisions of the law on granting new, re-granting, adjusting, and extending certificates of eligibility for liquefied petroleum gas business; Carry out the granting of new, re-granting, adjusting, and extending certificates of eligibility for liquefied petroleum gas for stores of organizations and citizens belonging to the prescribed subjects after being delegated by the Provincial People's Committee.

Nguyen Nguyen