For the past few days, the Government of Belize and the companies: Gas Tomza, Western Gas Company, Southern Choice Butane, and Belize Western Energy, have been in front of Acting Chief Justice Michelle Arana for a full trial. These 4 former importers of Liquified Petroleum Gas - known as "Butane" - are trying to upend the legislated shift in the cooking gas market that the former Barrow Administration implemented.
It's called the National Liquified Petroleum Gas Project Law, which the House and Senate passed back in 2019. That law mandated that the National Gas Company, a new public/private partnership, would become the sole importers of LPG.
National Gas then sells the cooking gas that they've acquired to all butane companies in Belize, including the 4 former importers that formerly dominated the market..
The Barrow Government touted it as a major consumer protection shift that regularizes the market so that you, the consumer, don't have to worry that the daily supply is suddenly cut off due to external market shocks - or if the former importers end up in a stand-off with the government of the day. This change shifted control of the market from the former importers to National Gas and the Belize Bureau of Standards, which regulates the price of this commodity.
But, these big butane companies have gone to the Supreme Court to complain in a constitutional challenge, that the shift in the regime has had major negative impacts on their ability to conduct business. They are trying to convince the court to quash the LPG law from 2019.
7News was at court today to get a few details on how the case has been going so far. Here's what the attorney for the former importers had to say:
Audrey Matura - Attorney For Former Importers
"We sued; my clients brought a constitutional claim against the government who did the secretive, definitive agreement and then have since been passing different pieces of legislation that the Belizean public doesn't seem to be aware, that keeps ensuring that that monopoly becomes very wealthy, and the Belizean people are paying for it."
"Now our constitutional claim is that our clients have not been treated equally before the law because a special law was made for another group."
"Our other part of the claim is that their right to work, to decide to work in the trade that they do - and their trade is to import so that they can distribute in Belize. That has also been violated. So, we're saying that's another constitutional right that needs to be dealt with before the court."
Reporter
"They're claiming damages, and they also want a restoration to status quo ante, where they were able to import."
Audrey Matura
"Yes, that is the remedy we're seeking. We're seeking that they find that their constitutional rights were breached and that as a result of that breach, they have suffered damage, financial damages. But also, we want that they find that once the constitutional rights were breached, that that legislation that created the monopoly be quashed, and that they are allowed to import. Now, that's very important because that is basically what they want, to be able to continue doing business as they did before, as importers. They're not saying that the National Gas Company cannot do business as well. But, they're saying, let it be a fair competition. Let them do business, and let us do business, but don't let it be that the government gives a special hand, and excludes us from the process."
Later on in the news, we'll have a little more about this lawsuit, when you'll hear the back and forth over the price of butane you pay, and whether or not the NGC regime has improved things for consumers.
