Gas distributors have roped in Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi to try and speed up a consumer watchdog decision on the exclusivity agreement they signed in 1992.

They want to know the outcome of an investigation by the Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority into the agreement they had signed with the Enemalta gas division, which gave them geographical exclusivity on gas distribution.

The distributors gathered in front of Castille yesterday morning until their representatives finally met Dr Gonzi, giving him a letter, the contents of which were not disclosed to the media.

The exclusivity question is key to the dispute that gripped the sector over the past months and culminated when the company Easygas stepped in for a share of the gas supply market. This had previously been dominated by Liquigas, the company that bought the Enemalta gas division in 2009.

Liquigas objected to gas distributors delivering Easygas cylinders and threatened to set up its own delivery system but the distributors claimed they had exclusivity rights on delivery, which came from long-standing agreements they had struck with Enemalta. The MCCAA is looking into this 1992 agreement to establish whether it is still valid in a liberalised market regulated by EU free market legislation.

Upon leaving the meeting, Joe Attard, a director of the Chamber for Small and Medium Enterprises (GRTU), said the distributors will leave no stone unturned to ensure that their livelihood is guaranteed.

He described the meeting with Dr Gonzi as “cordial”, during which the distributors expressed their concern that their livelihood was not guaranteed.

He said the distributors asked the Prime Minister to speed up the process leading to the decision.

In 1992, Enemalta’s gas division, which was later privatised and sold to Liquigas Malta, had signed an agreement with every distributor granting them a licence to sell gas in a specific area, which is automatically renewed every year.

They argue that this territorial exclusivity has now been compromised by the distri-bution licences issued to the two suppliers.

Asked whether the distributors were planning any action, including stalling the distribution of gas, Mr Attard said the GRTU was not militant but would go the extra mile to ensure that the livelihood of its members was protected.

Yesterday’s protest outside Castille prompted the police to react with an almost equal number of police officers guarding the steps to the Prime Minister’s office.

More than 15 policemen formed a human barrier between the protesters and the building during the protest. At one point, the officers also included the Police Commissioner.

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