Liquigas insisted today that responsibility for gas cylinders remained with the supplying company, and it was therefore wrong of Easygas to have said that a customer could pass on a cylinder to to other parties for a price.

The gas supplier said that the deposit made by customers for the use of cylinders owned by the supplying company was , by its very nature, intended to guarantee the proper use and care of cylinders and also their ultimate return.

It refuted accusations against it of unfairness and dishonesty and said that it always operated according to standard practice for the LPG sector and according to safety requirements and the law.

"From a legal and technical standpoint, irrespective of the deposit, the cylinder always remains the property of the company, and the latter retains both its identification certificate and other relative certificates. The company remains responsible for maintenance, for 10-year retesting, and for scrapping where a cylinder fails its test.

"The statement by Easygas that a customer can pass on a cylinder to whoever for an adequate price represents an actual sale of the cylinder with the resultant consequence of loss of traceability with all the risks implied," Liquigas said.

"The questions that immediately spring to mind relate to responsibility in case of accident, control of existing cylinder stock as also the required maintenance. It is to be put on record that such practices as suggested by Easygas are totally prohibited in European countries where legislation imposes precise obligations for removing cylinders from the market and for the internal cleaning of cylinders before scrapping or retesting," Liquigas said.