The Portfolio Committee on Electricity and Energy has begun public hearings on the Gas Bill.
In a media release, the committee says stakeholders who made submissions supported the Bill and proposed amendments to strengthen regulatory certainty, promote competition, improve oversight and prepare the gas sector for future energy developments.
Committee chairperson Zama Khanyase said the committee had received 33 written submissions after a public call for comments in regional newspapers and in all official languages. Of these, 23 stakeholders asked to make oral presentations.
She said the public hearings – held on August 11 and 12 – would assist the committee when it deliberates on the Bill after the Department of Electricity and Energy has responded to the submissions.
Khanyase explained that the purpose of the hearings is to seek clarity on the submissions and not to deliberate on the substance of the Bill at this stage.
