Industry sectors which have been suffering because of the new regulatory framework for gas in Argentian are continuing to gain favorable decisions in court. On 4 May 2004 Pedro Alegre, the federal jud…
Industry sectors which have been suffering because of the new regulatory framework for gas in Argentian are continuing to gain favorable decisions in court. On 4 May 2004 Pedro Alegre, the federal judge for Sante Fe, ruled in favor of glassworks Cristaleria Rosario SA in a dispute with gas distributor Litoral Gas. Cristaleria Rosario presented an action for the recognition of its fundamental rights when it was faced with the refusal by Litoral Gas to renew the binding contract under which gas supplies could only be cut off in an emergency, as well as the threat of a supply cut in the first week of May 2004 because of the expiry of the contract. In court, Cristaleria Rosario argued that if the gas supply were cut off, it would lose its furnaces as the glass cooled and solidified. Litoral Gas based its refusal on Decrees 180 and 181, which oblige firms to buy directly from oil producers. Lawyers for Cristaleria Rosario asked for the decrees in question to be ruled unconstitutional. Judge Alegre ordered Litoral Gas to honour the binding contract, guaranteeing Cristaleria Rosario 27,000 cubic meters of gas per day.