OREANDA-NEWS.  April 19, 2013. Prime Minister of Ukraine Mykola Azarov has commissioned to urgently consider a situation with violation of rights of consumers on gas market, to strictly check economic grounding of prices and tariffs. He announced during a session of the Cabinet of Ministers.

The head of Government has set examples of addresses of citizens through social networks with complaints for extremely high tariffs for connecting to gas networks etc. Mykola Azarov emphasized that the National Energy Regulation Commission firstly over the history of our independent gas market had started establishing order in it. And on January 31, 2013 it approved two resolutions which are called to regulate the order of joining to gas networks and payments for this. On March 26, 2013 the NERC determined with its resolution №291 the rates for standard connection to gas networks for the current year.

“From this moment none can demand from consumers to pay more,” the head of Government urged.

In reality, as addresses of citizens prove, much higher sums for services and even for the absence of the service, when it concerns replacement of a boiler, are demanded from citizens.

“It is not the market. It is an uncontrolled bear garden. Gas monopolies have lost the sense of reality. It is certainly an abuse and respective persons must bear the punishment,” Mykola Azarov summarized.

To the conviction of the Prime Minister, it is necessary to ban activity of mediators, switch off corruption “services” of bureaucrats, introduce “a single window” of connection and determine strict terms of considering addresses of people.

“I demand to introduce a hotline for addresses of people concerning abuses on gas market and immediately react to such information,” the Premier accented.

The head of Government has instructed a Vice Prime Minister Boyko, Minister of Energy Satvytskyi in synergy with head of the National Energy Regulation Commission Tytenko with attracting Antimonopoly Committee to urgently consider the situation with abuse of consumers’ rights on gas market, to strictly check economical grounding of prices and tariffs.

“We must protect our citizens from self-will,” Mykola Azarov summed up.