N Videos at Southern Metropolis Daily:

Recently, media reported that residents in areas where coal has been replaced with natural gas struggled with limited purchases and supply shortage. How do you view this problem? What measures should be taken to ensure residents' gas supply? Thank you.

Lian Weiniang:

Thank you for your questions. The CPC Central Committee and the State Council have attached great importance to the problem and required us to establish a special mechanism to monitor and solve the problem in a timely manner. After monitoring the problem you mentioned, we immediately mandated local governments to take measures to solve it. This has exposed the failure of some local governments and enterprises in implementing measures to ensure energy supply and stabilize prices for people's livelihoods. We will draw lessons from it, further consolidate the responsibility of ensuring energy supply in localities, and faithfully implement measures to ensure energy supply and stabilize prices for people's livelihoods. Hereby, I would like to emphasize that natural gas resources in the heating season are sufficient. The medium- and long-term natural gas contracts we signed before the heating season have exceeded the expected demand of various regions. Since the heating season began, actual consumption has been lower than expected. Overall, the total amount of natural gas is guaranteed. Therefore, no local governments or enterprises should limit the purchase of gas for people's livelihoods. Once such problems are found, relevant parties will be held accountable. If restrictions are due to insufficient gas supply contracts, the central government will coordinate relevant departments to increase supply; if they are due to other reasons, local governments will intervene to help on a case-by-case basis.

To prevent such problems from happening again, it is crucial to make sure that two parties shoulder their responsibilities. That is local governments should take responsibility for helping, supervising, and guaranteeing the supply and energy supply enterprises should take primary responsibility.

First, local governments should shoulder the responsibility for helping, supervising, and guaranteeing the supply. Local governments should provide more targeted assistance to enterprises supplying energy for people's livelihoods and help them solve specific difficulties through financial subsidies and other means if necessary. The reason why fuel enterprises in some urban areas have limited purchases and stopped the supply of natural gas, is objectively because, with the accelerated marketization of natural gas, the gas sources of those enterprises have become more diversified. Under the circumstance of a sharp rise in international natural gas prices, the cost of market-oriented gas purchases of some enterprises has grown rapidly. It is difficult to effectively handle these purchases in a short time, so phased operational difficulties are emerging. These problems must be addressed with due attention to both short- and long-range targets. Both symptoms and root causes should be addressed through deepening reform. At present, we will help enterprises on a case-by-case basis. Local governments should strengthen supervision over energy supply enterprises to ensure that they will effectively fulfill their responsibility to ensure supply. In extreme cases, where there is a risk of disruption to supply, local governments should make plans as soon as possible to guarantee supplies unconditionally. Before entering the heating season, the country has clearly required local governments to dispatch working groups to help enterprises involved in energy supply for people's livelihood, especially those in difficulty. We will urge local governments to earnestly implement these measures.

Second, enterprises should actively take responsibility for supplying energy. Enterprises engaged in energy supply for people's livelihood should strengthen their sense of social responsibilities, adhere to their mission of ensuring energy supply for the public good, and remain steadfast in ensuring energy supply and stabilizing prices. When difficulties arise, they should report to the authority instead of limiting purchases or cutting off supply.

Thank you.