December 6, 2023. The Government of the State of Paraná, Brazil, sent a bill to the Legislative Assembly that proposes a reduction in the tax rate on the circulation of goods and transportation services (ICMS) throughout the natural gas chain, from 18% to 12%. The six percentage point cut applies to all industrial, commercial, residential and vehicle (NGV) consumers.
One of the impacts is on the gas channeled to the final consumer. In this case, the expectation is to benefit more than 55 thousand users of the Compagas distribution network, which has more than 870 kilometers in the municipalities of Araucária, Arapoti, Balsa Nova, Campina Grande do Sul, Campo Largo, Carambeí, Castro, Colombo, Curitiba, Fazenda Rio Grande, Palmeira, Pinhais, Ponta Grossa, Quatro Barras and São José dos Pinhais.
The reduction of the ICMS rate is an incentive for the development of industrial activity in Paraná and will help attract new companies, which, consequently, allows the creation of a greater number of jobs. The reduction in the rate also responds to a demand from the sector to renew the Compagas concession, in favor of the competitiveness of the industry in Paraná and the expansion of the distributor’s operations, which will take the network to other regions, such as the industrial hub of Northern Paraná.
Those who use CNG, especially those who use the vehicle for work, such as app drivers, taxi drivers and fleet operators, will also enjoy greater savings with the new law. With the fall of the ICMS, the final price of natural gas to the user should also be lower and, with the greater fuel efficiency, there will be an advantage over liquids (gasoline and ethanol). Drivers who have the CNG kit installed in their vehicle also receive a 70% discount on their motor vehicle property tax (IPVA) payment.
The measure is also a great incentive for sustainable urban mobility and the projects that Compagas has been developing to implement the use of natural gas in heavy vehicles and urban public transportation, especially in the municipalities of Curitiba and the Metropolitan Region, Londrina and Ponta Grossa.
Four cities have already received tests of vehicles powered 100% by natural gas and the results were satisfactory, according to Compagas, demonstrating efficiency, a reduction in operating costs by around 10% and lower polluting emissions, actively contributing to the environmental decarbonization process of the cities,
