CAPITAL: BRUSSELS
MONETARY UNIT: FRANC
REFINING CAPACITY: 768,103 B/CD
OIL PRODUCTION: 104,000 B/D
OIL RESERVES: 107 MILLION BBL
GAS RESERVES: 509 BCF
The Belgian government passed measures to ensure that beginning in 2001 customers of Distrigaz SA, Belgium's monopoly gas distributor, using more than 5 million cu m/year could buy gas from other firms.
The energy ministry said 58% of the gas market would be opened to competition. By 2006, consumers using more than 1 million cu m/year could choose their providers.
The government rejected a regulatory agency's proposal to split Distrigaz into transportation and sales companies. The agency also recommended that local governments be free to choose alternatives to Distrigaz.
But the government decided Distrigaz should maintain separate accounts for sales and transportation activities and locate them in separate buildings with different computer networks.
The government also was considering designating a company to manage Belgium's electricity network.

