A special briefing was recently organized in Shuangyashan City, Heilongjiang Province, to provide an in-depth interpretation of the core provisions of the Anti-Monopoly Guidelines for the Public Utility Sector (hereinafter referred to as the Guidelines). The meeting brought together 13 enterprise representatives from key public utility industries across the city, including water supply, electricity, heating, gas, and telecommunications.

Public utility industries are vital to urban operations and the daily interests of every household, making them a key focus of anti-monopoly regulation. The briefing closely followed the spirit of the Anti-Monopoly Guidelines for the Public Utility Sector issued by the State Council's Anti-Monopoly and Anti-Unfair Competition Commission. Tailored to local industry practices, the session offered a deep analysis of provisions concerning monopoly agreements and the abuse of market dominance. It also clarified the criteria for identifying high-frequency risk behaviors such as refusal to deal, exclusive dealing, tying or imposing unreasonable trading conditions, and differential treatment. Additionally, the session delineated the regulatory boundaries between natural monopoly segments and competitive segments, highlighted legal risk points in daily business operations, and laid out clear pathways for public utility enterprises to establish robust anti-monopoly compliance systems.

The meeting emphasized that all public utility enterprises must fully recognize the importance of anti-monopoly efforts in their sector and take concrete responsibility for compliance. First, they should strengthen legal learning to accurately grasp all provisions of the Guidelines and clearly understand the legal red lines in business activities. Second, they should conduct thorough self-inspections and corrections, systematically reviewing potential risks across operations, services, and fee collection in line with the Guidelines while establishing and improving internal compliance management systems. Third, they must uphold the principle of fairness, strictly refraining from using dominant market positions to eliminate or restrict competition, and strike a balance between public service guarantees and fair market competition. Fourth, they should remain firmly committed to protecting people's livelihoods, prioritizing consumer rights, and continuously improving the quality of public utility services.

Looking ahead, Shuangyashan City will continue to strengthen anti-monopoly regulatory guidance in the public utility sector, helping enterprises build solid compliance defenses and fostering a fair, orderly, and high-quality environment for the development of public utilities.