News
Friday, December 30, 2011
No gas for industry from New Year
* Committee directs SNGPL to cut off gas supply for two months to those industrial units with whom the govt has already signed agreement of gas curtailment
Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: Taking serious notice of the gas shortage across the country, the National Assembly (NA) body on Petroleum and Natural Resources directed the SNGPL on Thursday to cut off gas supply for two months from January 1 to those industrial units with whom the government had an agreement of gas curtailment for three months.
Presently, the SNGPL is being confronted by a 547 million cubic feet per day (MMCFD) gas shortfall, while the company is still providing a gas supply of 550 MMCFD to the industrial sector. The committee directed the SNGPL to stop the supply of gas to these industrial units because they had already agreed to arrange an alternative fuel during the peak time of the winter season. The committee was informed that there were about 4,000 industrial units which were run with gas and that out of them, 2040 units were disconnected from gas supply, while the remaining would be cut off from January 1.
Apart from this, the company was also confronting theft of 72 MMCFD of gas. The committee directed that strict action be taken against those responsible for gas thefts. Federal Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Dr Asim Hussain informed the committee that gas theft was mostly being carried out in the CNG sector, which was why they were offering a 50 percent discount in their gas filling stations.
The committee asked the SNGPL to take action against gas theft, particularly in the CNG sector and line losses. These recommendations and decisions were taken by the NA Committee on Petroleum and Natural Resources, which was presided over by its chairman, Sardar Talib Hassan Takai, at the Parliament House. The committee was informed that the total availability of gas was 4000 MMCFD, while the demand had reached 6200 MMCFD and that the shortfall was being met through gas load management in different sectors.
Dr Asim informed the committee that the system would collapse if proper action was not taken to address the gas problem. He warned that if the situation continued, it would bring the entire system down and that the compressors would stop working, adding that restarting them would take at least two weeks.
About completely disconnecting the gas supply to the CNG sector, the committee was informed that such an action would create a law and order problem across the country because the people would protest against the withdrawal of a facility already being provided to them. In case of the complete shutdown of CNG stations, the ministry might be confronted by some legal issue as well. However, the government had a written agreement with the industrial sector for gas curtailment during the winter season. To a question, the SNGPL MD said that one percent gas lost from theft had been recovered since he became MD, which amounted to Rs 1.9 billion, and assured the committee that appropriate measures would be taken to further bring down gas theft from its current standing of 9 percent.
Barjees Tahir questioned why action was not taken against those SNGPL officials who had allowed the setting up of 500 CNG stations since 2008 despite the PM’s special instruction to completely ban such establishment.
The committee was informed that an inquiry was already in progress and that those involved in the establishment of CNG stations would be punished. The SNGPL MD assured the committee that appropriate action would be taken against the officials. The committee was also informed that the government was providing a Rs 45 billion subsidy on gas to the fertiliser and domestic sectors.
However, the members questioned why the prices of fertiliser were so high if such a huge amount was being given to them as a subsidy.
About the increase in gas prices, the minister said that gas at Rs 13 per kilogramme was proposed for the CNG sector, but that there was still a margin and the people might exploit it.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk