Crackdown: Petrol pumps that shut down ahead of price revisions warned
Proposed penalties against dealers include fines and revoked licences.
KARACHI:
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources has announced a crackdown against petrol pumps which shut down ahead of price revisions and has threatened them with fines and revoked licenses.
Additional Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources, Rashid Mazari said, “We have asked the chief secretaries of every province to take legal action which includes cancellation of licenses and imposition of fines for not selling petroleum products to consumers in the expectation of price rise”, he added.
There have been frequent reports of petrol pumps shutting down and refusing to sell petroleum products in anticipation of a notification announcing an increase in prices.
Mazari said his during the inauguration of the 9th Pakistan Oil Gas and Energy Exhibition (POGEE) 2011 at the Karachi Expo Centre here on Tuesday.
He went on to explain that the ministry had no role in the fixation of prices of petroleum products which he pointed out was the prerogative of the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra). He also said that gas had acquired a major share in the electricity production in the country with 49 per cent, followed by thermal and hydel generation.
In his address, Petroleum Dealers Association Chairman Abdus Sami Khan said that Sindh was not getting its due share of gas despite producing 62 per cent of it. He added that the increases in CNG prices had destabilised the price parity between petrol and CNG.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 18th, 2011.
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources has announced a crackdown against petrol pumps which shut down ahead of price revisions and has threatened them with fines and revoked licenses.
Additional Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources, Rashid Mazari said, “We have asked the chief secretaries of every province to take legal action which includes cancellation of licenses and imposition of fines for not selling petroleum products to consumers in the expectation of price rise”, he added.
There have been frequent reports of petrol pumps shutting down and refusing to sell petroleum products in anticipation of a notification announcing an increase in prices.
Mazari said his during the inauguration of the 9th Pakistan Oil Gas and Energy Exhibition (POGEE) 2011 at the Karachi Expo Centre here on Tuesday.
He went on to explain that the ministry had no role in the fixation of prices of petroleum products which he pointed out was the prerogative of the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra). He also said that gas had acquired a major share in the electricity production in the country with 49 per cent, followed by thermal and hydel generation.
In his address, Petroleum Dealers Association Chairman Abdus Sami Khan said that Sindh was not getting its due share of gas despite producing 62 per cent of it. He added that the increases in CNG prices had destabilised the price parity between petrol and CNG.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 18th, 2011.