Businessmen in the Hub Industrial and Trading Estate (HITE) are complaining about gas pressure fluctuation without any notification, which is resulting in disruption of production in the industries.
Employers Federation of Pakistan (EFP) President Ismail Suttar and the Lasbela Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) termed the fluctuation in gas pressure in HITE unbearable for the manufacturers that were already suffering due to the economic downturn in the wake of Covid-19 crisis.
Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) started gas load-shedding in the industrial area without giving any prior notice, which was aggravating the situation for commercial activities, especially for exports, he said.
The EFP chief called on the federal government to take notice of the issue, which was threatening the quality of highly valuable products. “SSGC must be held accountable for not notifying Hub industrialists in advance about the disruption in gas supply,” he said. “Industries have just commenced operations and are currently striving to meet whatever little demand they receive from the depressed global market.”
The EFP president pointed out that the gross domestic product (GDP) was feared to fall by an unprecedented $100 billion in the new fiscal year and exporters were in dire need of protection by the government from the unreliable gas supply.
“Pakistan cannot afford any fall in the competitiveness of exporters, especially resulting from the unannounced low gas pressure in the Hub Industrial and Trading Estate.
However, an SSGC spokesperson said gas pressure complaints were received from Hub a few days ago and the pressure was enhanced accordingly to resolve the problem. “At present, there is no such issue and optimum pressure is being maintained in the system, however, there may be low pressure during peak hours to some individuals, which can be attended to on the receipt of complaint from the customers.”
Published in The Express Tribune, July 7th, 2020.
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