Minister orders 3rd-party audit of urea makers
PHOTO: FILE
Federal Industries and Production Minister Rana Tanveer Hussain on Thursday announced that a third-party audit would be conducted to determine the cost of production of fertiliser companies.
The minister made the decision while chairing a meeting of the fertiliser review committee, according to a statement.
It added that Federal Industries and Production Secretary Dr Muhammad Fakhre Alam Irfan also attended the huddle.
The participants of the meeting reviewed the stock availability, demand, and prices of urea in the country.
The minister noted that the country was not witnessing a shortage of urea.
He continued that uninterrupted supply of gas to fertiliser companies was being ensured for the smooth production of urea.
Tanveer told fertiliser companies to review the performance of dealers and agencies.
He also instructed the provinces to verify fertiliser dealers and agencies.
The minister added that any ghost dealers and agencies should be blacklisted.
Tanveer directed the companies to ensure the provision of fertiliser to the provinces.
The minister announced that the fertiliser review committee would hold a meeting every week from now on to monitor the situation.
Last month, the Fertiliser Manufacturers of Pakistan Advisory Council (FMPAC) agreed to reduce the prices of urea if the companies were provided with gas.
Fauji Fertiliser Company Managing Director Jhanagir Paracha conveyed the FMPAC decision to the federal industries and production minister during a meeting.
The minister assured him that the proposals forwarded by the FMPAC would be presented to the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet for the final decision.
According to the proposals, all fertiliser plants should formally be allocated and supplied gas exclusively from the Mari Gas field under bilateral arrangements in accordance with applicable gas pricing policies and that the government must ensure an uninterrupted supply for the next 10 years.
The government was also requested to fix uniform prices of urea all over Pakistan to discourage hoarding by middlemen and agencies.
According to the FMPAC, this will ensure the availability of affordable urea for the farmers and save foreign exchange on its import.
The minister was informed that if the proposals were accepted by the government, the fertiliser industry would not require any subsidy in the future.
He was further told that these proposals would attract more investment in fertiliser production capacity and energy efficiency.
During the meeting, Tanveer said the government was committed to taking every step to ensure facilities to the farmers during the ongoing Kharif season.