PM directs uninterrupted gas supply to domestic consumers during winter

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Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed authorities to ensure a continuous and reliable gas supply to domestic consumers throughout the winter season.

His directive came during a review meeting on the gas supply situation held today in Islamabad.

Addressing concerns over reduced gas availability for households, the Prime Minister called for immediate reforms to the supply system to address these issues permanently. He reiterated that providing gas to domestic consumers is a top priority for the government.

During the meeting, officials briefed the prime minister on the availability of surplus Regasified Liquefied Natural Gas (RLNG) in the system, which has led to improved gas load management compared to the previous year. It was reported that the duration of gas load-shedding has been reduced this year, with domestic consumers now receiving gas from 5:00 AM to 10:00 PM daily.

The meeting also noted that gas is being supplied to the power sector according to its demand.

Additionally, online dashboards for both Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) and Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) are being utilized to address consumer complaints. The complaint resolution rates were reported at 93% for SNGPL and 79% for SSGC.

Officials confirmed that all gas fields in the country are fully operational.

The meeting was attended by Minister for Economic Affairs Ahad Khan Cheema, Minister for Petroleum Dr. Musadik Malik, Prime Minister's Coordinator Rana Ehsan Afzal, and other senior government officials.

Earlier, cabinet members have urged Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to introduce uniform gas prices in a bid to do away with alleged favouritism, which benefitted certain manufacturers.

At present, different gas prices are being charged from urea manufacturers. Some are paying lower tariffs whereas some others are asked to pay higher rates.

However, all manufacturers are receiving same prices for fertiliser supply to farmers, indicating that the companies paying lower gas tariffs are making more profit.

During a recent meeting of the cabinet, a member insisted that all fertiliser manufacturers must be supplied gas at a uniform price and there should be no favouritism.

Another member pointed out that if fertiliser manufacturers charged different prices in response to the variation in gas tariffs, it would cause market distortion.

In response, it was clarified that the different gas prices were being imposed due to long-term binding contracts. This signals that faulty agreements were signed with fertiliser manufacturers to pocket billions of rupees from farmers.

The government is now amending agreements with independent power producers (IPPs), therefore, the issue of gas tariffs collected from fertiliser companies should also be taken up, experts say.