Energy requirements: 5,000 tons of LPG imported

Imported fuel will be used to help meet power and gas demand.

KARACHI: The country has received its single largest ever liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) bulk consignment of 5,000 tons at Engro Vopak Terminal.

The LPG consignment was off-loaded and handled in 12 hours, which was a record for any terminal operated by the private sector. The LPG was off-loaded at a speed of 400 tons per hour and has been stored locally. The previous largest LPG consignment weighed 3,600 tons.

Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry’s standing committee for LPG and All Pakistan LPG Distributors Association Chairman Abdul Hadi Khan, who is also the importer of the bulk consignment, said that the LPG was imported to mitigate the ongoing gas and power shortage which has been caused by the onset of winter and the restriction of local production to 1,200 tons.

He added that 56,000 tons of LPG has been imported this calendar year up to December 18. In 2009, around 70,536 tons were imported, said Khan, adding that the reduction was due to the persistence of sales tax on imported LPG and the increase in per ton Saudi Aramco contract price.

He said that the government should remove sales tax on imported LPG so that the private sector can use the fuel to alleviate the energy crisis.

Khan informed that the consignment was imported from Abu Dhabi and cost Rs106,500 per ton. Consequently, the total cost of the imported LPG was Rs532.5 million.

Khan added that the imported LPG will provide fuel to homes and industries across the country and normalise the supply of gas.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 19^th, 2010.