Senior officers from the Ministry of Energy’s Petroleum Division, Oil & Gas Development Company (OGDCL), and Oil & Gas Regulatory Authority also attended the meeting, which was chaired by Senator Mohammad Abdul Qadir. The senators engineers Rukhsana Zuberi, Saadia Abbasi, Fida Muhammad, Shamim Afridi, and Saifullah Abro were also present (OGRA).
The committee chairman emphasised that local businesses should be given preference in light of the current financial crisis after hearing from pertinent parties about PSO’s reluctance to lease the PNSC fleet for oil imports. As payments to PNSC will be done in local currency, he said that the move will help in saving about $200 million annually. Additionally, the PNSC Chairman promised PSO of a high standard of service at affordable costs.
The committee chairman emphasised the need to guarantee that people must be assisted and slab rates are not applied to bills in Baluchistan during the three months of extremely cold weather when discussing slab rates for Balochistan. He continued by saying that every effort must be taken to shield the underprivileged from the rise in petrol prices.
The committee, which is debating the issue of gas theft from the main pipeline, in particular in Sindh, was informed that a total of 385 cases had been filed against various pipeline crimes and violations, 26 convictions had been obtained, and 56 accused had been fined.
When the committee was talking about the gas load shedding in Sindh, they paid close attention to how many industries had engaged in theft by constructing massive compressors to direct gas flow towards them. Details about companies and the actions taken against them were required by the committee.
The committee expressed worries about the usurpation of the rights of smaller provinces in relation to the issue of gas load shedding in Balochistan and the lack of LPG stations in Panjgur, and stressed that the matter needed to be addressed sincerely in order to allay complaints.
The committee was informed that the decision to stop supplying gas to gas stations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was made in order to guarantee the supply of gas to household customers. Members suggested that the prime minister be contacted about the issue.
The committee also gave instructions to SSGC and SNGPL on how to address the problem of low gas pressure and interruption, particularly in the gas-producing provinces of Baluchistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
