In the meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Petroleum, the officials of the Petroleum Division, Chairman Senator Abdul Qadir said that the cheapest gas is not being given to domestic consumers but to the fertilizer sector.
The meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Petroleum was chaired by Chairman Senator Abdul Qadir, in which Secretary Petroleum said that Minister of State for Petroleum Mossadegh Malik will come with some delay.
Senator Fida Muhammad said that if the Minister of Petroleum comes, he will hold a meeting, we should be assured that he will come, if he does not come, we will not hold a meeting.
Chairman Committee Senator Muhammad Abdul Qadir said that the minister had come in the previous session, the secretary is present.
DG Gas Abdul Rasheed Jokhio told the meeting that the Supreme Court had ordered to collect 458 billion rupees of arrears of GIDC in 2020, these collections were to be made from other sectors including fertilizers and textiles. Most of the institutions involved have gone to court on various grounds, today there are 448 billion 86 crore rupees in the name of GIDC towards various sectors.
The Chairman Committee directed that the cases be followed effectively in the courts for the recovery of GIDC.
Officials of Petroleum Division said that there is arrears of Rs 448 billion 86 crore in gas infrastructure cess.
Senator Sadia Abbasi said that the money is not being received due to the lack of interest of the Petroleum Division.
The chairman committee said that fertilizers industry has to pay Rs 171 billion in feed and Rs 20 billion in fuel. Why are they not being recovered?
MD Sui Southern said that due to lawsuits with K Electric, there are difficulties in recovery, K Electric received this money from the public but did not pay Sui Southern.
DG Gas said that CNG sector has to pay 82 billion 25 crore rupees, captive power sector has to recover 54 billion rupees, the government has set up a committee for recovery from captive power plants.
During the discussion on GIDC matters in the meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Petroleum, the chairman of the committee asked what strategy the government has made to end the case.
Secretary Petroleum replied that the government has set up a committee under the chairmanship of the finance minister, the government is preparing a new law which will be brought to parliament for approval in a month.
Senator Fida Muhammad said that only the petroleum minister can answer all these problems, the authorities are not in a position to answer, why is the petroleum division not doing anything to collect the dues from fertilizer industry, K Electric?
Chairman Committee asked to mention in its report about inefficiency of Petroleum Division.
Center Mohsin Aziz said that the figures presented are not correct, Captive Power and General Industry had decided that if it is not passed on to the consumer, it will not be taken, Petroleum Division showed a much increased amount, these bogus figures. The figures are, the government did not do its job properly, put all the burden on the industry, the committee that the government formed did not do any work.
The chairman committee directed that the member of the standing committee should be included in the committee formed by the government, after 3 months the report of the government committee should be presented in the meeting of the standing committee, the government should take steps to finish the cases.
Center Mohsin Aziz said that the chairman! Do not act expediently, direct the government to fulfill its promises.
In the meeting, Secretary Petroleum said that 750 mmcfd gas is being supplied to the fertilizer sector per day.
The chairman committee said that gas is being supplied to the fertilizer sector at $2 per mmbtu.
DG Gas said that 18 percent of the country’s total daily gas production goes to the fertilizer sector.
The chairman committee said that the cheapest gas is not being given to the domestic consumers but to the fertilizer sector, in this situation the most successful business in Pakistan is to set up a fertilizer factory.
