Gas crisis: Textile exporters warn of relocating to other countries

KARACHI: Textile makers and exporters on Saturday threatened to relocate their manufacturing units to other countries because of the gas supplies crisis in Karachi, hitting hard the industrial output. This decision came at the meeting of textile exporters held at the PHMA House Karachi on Saturday June 26, according to Jawed Bilwani, Chief Coordinator, Pakistan Apparel Forum.

At the meeting, they constituted their due-diligence committee to look into the relocating their manufacturing units to some other foreign venues since gas supplies have dried down. The committee is assigned to negotiate on the exporters’ demand with the countries having much better business and export friendly policies besides offering the most attractive incentives to their foreign investors.

Since June 11, 2021, Bilwani said that the gas supplies have dried down to the manufacturing units, bringing production to a halt. For 99 working days in the fiscal year 2020-21, he said, gas either supplied with a low pressure or remained suspended to the industries. Some industries having the RLNG connections are striving hard by paying higher bills of Rs1533 per MMBTU just to save the export orders deal, despite a costlier output, he said. He said that how industries can work without the basic raw materials, including gas. There is no chance that the textile export industries will get the required gas smoothly with adequate pressure in future, he added.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021