Concern expressed over raise in gas tariff

The Business Community of Southern Punjab has sharply reacted on the decision of the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) to pass on the burden of amounting to mammoth Rs 25 billion on to the legitimate end gas consumers by increasing the UFG (unaccounted for gas) volume in the gas tariff by 2.5 percent to 7 percent from existing 4.5 percent in its determinations about final revenue requirement of gas utilities - Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) and Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Ltd (SNGPL) for financial years 2012-13 and 2013-14.
President of Multan Chamber of Commerce & Industry (MCCI) Fareed Mughis Sheikh said that at the one hand 2.5 percent growth in the UFG will expose the end gas consumers to further financial burden of Rs 25 billion with effect from January 1, 2016 on the other SNGPL was curtailing the Gas supply from 33 percent to 17.5 % gradually and it would completely shut down the supply in December. This situation would be detrimental to the Industry. He said that industry had forced to shut it one or two shifts lying off the staff. Fareed said that Business community was demanding for making the trade and manufacturing viable by reducing the cost of production, cutting down the electricity and gas tariff and granting incentives but Government has imposed extra burden of Rs 25 billion. In addition, the Authority has also allowed the gas utilities to charge 1.5 percent more from the gas consumers in the head of non-gas consumers.
The non-gas consumers are those unscrupulous elements who are using the gas with no meters installed at their business houses or workplaces and the numbers of non-gas consumers are very large. However, the determinations do not mention that the UFG has been increased, but at the same time they reveal that the Authority has allowed the gas utilities to increase by one percent the gas tariff in the head of non-recovery of gas bills because of law and order situation and 1.5 percent in the tariff in the wake of the gas being stolen by non-gas consumers.
MCCI President said that Prime Minister Mian Nawaz Sharif should take notice of this unjust levy because it is downright robbery to fleece those who are paying their bills regularly. When contacted, Ogra Chairman Saeed Ahmad Khan confirmed that the Authority has allowed the gas utilities to charge end consumers for the losses the companies are facing because of deteriorating law and order situation in some areas of Balochistan.