The All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) Punjab Chairman Ali Pervaiz on Thursday demanded that 28 percent system gas supply should be restored to the textile mills in order to achieve the target of over 10 percent growth in exports of textile package. "A revival of Punjab-based textile industry is only possible through availability of energy at a regionally and internationally competitive price," he pinpointed.
He was addressing a press conference at the APTMA Punjab office. Patron-in-chief APTMA Gohar Ejaz and other office bearers were also present on the occasion. He lamented that industrial capacity worth $4 billion exports had been closed down due to the high cost of doing business in Punjab.
"Textile exports can easily be doubled in 3-4 years if enabling environment is in place," he added. He demanded immediate removal of all the tariff and non-tariff barriers on the import of cotton. Speaking on the occasion, Gohar Ejaz pointed out that revival of 140 mills should be the foremost priority of the government. "It is only possible through the availability of affordable energy at a tariff of Rs 7 per unit electricity and Rs 600 per MMBTU gas all across the county."
He lauded the efforts of Federal Minister for Textile Pervaiz Malik for taking initiatives towards revival and growth of textile industry. The APTMA leadership has appealed to Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif for ensuring continuous system gas supply to the mills in Punjab to keep wheels of industry operational.
Comments
Comments are closed.