Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) marketing companies have ignored the directives of the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) to make available the sales invoice/gate pass on the company''s printed format to differentiate between local and imported LPG. The authority on July 12 advised the LPG marketing companies that before dispatching the vehicles from the storage and filling stations to LPG distributors they must clearly mention whether the consignment is imported or local.
Muhammad Irfan Khokar, Chairman LPG Distributors Association, while talking to media men here on Saturday said that 73 LPG marketing companies have ignored the directives issued by the Ogra and they are selling locally produced LPG on the price of imported LPG.
There is no uniform system for the fixation of LPG prices and all the companies are charging at will, he said. LPG Distributors Association would hold a countrywide convention in Islamabad on July 25 (Monday) to discuss the upcoming LPG policy.
He said the authority has failed to control 86 LPG marketing companies and now has asked the distributors to get registered with the authority. He added that the proposed registration fee of Rs 25,000 for each distributor is too high and Ogra needs to reduce this as there are approximately 12,000 distributors across the country, most of them would not afford the huge fee. Ogra will generate Rs 300 million through the imposition of registration fee, while as a regulatory body it has done nothing in maintaining the LPG prices at a certain level, he added.
Ogra has fixed price of imported LPG at Rs 1450 per domestic cylinder of 11.8 kg, while it fixed locally produced LPG domestic gas cylinder price at Rs 1,239. In the market of twin cities of Rawalpindi/Islamabad LPG is available at Rs 135 per kg against the Ogra-fixed price of Rs 105 per kg for locally produced LPG and Rs 123 per kg for imported LPG.
Pakistan''s current domestic LPG production stands at 1,200 tons per day, which earlier stood at 1,600 tons per day in 2006. The authority has fixed locally produced LPG prices at Rs 105 per kg on July 12, it has also fixed imported LPG price at Rs 123 per kg, while all the LPG marketing companies are charging the consumers imported price. Irfan said that there are as many as 86 LPG marketing companies, majority of them owned by the retired generals, politicians and bureaucrats. Only 13 marketing companies out of 86 possess the licenses to sold imported LPG.
According to official figures 6.3 million households out of 25 million are connected with the systems of Sui Northern Gas Pipelines (SNGPL) Limited and Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) and they are using natural gas as fuel. While the rest of the population is relying on firewood, LPG, kerosene oil, coal and other sources. In July, Ravi Cress Group imported 2,300 tons of LPG, while SHV Super Gas 1,800 tons; these companies distributed imported gas to 13 marketing companies.
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