FAISALABAD: Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) has evolved a comprehensive strategy to give new gas connections in addition to resolving the problems of low pressure in different parts of this region, said Masroor Ahmad Khan General Manager SNGPL Faisalabad.
Addressing the business community in Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry (FCCI) here Sunday, he said that despite the acute shortage of gas SNGPL has installed 52,000 domestic connections during last year. He said that industrial development is imperative for the national growth and hence SNGPL was trying its optimum best to resolve its genuine issues on top priority basis. He said that being a nation, we must try to accept ground realities and accordingly mend our ways.
He said that Faisalabad region has been declared best because of its outclass performance. “It has recorded minimum losses,” he said and added that more connections are installed as against the given targets.
He underlined the need to ensure close liaison between FCCI and SNGPL and said that Atif Munir Sheikh should identify the areas facing problems of low pressure so that the genuine complaints could be resolved without any delay. He also floated a proposal to create a WhatsApp group so that FCCI members could file their complaints 24/7 and could also get online feedback from the department. He said that gas problems relating to M3 and Allama Iqbal Industrial Estates are being resolved expeditiously while government has also been requested to allocate additional gas quota for the new industrial units expected to be set up in these planned industrial estates.
About the overall shortage of gas in the country, he said that our domestic reservoirs are depleting at a much faster pace and the government must involve 3rd party from the private sector to ensure smooth and uninterrupted supply of imported LNG. He said that he would like to visit FCCI every month to directly interact with gas consumers and resolve their issues there and then. He also supported the proposal of Engineer Ihtasham Javed, central chairman All Pakistan Textile Processing Mills Association (APTPMA) to introduce uniform gas rates in the country without any segregation of domestic or industrial connections.
Responding to a question, he said that units working in the urban areas will get their guarantees back as soon as the issue of provisional gas rates was resolved by the OGRA. He gave a full assurance that the gas connections of industrial units shifting from urban to planned industrial estates would be transferred on priority basis.
Earlier, Atif Munir Sheikh President FCCI said that Faisalabad will become a leading industrial hub of Pakistan as at least 76 industrial units would become operational with Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) during next year. He said that in order to ensure uninterrupted supply of electricity and gas, which is imperative for these units, we must take appropriate measures well ahead of their operation. He said that due to the ill conceived policies of the previous governments, we have consumed gas reserves within 10-15 years which were considered sufficient to meet our future needs of 80-90 years. “Hence Government has to import costly LNG,” he said and criticised the political decision of providing gas to the rural areas which could be utilised to further enhance the industrial production in addition to providing jobs to hundreds of workers. He paid best tribute to the industrialists who are waging “Jihad” to make Pakistan economically a sovereign country despite of consuming costly electricity, gas and cotton.
Shakeel Ahmad Ansari, Kashif Zia, Rana Muhammad Sikandar Azam Khan, Waheed Khaliq Ramy, Nasir Ali Zia, Chaudhary Khadim Hussain Mann, Mian Abdul Waheed, Rana Ikramullah, Sanaullah Niazi, Haji Abdul Rauf and Adeel Shahid participated in the question-answer session while Rana Fayyaz Ahmad, Vice President offered vote of thanks. Later Atif Munir Sheikh along with Engineer Ihtasham Javed and Kashif Zia presented FCCI shield to Masroor Ahmad Khan General Manager SNGPL.
During this function Taskinul Islam Hashmi acting chief of the Sui Gas Company, Muhammad Waqas Yousuf Deputy Chief Officer Business Development and Muhammad Noman Afzal Executive Engineer were also present during this meeting.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022
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