HYDERABAD: The Acting President of Hyderabad Chamber of Small Traders & Small Industry (HCSTSI), Ahmed Idrees Chohan, has categorically rejected the approval of a massive gas price hike by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA), deeming it catastrophic for industries, particularly small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
He stated that this unjustified increase will place an additional burden on both industries and the public, who are already grappling with soaring inflation and rising energy costs. He emphasized that instead of proposing an increase in gas prices, OGRA should have suggested a reduction, given favourable factors such as declining interest rates and reduced Unaccounted-for Gas (UFG) losses. Historically, gas tariffs are raised when interest rates increase; however, the recent decline in interest rates has been ignored in the determination of gas tariffs, making OGRA’s recommendation for a price hike highly questionable.
Idrees Chohan highlighted that under OGRA’s recommendation, gas prices have been increased by 25.78% for Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGC) consumers and 8.71% for Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) consumers.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
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