Textile industry: Sethi asks ministers to resolve energy issue by 'Sunday morning'

Chief Minister Punjab Najam Sethi has asked both the Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources as well as the Minister for Water and Power to resolve energy supply issue of textile industry in Punjab by Sunday (today) morning. He has constituted a committee of both the ministries and All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) members to discuss the matter in detail and come up with a workable solution by Sunday morning.
He was holding a meeting with APTMA delegation led by central Chairman APTMA Ahsan Bahsir and Group Leader Gohar Ejaz on Saturday evening. After listening to the problems of textile industry in Punjab due to energy crisis, Chief Minister Punjab invited both the ministers of energy-relating ministries at his office and asked them to resolve the energy crisis of textile industry in Punjab by Sunday morning. According to the APTMA spokesman, the APTMA committee would be consisted of Group Leader APTMA Gohar Ejaz, central Chairman Ahsan Bashir and Vice Chairman APTMA Visal Monnoo.
The delegation apprised the CM Punjab that the industry was running short of a complete production shift due to energy shortage. The SNGPL was supplying three days a week against five days a week earlier and the Water & Power Ministry had withdrawn exemption from loadshedding to the industry and observing eight to 10 hours a day loadshedding, crippling production by 30 and resulting into workers' lay off at large. The CM immediately intervened and called both the ministers who were already in the city to hold meeting with industry stakeholders on energy issue.
Earlier, Group Leader APTMA Gohar Ejaz represented the five industrial sectors including fertiliser, processing, APTMA, Textile Exporters Association, Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers Association (PHMA) and CNG stations in a meeting held with Suhail Wajahat, Federal Minister for Petroleum & Natural Resources and Mussaddaq Malik, Federal Minister for Water & Power at the SNGPL headquarter on Saturday. Earlier, both the federal ministers briefed the industrial stakeholders about how would take forward the energy supply issues of the industry.
Speaking on the occasion, Gohar Ejaz highlighted the energy constraints being faced by the industrial sectors due to excessive loadshedding. He said the textile industry was unable to understand that why gas supply had been revised down to three days a week from earlier five days a week last year when there was no change in infrastructure and system of gas supply. Also, he raised the question that why the industry was being exposed to 10 to 12 hours a day loadshedding when there was no loadshedding for industry at the same last year.
The MD, SNGPL, pointed out that a system deletion of eight percent had occurred since last year, which meant a deletion of 150mmcfd in total. He said the industry was receiving 1870mmcfd last year that had reduced to 1720mmcfd. However, the Minister for Petroleum & Natural Resources Suhail Wajahat intervened and informed the meeting that some 80mmcfd would be recovered and the net difference of system deletion would not be more than 70mmcfd, about four in total.
APTMA Group Leader Gohar Ejaz said a deletion four percent of quite negligible, therefore the SNGPL should immediately provide five days a week gas supply to textile industry like it was during the period of Dr Asim Hussain, former Minister for Petroleum & Natural Resources. Further, he said, the textile industry had been revised to number three from number five therefore it should be prioritised on gas supply immediately. He added in the same breath that all stakeholders would bear the deficiency provided that the SNGPL assures of improving the system. The meeting concluded on assurance by the government functionaries that gas supply would be increased once the infrastructural hiccups are overcome.