A delegation of All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma), led by chairman Ahmad Quli Khan met the Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources, Amanullah Jadoon, here on Friday and discussed with him the problems of textile industry resulting from disconnection of gas supply and its effects on the national economy.
According to official sources, Jadoon told the delegation that the government had covered 85 percent of the demand and supply gap with improvement in gas production and distribution system.
The Minister said that there would be only 15 percent shortfall in gas supply during the period of snowfall and extreme cold in the upper reaches of the country when domestic gas consumption increases considerably.
He said that after development of the new discovered gas fields in Karak and Kohat districts uninterrupted gas supply would be maintained for the industrial, commercial and domestic consumers of NWFP.
He emphasised that the Economic Co-ordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet had also allowed setting up of 'captive power generation units' which would greatly help in meeting the growing demand for energy.
Jadoon directed the Director General, Gas, of the Ministry to keep the gas load-shedding on website in order to ensure transparency and equitable supply of natural gas to all industrial units.
He told the delegation that energy supply and economic growth were inextricably linked. Therefore, the government was working on a number of energy supply options, and liquefied natural gas (LNG) was one of them. "We do not yet have a terminal for LNG, and hope that Gwadar Port would address this problem," he added.
Official sources told Business Recorder that Pakistan was meeting its energy needs 52 percent by natural gas, 28 percent by oil, 13.5 percent by hydel and nuclear power and 6.5 percent by coal.
"With the development of Qadirpur gas fields in Sindh, the daily production of natural has gone up to 3800 MMCF, of which 45 percent is being consumed by the power sector and 20 percent by the industrial sector," they added.