The Sui Northern Gas Pipelines (SNGPL) has decided to suspend supply of gas to industrial sector, including textile mills, cement plants, sugar mills. fertiliser plants and other industrial units in Punjab for one day in a week, to supply more gas to thermal power plants which are shut down due to non-supply of furnace oil to these units by Pakistan State Oil (PSO).
SNGPL sources told Business Recorder here on Sunday that SNGPL Managing Director Rasheed A Loan, has called a meeting of stakeholders on Monday at 3 pm to inform the industrialists about the decision of the government and to get their consent about the day on which the load shedding should be effected. Representatives of All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma) Punjab Zone, Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry, LCCI, Punjab Industrial Alliance Front (PIAF), Cottage Industry, medium and small enterprises, etc, have been invited to attended the meeting.
Sources said that the special committee constituted by Prime Minister Gilani, comprising Minister for Water and Power Pervaiz Ashraf, Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources and Advisor for Finance Dr Hafeez A. Sheikh had reviewed the causes of the prevailing power crisis in the country and the mounting circular debt of Pakistan Electric Power Company (Pepco) that has already risen to Rs 70 billion.
Sources said the special committee has directed SNGPL that pending a solution to Pepco's circular debt and supply of furnace oil to the closed down thermal power plants, it should supply natural gas to these units for generation of electricity and alleviation of the devastating power outages in the country.
Industrialists say that textile mills and other production units in Punjab are already facing a grim situation because of unprecedented electricity breakdown of up to 12 hours in the country with no back source of energy after the weekly suspension of gas supply and said that instead of weekly suspension of gas supply to industrial units, the government should arrange regular supply of furnace oil to power plants.
The Chairman of All Pakistan Textile Mills Association Punjab Zone Gohar Ejaz held an emergency meeting with the owners of spinning, dyeing, weaving and textile mills and discussed the strategy of the industrial units to stop SNGPL from this unjustified suspension of natural gas to the Punjab industries.
Criticising the proposed suspension of natural gas, he said that the suspension would cause huge losses to spinning and organised weaving units, 70 percent of which depend on uninterrupted supply of natural gas. A one-day closure, he said, would result in production losses of about Rs 2 billion.
He said that the textile utilises 350 MMCF natural gas daily and more than 5 million households are directly or indirectly earning their livelihood from this sector, which accounts for over 70 percent of the country's export and 38 percent of total employment.
He also urged the domestic consumers to conserve gas during the period of unprecedented cold weather for the sake of industry, export and employment. The textile industry accounts for over 70 percent of the country's export and 38 percent of total employment. He warned that due to this discriminatory decision of the government, the textile sector would be trapped into the circular debt for which the government would be held responsible.
He said that cement, fertiliser, chemicals, and other small industries are using daily 500 MMCF natural gas and paying billions of rupees as GST, VAT, and other taxes to the government. If these units were also stopped supply of gas, it would be a disservice to the people and the country.