All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma) Chairman Gohar Ejaz has thanked President Asif Ali Zardari for special instructions and Federal Petroleum Minister Dr Asim Hussain for his extraordinary efforts in completing the annual turnaround of Qadirpur Gas Field in record time and enabling textile industry to resume production after Eid.
The textile industry had put production off for five days of Eid to let the SNGPL complete ATA of Qadirpur Gas Field, the largest gas filed in the country supplying gas to the industry. Now the industry is in a position to take 15 million workers back on job.
The SNGPL had planned to cut gas supply to textile industry for 20 days under the ATA of Qadirpur Gas Field. However, Aptma reacted strongly to the plan saying it would hit jobs of 15 million workers directly besides industry's capacity to procure cotton. The Aptma Chairman effectively lobbied that the textile industry cannot afford closure of units even for a single day and forced the SNGPL to adopt a prudent gas load management programme during the ATA of Qadirpur Gas Field in the larger interest of the industry, employment generation and exports.
Accordingly, the Federal Petroleum Minister paid special visit to Aptma and met its leadership and announced reduction in gas suspension from 20 days to 10 days on August 29. But the Aptma Chairman strongly advocated the industry's case and urged the minister to bring it down to five days. He also took up the issue with President Asif Ali Zardari, who taking keen interest instructed the Federal Petroleum Minister to put extraordinary efforts in meeting the industry's demand.
Gohar appreciated Asim Hussain for making maximum efforts in completing ATA of Qadirpur Gas Field in record time of one week and enabling the industry to resume production from this month. He also appreciated the team of Dr Asim Hussain for completing the ATA of Qadirpur Gas Field.
The Aptma Chairman expressed the hope that the government would also expedite the medium to long term plans of meeting gas shortage, including import of LNG, fast processing of Kunal Pushaki Gas Field and expeditious implementation on the project of Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline.