The Economic Co-ordination Com-mittee (ECC) of the Cabinet on Tuesday gave approval to the purchase of 378,000 tons of sugar at the rate of Rs 46,250 per ton. It also approved a US $200 million sovereign guarantee for Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project.
Sources said the ECC presided over by Finance Minister Dr Abdul Hafeez Sheikh also gave, in principle, approval to the appointment of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) led-consortium as financial advisor of the IP project. The ECC also constituted a committee comprising Secretary Finance and Secretary Industries to hold a meeting with Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif to resolve the price differential of Rs 50 on urea issue. An official said that Sindh had sufficient post-flood unutilised urea stock, which was shifted to Punjab to meet its requirements. However, the price of urea has gone up and a solution to this problem of price differential would be found by committee constituted by the ECC.
According to an official statement, the ECC also approved the establishment of a Dry Port at Prem Nagar Railway Station Lahore, hiring of Financial Advisor for the implementation of Pakistan Iran-Gas Pipeline, and a grant of 50% relief to the loan outstanding against the All Sindh Balochistan Rice Millers and Traders affected by the recent rains and floods. The ECC also reportedly constituted a committee to finalise the modalities for writing off 50% loan of Rice Millers.
The Chairman FBR informed the ECC that up till now the private sector had made investments of up to Rs 1.2 billion while Public Sector had made an investment of Rs 4.94 billion in the Dry Port at Prem Nagar. He expected an annual revenue generation of Rs 1.0 billion from this project.
The Committee also deliberated at length on the summary moved by the Ministry of Railways for the grant of Exemption/ Condonation of Deviation/Departure of Public Procurement Rules 2004 for the procurement of 75 locomotives. The ECC concluded that this matter can only be tackled by a superior authority, the Cabinet, which is going to meet tomorrow. The Chairman of the ECC instructed the Ministry of Railways to visit the Cabinet as the ECC was not a proper forum to grant Exemption/Condonation to any Ministry or Division, from the PPRA Rules.
It may be recalled here that in the earlier meeting of the ECC it was decided to procure 200,000 tons of sugar from the domestic sugar mills, and in this regard the TCP was instructed to release a tender. Responding to the tender, two bidders offered to match the lowest price, that is Rs 46,250/ metric tons, for the supply of 10,000 tons of sugar each.
Other offers quoted higher rates. In view of the above position, the summary moved by the Ministry of Industries sought (a) relaxation/exemption from the relevant provisions from PPRA Rules 2004 for price matching for which the ECC asked the Ministry of Industries to seek its approval from the Cabinet; (b) balance bid quantity of 175,000 tons in excess of originally approved 200,000 against the tender at the rate of Rs 46,250/ tons be allowed. The ECC granted approval.
While discussing the grant of assistance to the rain-affected millers and traders of rice in Sindh and Balochistan, the Chairman of the ECC said on humanitarian grounds the government should give them relief but this should not be invoked as a precedent in future by other Ministries and Divisions and instructed the Finance Division to take all safeguard measures in this regard. He constituted a committee headed by the Secretary Finance to ensure that the relief was properly destined to the affected persons only. The principal amount of non- performing loans against the millers and traders (including provisions made by the banks) has been Rs 513 millions. These shall be a 50 percent relief, the ECC decided.