ISLAMABAD: The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) has withdrawn its RLNG monthly pricing notification issued on August 2 after the Pakistan State Oil (PSO) decided to re-tender a RLNG cargo.
The regulator states, as informed by the PSO that they have scraped the RLNG cargo with offered price of 27.87 percent of the Brent, RLNG price notified on August 2 is no more valid and August RLNG price notification is being withdrawn.
As per routine monthly practice, the OGRA estimated prices of RLNG are computed based on available data at the time of computation.
Since the prices are for the month in advance, many pricing components are calculated for determination of prices on a provisional basis based on available data at the time, which is later actualised by the OGRA based on actual costs incurred.
In a tweet, Senator Sherry Rehman accused the government for import of expensive RLNG.
She said the government had purchased a record high priced RLNG cargo at $20.55 per mmbtu and much higher price than any other county purchased cargo during summer.
She questioned why the government not sign forward contracts of RLNG in the beginning of the year when the fuel was available at cheaper rates.
She alleged that the government had set a “new record of incompetence, mis-management, and corruption”.
Earlier, RLNG based CNG stations announced that they had all set to increase the fuel price in Punjab up to Rs5/liter and for Sindh up to Rs8 per kg for the month of August.
All Pakistan CNG Association Chairman Ghiyas Paracha stated that due to PSO purchased one LNG cargo at $20 per mmbtu and Pakistan LNG Limited (PLL) purchased expensive spot LNG cargoes due to rise in LNG price at international market and rupee de-valuation.
These were the some of the reasons behind the CNG price hike.
A spokesman of Ogra told Business Recorder that the notification issued by the authority was withdrawn following scrap of deal of RLNG cargo by the PSO.
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He maintained that the new prices of RLNG would be announced in a couple of days after the PSO would complete the re-tendering process of the RLNG cargo for August.
The regulator, on Monday, had notified an increase in the price of RLNG for the consumers of the Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Company Limited (SNGPL) and the Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGC) for the month of August, in a monthly review.
The regulatory body increased the provisional price of RLNG for the consumers of both gas companies and jacked up the rates for the consumers of the Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited (SNGPL) by $0.692 per mmbtu or 5.4 per cent, while for the consumers of the Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) it has been increased by $0.707 per mmbtu or 5.6 per cent.
The PSO conveyed August planned LNG cargo prices on to Ogra on the basis of which Ogra notified RLNG prices.
However, on 3rd August, the PSO informed the OGRA that it has cancelled expensive spot cargo and hence Ogra withdrew the notified price for August immediately. As soon as the PSO reconfirm the prices of all August cargoes, the Ogra shall notify provisional price of the RLNG again.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021