The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has increased the distribution price of re-gasified liquefied natural gas (RLNG) by up to $6.87 per million metric British thermal unit (mmbtu) or over 40% for the month of May 2022.

According to the notification issued on Friday, the new price of RLNG for Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Company Limited (SNGPL) has increased by $6.21 to stand at $21.831/mmbtu from $15.62.

Meanwhile, the price of RLNG for Sui Southern Gas Pipelines Company (SSGC) has been jacked up from $16.91 in April to $23.78, an increase of $6.87.

This rise in RLNG prices, a major source of electricity generation, will increase cost of production for industries that are likely to pass on the impact to the end-consumer.

Days ago, Federal Minister for Power Engineer Khurram Dastgir Khan said that electricity tariff would go up for the time being due to high international oil prices.

“We are facing a critical situation and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has asked to look for ways as to how a revolutionary reduction could be made to the non-development expenditures before asking the people to sacrifice”, he said.

Earlier this month, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) raised tariff of power Distribution Companies (Discos) by Rs2.87 per unit for March 2022 and the tariff of K-Electric (KE) by Rs1.3863 per unit for February 2022 under monthly Fuel Charges Adjustment (FCA) mechanism.