The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) asked the Chief Secretary (Punjab) to take action against warehouses illegally storing petroleum products in the province, it has been reported.

In a letter, OGRA said it has identified illegal storage of petrol and diesel which might be used to dump or store POL products for inventory gains.

“It is requested that immediate action against these culprits is required by your good office to avoid inconvenience to the general public,” it added.

OGRA also reportedly shared the list of illegal petrol/diesel storages identified with the provincial government.

The development comes amid reports that POL products are in short supply in different cities of Punjab.

Recently, the Oil Companies Advisory Council (OCAC), a representative body of the downstream oil industry, warned authorities that the sector was on the brink of collapse.

“The sudden depreciation of the rupee has caused a loss of billions of rupees to the industry, whose Letters of Credits (LCs) are expected to be settled on the new rates whereas the related product has already been sold,” read a letter.

OCAC said that these losses not only have an impact on the profitability of the sector but also on the viability of the sector since these losses in some cases might exceed the entire year's profit for the sector.

“It is requested that immediate steps to compensate the industry should be devised,” said OCAC.