KARACHI: The Senate Standing Committee on Maritime Affairs headed by its chairperson Senator Rubina Khalid held a meeting here at PNSC Building. Interim State Minister for Maritime Affairs Iftikhar Rao and Federal Secretary Erum Anjum Khan were also present.

Senator Syed Muhammad Ali Shah Jamot, Senator Abida Azeem, Senator Dost Muhammad Khan, Senator Muhammad Akram and Senator Nisar Ahmed Khuhro also attended the meeting.

Chairman PNSC Rear Admiral Jawad Ahmed briefed the Senate Standing Committee about the performance of PNSC.

The chairperson suggested that oil tankers seven years old and other ships older than ten years should not be purchased because their terms expire soon.

Chairman PNSC told the Committee that purchasing of old ships is easy, because the price of new ships is usually around $70 million to $80 million with delivery time of around four years.

Chairman PNSC told the Committee that the PNSC desires to get more ships to include its fleet to play its role in national economy more effectively.

The Committee was told during the meeting that the country’s total imports are around $72.9 billion and PNSC needs more ships to handle all these cargos.

It was suggested that general sales tax on purchasing of new ships should be abolished. It was also suggested that investors from private sector should be invited to invest in the shipping sector.

The Senate Standing Committee will forward its recommendations to the Government for consideration.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023