ISLAMABAD: The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) on Thursday warned the Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) including state-owned Pakistan State Oil (PSO) to timely lift the high-speed diesel (HSD) from local refineries or face the consequences as per law.

In a letter to PSO, Attock Petroleum, Be Energy Ltd, Kepler Petroleum, Horizon Oil Company, Shell Pakistan Ltd, Total Parco, Hascol Petroleum, Cnergyico, Taj Gasoline, My Petroleum, Euro Oil, Al Noor Petroleum, Fossil Energy, Max Fuels, Allied Petroleum, Oilco Petroleum, OTO Pakistan, Puma Energy, Alhmmdali International Trade, Fast Oil, Petro Pakistan, Benzin Petroleum, Oil Industries and Echo Oil, OGRA states it has been observed that uplifting of HSD during the first fortnight of August by these companies remained low compared to allocated volumes in the PR meeting for August 2024.

“The smooth and timely lifting of petroleum products by OMCs, is crucial as non-compliance with the timely lifting of products, renders pressure on refineries, thereby, reducing their production capacity, leading to disruption in supplies,” it says.

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The letter further states, “To avoid any potential disruptions in the supplies, they are advised to ensure prompt upliftment of products, specifically, HSD from refineries. “Any non-compliance with Ogra directives may lead to stern action against defaulting OMCs as per applicable law/rules, strict compliance be ensured” it states. Ogra states operation of refineries and the timely lifting of petroleum products is vital for smooth operation of the National Oil Supply Chain (NOSC). The optimal functioning of refineries is paramount to the overall stability of the NOSC, as refineries play a pivotal role in ensuring a steady production of petroleum products to meet the national demand. The synergy between refineries and OMCs is therefore mandatory to avoid any disruption in supplies.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2024