Following the directions from Federal Minister for Finance Ishaq Dar, gas supply to the Punjab-based textile industry was resumed on Thursday, said industry sources. According to the industry circles, the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Company Ltd (SNGPL) has resumed gas supply on four hours a day basis. Reliable sources said the SNGPL would supply 60 MMCFD LNG at the cost of $9 per MMBTU against the industry demand of $8.5 per MMBTU.
Sources further added that only the representatives of Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA) and All Pakistan Textile Processing Mills Association (APTPMA) attended the meeting chaired by Federal Minister for Finance Ishaq Dar a day earlier. "There was no representation of either spinning or weaving industry at all," they added.
It may be noted that both spinners and weavers are asking for LNG supply at the rate of $8.5 per MMBTU. However, the federal government was pressing the textile millers, particularly in Punjab, to purchase LNG at $10.10 per MMBTU, refuting its earlier offer of $8.5 per MMBTU. They were of the view that the government was charging a higher price against the world standard. As a result, they added, the government had revised its offer to $9 per MMBTU.
The industry sources said many textile millers were still objecting the rate of LNG but still a good number of them would opt for availing the opportunity of gas availability even at $9 per MMBTU to avoid further unavailability. It is worth noting that some 100 mills have reported complete closures in recent past while the export data for the month of November reveals drop in exports of cotton yarn and cotton fabric to 45 and 22 percent respectively, while there is an overall decline of 15 percent exports in quantitative terms.