Govt can’t give subsidy on gas: minister

ISLAMABAD: The government is working to bring the Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) and the Sui Northern Gas Company (SNGPL) out of losses and making them profitable entities. “The present government took difficult decision of rationalizing the gas rates to take the gas companies [SSGC and SNGP] out of losses,” Federal Minister for Petroleum Ghulam Sarwar Khan on Saturday said this while announcing that gas consumers can pay their gas bills in equal installments. He added the SNGPL and SSGC have been conveyed and directed to avoid disconnecting gas connections.The minister while addressing a press conference said the step was taken to facilitate consumers who could not afford to pay the total bill. The consumers, who received Rs20,000 gas bill or above are being provided the facility to pay their bill in four installments, talking to media persons here the minister said. He was flanked by Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Media Iftikhar Durrani. The system of purchasing costly gas [LNG] and selling it on cheaper prices is not long lasting, he observed. Admitting that the inflated bills are burden on the consumers, he said the government is not in a position to pay subsidy owing to the poor financial health of the gas companies. He said around 9.3 million consumers are utilizing the gas service network of SNGP and SSGC. The Customer Care Services would remain open on Saturdays and Sundays to facilitate the consumers, he added. Due to increased consumption of gas in severe cold the low slab consumers have fallen into higher slabs, which is the main reason behind inflated bills, he said. The government is aware of the problems of the people and hoped that the situation would start improving from the next season. "In 2018, the government of Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) approved gas providing schemes of Rs55 billion to please the people and get votes, which was tantamount to pre-poll rigging," Ghulam Sarwar said. The minister said some PML-N people had admitted before him that their party had won 20 to 30 seats in Punjab in last general elections due to promises of providing gas connections. He said PML-N did not increase the prices in their tenure for gaining cheap political gains.The PTI government is duty bound to tell the people real picture as the gas companies could be shut down if their losses continued, he added. Sarwar Khan said offshore drilling has started from the last month and good news is expected by end of next month. "So far, 3,500 meter deep drilling has been done out of 5,500 meters. . By 2027 the current reserves could be depleted, he said, adding the government has abolished duties on the offshore drilling to attract maximum investment in this sector.The government is trying utmost to expedite gas exploration as the current gas reserves are racing towards fast depletion," the minister said. The minister said cumulative losses of gas companies including Sui Southern Gas Pipelines and Sui Northern Gas Pipelines are Rs154 billion each year, adding gas worth Rs50 billion is being stolen with impunity. He said it was being wrongly said in the the past that the country imports 75 percent gas and produced 25 percent of the total available gas, adding in fact the country produced only 15 percent of total gas while imported 85 percent.The minister said according to analytical reports, Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India project is the cheapest as compared to other projects adding the working on the project is continuing. The prime minister would be briefed on TAPI next week, he added. Responding to a question, the minister said Saudi Arabia, UAE and other countries are willing to invest in Pakistan as their confidence had been restored. Talking to Geo News, the minister termed water heating geysers a luxury.

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