Addressing a media gathering at the Head Office of Sui Southern Gas Company, the Federal Minister for Petroleum, Mr Ali Pervaiz Malik, shared the vision of Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif and stressed the need for adopting a holistic energy policy.
He was on his first official visit to SSGC, where he held a meeting with Acting Managing Director Amin Rajput along with the senior management of the Company. He was given a comprehensive briefing on the overall structure of the organization, customer complaints redressal mechanism, the Company’s challenges, especially in light of the widening gas demand-supply scenario, steps taken to mitigate these challenges and massive rehabilitation of SSGC’s pipeline infrastructure, recently conducted/being currently underway in various Company’s franchise areas.
Soon after his arrival, he held a media briefing, during which he explained the overall scenario of debt again against the backdrop of economic factors. He said that the energy sector is like oxygen to the economy, and we are taking initiatives to keep the supply and tariffs in line with the international market. Early signs of recovery in key sectors have begun to appear, but to sustain this momentum, we need to maintain the same stability while moving forward, he said. Mr Malik stated that the Prime Minister has clearly instructed us to make decisions in line with all kinds of interests that can benefit the country, for which we are creating awareness and diligently moving forward in a focused manner.
The Minister of Petroleum stated that the Prime Minister and the ministry are addressing issues related to the downstream and upstream sectors. We are taking concrete steps to alleviate citizens’ sufferings in the upcoming budget. He also stated that the government is taking all necessary steps to put a stop to circular debt in the energy sector. Still, to achieve this, we need time to reduce our debt despite the IMF’s conditions. Regarding the circular debt in the gas sector, he said that there are two main issues: one is to break the flow and stop it from increasing further, and the second is to improve recoveries and reduce expenditures. Besides discussions on the gas industry, issues related to the petroleum sector were also discussed in detail.
Before concluding this media meeting, SSGC’s Acting Manager, Amin Rajput, replying to a few queries raised by journalists directly related to SSC’s services, informed the media persons that 48 hours is the response time to resolve customers’ complaints, except where road cutting permission is required. Replying to the PUG charges in gas bills, it was stated that these charges are due to slow meters, which are based on an OGRA-approved framework. Me. Rajput informed that SSGC’s massive pipeline network spans over 55,000 km, out of which a substantial segment has aged and is causing operational issues. He said that, unlike the 150 km annual rehabilitation of the pipeline network in years past, the Company has vigorously enhanced it to 2,500 km every year, which has shown great improvement in the supply of gas to customers while simultaneously reducing line losses.
