FAISALABAD, Oct 12: The two-three week suspension of natural gas from this week and eight-hour daily electricity shut down will devastate the textile sector landing the government as well as entrepreneurs in difficult situation to achieve export targets, according to textile exporters.

Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA) Chairman Tahir Ishaque says exporters are in troubles regarding fulfilling their export commitments as the foreign buyers are not visiting Pakistan due to security reason and advisories by their governments asking them to refrain from touring Pakistan.

He said textile exports were already under severe strain because of mounting cost of inputs and escalating prices of overheads. A total closure of gas supply for 10 days and eight hour loadshedding of electricity would worsen the unbearable situation, he added.

He said the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited had notified to manufacturing units that due to annual shutdowns of Qadirpur and Sawan gas fields in Oct 2008, the company would be facing major short fall of gas on its system and may have to curtail or disconnect gas supply to industrial units for two-three weeks. The gas company further asked exporters to ensure arrangements for alternative fuel in the period, he added.

The PTEA chairman said that it was difficult to turn over to alternate fuel supply as it involved total replacement of the gas fuel system by alternate diesel fuel system machinery.

Furthermore the cost of diesel had also been hiked making the alternate arrangements equally costly and uneconomical, he said.

He said the closure of industrial units would hit the economic activity and productivity greatly and would also render millions of workers jobless.

Nadeem Chishti said the government had to take special measures to save the textile sector considered as backbone of the country and contributing billion of rupees much-needed foreign exchange.