LAHORE: The first meeting of arbitrators appointed by the Ministry of Law and Justice to resolve the issue of $30 million penalty imposed on the Pakistan GasPort Consortium Limited (PGPC) was held on Wednesday in Islamabad.

The heft fine was imposed by the Pakistan LNG Terminal Limited (PLTL) on PGPC for allegedly delaying completion of the country’s second LNG terminal at Port Qasim, Karachi.

The arbitrators, one each representing PLTL and PGPC, decided to hold a series of meetings in Islamabad and Lahore, and pledged to conclude proceedings of the case by November 6, a source said.

According to the schedule, the arbitrators will hold the second meeting on Oct 25, followed by third on Oct 30, fourth on Nov 2, fifth on Nov 3, sixth on Nov 4 and seventh (last one) on Nov 5.

If either party denies accepting the decision, the matter would be referred to the London Court of International Arbitration, the source added.

Published in Dawn, October 19th, 2017