LAHORE: Textile exporters have expressed apprehension that the textile industry would be on the verge of collapse in case the government withdraws the Regionally Competitive Energy Tariff (RCET) of Rs19.99/kWh.

“We are of the view that in case the government withdraws the power subsidy, the textile industry may face complete closure,” All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma) Chairman (North Zone) Hamid Zaman feared while speaking to journalists at a press conference on Friday.

Mr Zaman said the country’s balance of payments crisis would further deteriorate as the withdrawal of RCET would result in a $10 billion per annum export loss. It would also lead to disruptions in the investment plan of the industry for setting up 1,000 garment units to create millions of new jobs, he added.

“Punjab is the hub of textile industry and closure of large-scale production units would render seven million textile workers jobless”, he warned.

Published in Dawn, February 18th, 2023