PESHAWAR: The business community has urged the federal government to ensure uninterrupted electricity and gas supply to industries in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The demand was made during a gathering of members of Industrialists Association Peshawar (IAP) here on Tuesday. Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Fuad Ishaq was the chief guest, according to a statement issued here.

Speaking on this occasion, Fuad Ishaq vowed to continue struggle for gaining constitutional rights on gas and electricity for KP industries.

The chamber chief said the government was least bothered to pay heed towards the demands of business community. “We had timely raised the matter of hike in power and gas tariff, but the centre didn’t pay heed,” he lamented.

Mr Ishaq said KP was a net exporter of gas as it produced 550MMCFD (million cubic feet per day), and was only consuming 200MMCFD, of which 35 MMCFD was being consumed by KP industries and 40MMCFD by CNG sector. Similarly, he said KP was producing 42 per cent of the country’s total oil.

He said the chamber had proposed to the federal government to rationalise income and sales tax to streamline the Afghan transit trade, but to no avail.

Likewise, the SCCI chief said mark-up rates had been increased to 24-25pc, which was extremely non-feasible for industries of KP.

Also, he told the participants that the chamber had raised an effective voice for obliging the US officials in Pakistan to provide funds and soft loans to KP youth through IDPP.

On this occasion, former SCCI president Senator Mohsin Aziz said KP was grappling with multiple issues, but the government had turned a blind eye to them. “Industries are being denied new gas connections, which is their right under Article 158 of the Constitution. Instead they are being forced to use the costly RLNG,” he deplored.

He asked Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Economic Zones Development and Management Company (KPEZDMC) to play its role in facilitating the KP industrialists.

On the occasion, KPEZDMC chief executive officer Javed Khatak said it was working to expand economic zones across KP.

Former Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry president Ghazanfar Bilour said 40pc of industries in KP had closed down due to rising production costs.

Published in Dawn, January 10th, 2024