ISLAMABAD: The government came under criticism during a meeting of a Senate panel on Thursday over the gas crisis, with speakers identifying poor coordination and mismanagement for oversupply in the network, on one hand, and shortage of supplies to consumers on the other.

The panel decided to reconvene the session with the petroleum minister in attendance.

The meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Petroleum, presided over by Senator Umar Farooq, also expressed displeasure over the delay in filling a vacant slot of director general for petroleum concession (DGPC). The DGPC deals with exploration and development of oil and gas in the country.

The meeting had been called to discuss the gas shortfall and exploration activities to meet the country’s rising demand for gas.

A team from the petroleum division, led by Additional Secretary Mo­min Agha, told the legislators that drilling had been carried out at 56 places over the last three years at a cost of $1.23 billion.

These explorations yielded a total of 7,696 barrels of oil per day and 260 million cubic feet per day of gas.

The senators were displeased over the vacancy of DGPC slot as it was the most important position after the petroleum secretary in terms of oil and gas exploration and development.

The committee expressed reservations on the vacant post, saying it was unfortunate that the ministry could not find any suitable individual for the position even after a lapse of four months. The committee was of the view that the process for appointment should have been started well before the slot fell vacant. It directed the petroleum division to fill the position at the earliest.

Senator Quratul Ain Marri raised questions over gas curtailment in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa — the two regions served by Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited. At the same time, it expressed concern over reports of excess supplies in the network, causing gas pressure challenges.

The Director General of Gas conceded that gas supply was being curtailed in the northern region, but the shortfall in the southern region was mainly due to depletion in fields.

Additionally, imported gas had been curtailed due to low demand by the power sector as it was economically unviable to sell gas at a rate of Rs1200 per unit to domestic consumers against its actual rate of Rs3600 per unit. Moreover, pipelines did not have the capacity to store gas beyond a certain point and the country lacked storage capacity.

Published in Dawn, December 20th, 2024