KARACHI, Dec 26: A division bench of the Sindh High Court has restrained the Oil and Gas Development Corporation from further processing the contract for Qadirpur gas concession project.

Petitioner Zafar Mehmood Malik, an OGDC shareholder, maintained through Advocate Raza Hashmi that the award of contract to a foreign concern would cause a loss of $150 million to the corporation and the public exchequer and would bring down the price of the shares held by him.

He said a leading business daily reported on November 8 that two projects—a gas plant at Tando Allah Yar and an oilfield at Sanjhoro—were contracted out to M/s Petrosen Engineering (Pvt) Limited through public bidding.

A foreign concern approached the successful bidder to back out of the deal and offered its chairman, Maor General Saeed Wahla (retired), $22 million as consideration.

The bidder declined the offer and sent a copy of the video film of the conversation between it and the foreign concern to the president, the prime minister and the chairman of the National Accountability Bureau.

The petitioner alleged that instead of any action against the foreign concern, the OGDC chairman was hurriedly replaced. The new chairman cancelled the contract awarded to the Pakistani company. Meanwhile, the same foreign concern which had offered a hefty amount to the Pakistani to withdraw from the previous contract was being given the Qadirpur gas concession project. The petitioner contended that the foreign concern had run projects worth a maximum of $3 million and the transfer of the huge Qadirpur project would cause a loss to the OGDC and the exchequer.

A division bench consisting of Justices Mushir Alam and Amir Hani Muslim stayed further processing of the deal and issued notices to the federal petroleum ministry, the OGDC and other respondents for a date after the court’s winter recess.