LAHORE, Feb 14: Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited Managing Director Arif Hameed has said chances of discovery of additional 180mmcfd gas from Kunar-Poshaki gas field are very much there.

Speaking to the executive committee of the All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (Aptma) on Tuesday, he said SNGPL would get 90mmcfd gas from the additional gas found in Kunar-Poshaki. He said the possibility of another 120mmcfd from northern sources was very much there and that would be carried down up to Faisalabad through a 100km pipeline.

He said the two-zone policy for textile industry would be followed for distribution of gas load from March, improving supply to the industry.

Senior SNGPL management was accompanying him on the occasion. Acting Aptma Chairman Seth Akber, Aptma Punjab chairman Ahsan Bashir and former Aptma chairman Gohar Ejaz were also present.

Mr Hameed said increase in supply to the textile industry in February was subject to availability of gas. However, he said SNGPL would revert to original two-zone policy against the prevailing four-zone policy for gas distribution to textile industry in Punjab from next month.

He said negotiations with Qatar were under way for import of gas to meet the needs. About import of gas from Iran, he said positive developments were taking place on this front. He praised the Aptma leadership for not asking for individual benefits during discussion with SNGPL on gas availability for industry and expressed his gratitude for supporting the company and understanding its compulsions during the worst gas loadshedding from Dec 25 through January.

He assured Aptma members of equitable distribution of gas and told the house that SNGPL was supplying 30 per cent of available gas each to processing and furnace industries, 20 per cent to ghee industry and 10 per cent to gas industry.

He said liquefied natural gas was solution to Punjab industry’s problems. Discussions are under way for construction of three terminals for the purpose and SNGPL was part of these discussions, he added. He said a textile mill had been violating the gas management schedule for the last one year.

“The mill management misinterpreted a court order to its advantage and used force against SNGPL officials who visited the mill to take action over violation of the load management schedule. We will not tolerate such behaviour now onwards and no one will be exempted from sharing shortages,” he said. He said UFG had come down to 11.07 per cent but still gas theft was on the rise. He expressed the hope that SNGPL would live up to textile industry’s expectations from now onwards.