ISLAMABAD, Nov 21: The All Pakistan CNG Association proposed three options on Wednesday to keep the business viable by standardising and rationalising CNG prices.

The chairman of the association’s supreme council, Ghiyas Abdullah Paracha, said in a statement after a meeting of the council that the options had been designed in view of the directives of the Supreme Court and the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority could accept one of them to fix CNG prices immediately.

He said the fertiliser sector was receiving gas at Rs116.27 per MMTBU and paying gas infrastructure development cess at Rs100 per MMTBU, but the CNG sector was getting gas at Rs618.55 per MMTBU and paying Rs263.55 as cess.

Mr Paracha said that if the rates applying to the fertiliser sector were introduced in the CNG sector, CNG prices would come down to Rs48.15 in Region-I and to Rs46.80 in Region-II.

He said the industrial sector was paying Rs460 per MMTBU and Rs50 as cess. If the same rates were applied to the CNG sector, prices would fall to Rs69.79 in Region-I and Rs66.63 in Region-II. He noted that the private power producers were getting gas at Rs460 per MMTBU and paying Rs100 as cess and if the same rates were applied to the CNG sector, prices would fall to Rs43.47 in Region-I and Rs70 in Region-II.

“Our new pricing formula will not only streamline CNG prices but also bring uniformity in all critical sectors of economy and provide relief to people,” Mr Paracha said.

“We will make our formula part of Ogra’s public hearing being held in Lahore on Nov 23.” He said the meeting expressed reservations over auditor’s report of the CNG sector.

He said the auditors had shown average sale of a CNG filling station as 74,000 kg per month, but it was not more than 51,600 kg.