LNG supply, gas shortage for domestic users not linked: Hammad Azhar

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Energy Hammad Azhar Saturday said that procurement of LNG is not linked to the gas shortage as it is not provided to the domestic consumers, ARY NEWS reported.

Speaking during ARY NEWS programme, Aietraz Hai, Hammad Azhar said that every year there is a gas shortage in Pakistan that has only 28 percent of its households using the gas facility. “70 percent Pakistanis do not have the gas facility,” he said.

He shared that gas needs for households multiples three times in winter, leading to shortage and forcing them to set a preference of gas supply that included domestic consumers as the top priority, followed by industries.

“We have to move towards alternate resources to fulfill our needs,” he said.

While delinking domestic gas shortage with LNG, Hammad Azhar said that households get gas supply from local resources and imported LNG is being provided to LNG power plants and factories owing to its higher cost.

He lamented that an anchor of a private channel deliberately led a disinformation campaign and challenged him to hold a live debate with him over the matter in the presence of neutral newsmen and experts.

The minister said that the government had added electricity to the power system and at the end of their tenure they would have 28,000 MW electricity in the system as compared to 20,800 MW at the time they took charge.

“Currently, we have been operating at 24,700 MW,” he said.

He further rejected the impression regarding the purchase of 14 LNG cargos and said that as per the agreement they could buy 12 cargos of 4.5 million ton LNG. “A lie was spread that 14 cargos could be purchased,” he said.

Hammad Azhar further shared that an agreement would be finalized with Russia for the supply of LNG within a month or two. “PML-N claims establishing two LNG terminals and owing to their haste, the government is now forced to pay Rs80 million on daily basis to both terminals,” he said.

Read More: DOMESTIC CONSUMERS TO GET GAS 3 TIMES A DAY: HAMMAD AZHAR

He announced that the incumbent government eyes establishment of upto two terminals by 2023, however, nothing would be done in haste as such decisions ultimately overburden the masses as being done by the PML-N regime.

The energy minister further said that there are no chances of electricity prices going down in 2022 or 2023 owing to the mines set by the PML-N regime in the gas sector that would ultimately explode and cause damage to the country’s bid to get cheaper electricity.