Petrol pump owners divided over strike; chairman announces nationwide shutdown

ISLAMABAD: The All Pakistan Petrol Pumps Owners Association (APPPOA) has split over the strike issue while announcing that the nationwide strike would continue from midnight, ARY News reported.

The APPPOA issued a communiqué in which the association’s Chairman, Humayoun Khan, stated, “We could not reach any breakthrough in the talks held with the government today.”

He expressed regret that the negotiations had failed and announced that the nationwide strike would continue.

On the other hand, the Vice Chairman of the APPPOA stated that since talks had failed, they were going to shut down petrol pumps starting at midnight.

He said they informed the OGRA Chairman that oil marketing companies were not providing fuel supplies in full.

“We have daily sales of 10,000 liters of petrol, but we are only being provided 5,000 liters,” he said.

He added that while the door for negotiations remains open, petrol pumps will still be closed tonight.

Earlier in the evening, the All Pakistan Petrol Pumps Association had postponed its planned nationwide strike after Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik assured dealers that their concerns would be addressed.

Speaking at a joint press conference with the minister, Petrol Pump Owners Association Information Secretary Nadeem Khan said the decision was made after the government promised to resolve the industry’s demands.

“We have been assured that our issues will be addressed, so we are postponing the call to shut down petrol pumps,” Khan said. He added that the long-standing issue of dealer margins was expected to be resolved within the next two weeks.

Petroleum Dealers member Raja Waseem said the government had informed the association that the daily pricing of petrol and diesel was being implemented on a trial basis for 15 days.

He said dealers had been forced to consider a strike after facing prolonged difficulties but welcomed the government’s willingness to hold talks.

“We are thankful to the government and the petroleum minister for listening to us. We hope our issues will be resolved within two weeks,” he said.

Addressing the media, Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik said the government was finalising a plan to settle the dealer margin issue and would send a summary to the federal cabinet.

He said both the Ministry of Petroleum and the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) were committed to resolving the matter as soon as possible.

“If there is no progress, we will sit together again after two weeks,” the minister said.

Ali Pervaiz Malik also said the government had been compelled to increase petroleum prices due to the prevailing situation. He added that OGRA was adjusting fuel prices on a daily basis and pledged that the process would remain transparent and fair.