Petroleum dealers threaten nationwide strike

KARACHI: Petroleum dealers in Pakistan have issued a warning to close down filling stations across the country in protest of a non-increase in their profit margins, ARY News reported on Friday.

The decision comes after the government failed to honour its commitment of increasing their profit margins, leaving them dissatisfied with the current situation.

In a statement, Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association (PPDA) Chairman Abdul Sami Khan expressed frustration over the government’s inability to raise their profit margin, saying that a deadline of September 1 has ended.

Sami Khan pointed out that the government and other stakeholders had signed a written agreement with his association. However, he regretted, the government has not increased the profit margins.

“We cannot run filling stations with the current dealer margin”, he said, adding that expenditure ratio has witnessed a staggering increase. He warned of a complete shutter down strike if the government failed to increase profit margin.

Earlier in July, Pakistan’s petroleum dealers decided to postpone their nationwide shutter-down strike following assurances from the then-State Minister for Petroleum, Musadik Malik.

An agreement was reached and signed by the minister, OGRA Chairman, Masoor Khan, and Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association (PPDA) Chairman, Abdul Sami Khan.

Previously, the dealers had issued a warning to close their petrol pumps indefinitely, after the outgoing government failed to fulfil its promise of increasing their profit margins to 5%, equivalent to Rs12/litre at the current petrol and diesel prices.

It is pertinent to mention here that the caretaker government a day earlier increased the price of petrol by Rs 14.9 per litre. The rate of petrol reached to Rs305.36 per litre with increase of Rs 14.9 per litre.

Meanwhile, the price of high-speed diesel (HSD) increased by Rs18.44 per litre to Rs311.84.