The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) on Saturday rejected a proposal by the Petroleum Division to increase gas tariffs for domestic consumers, citing the need to ease rising inflation.
The ECC met in Islamabad under the chairmanship of Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb and attended by officials of the Finance and Petroleum Division.
After detailed discussion, the ECC, however, approved a hike in gas tariff for industrial captive plants from Rs3,000 per MMBTU to Rs3,500 per MMBTU to ensure required revenue for the gas sector during the fiscal year 2024-25.
The ECC also directed the Petroleum Division to take necessary steps for imposition of grid transition levy on captive power plants to boost efficiency in the power sector.
Last month, the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) determined a gas price increase of 8.71-25.78% across the country, to be in effect from January 1, 2025.
The OGRA has determined the Review of Estimated Revenue Requirement (RERR) of SUI Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) and SUI Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGC) for the financial year 2024-25.
Under the review, the gas sale price has been increased by 8.71% for consumers in Sindh and Balochistan in the jurisdiction of SSGC and by 25.78% for consumers in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, falling under of the SNGPL.
The regulator increased the gas selling price by Rs1778.35 per MMBTU for each consumer category of Sui Northern and Rs1762.51 per MMBTU for each consumer of Sui Southern.
T Country is navigating a difficult economic recovery path and was bolstered by a $7 billion facility from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in September.
Pakistan’s consumer inflation rate slowed to a 6-1/2-year low of 4.1% in December, largely due to a high base for the year. This was lower than the government’s forecast and significantly below a multi-decade high of around 40% in May 2023.