LAHORE – Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) was facing a huge gap between demand and supply of natural gas because of the shortage of supplies from major gas fields on account of depletion of gas fields in the southern part and sabotage in the northern areas, said a press statement released on Thursday. In order to bridge the gap and ensure uninterrupted gas supply to domestic and commercial consumers, load management was being exercised on the fertiliser, industrial and compressed natural gas (CNG) sectors, said the statement.
Consequently, the fertiliser sector had been shutdown, whereas gas supply to industries had been restricted to four days a week and CNG stations had been limited to five days a week, said the statement. The statement said SNGPL was making efforts to meet the gas demand of its consumers but because of a shortage of input from gas sources, it was forced to exercise load-management.
Negotiations were held between officials of Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources and representatives of All-Pakistan CNG Association over the two-days-a-week closure of gas filling stations. The matter was discussed in detail and SNGPL informed the association of the shortfall from gas sources. However, the reported strike by All-Pakistan CNG Association continues, causing inconvenience to the general public, especially the low-income commuters.
