The Lahore High Court on Wednesday dismissed 37 identical petitions filed by various CNG stations challenging the temination of natural gas supply to them under the gas load management policy.
The single bench comprising Justice Umar Ata Bandial was hearing the identical petitions filed by 37 CNG stations.
Earlier, the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority’s (OGRA) counsel Advocate Shoukat Umer Pirzada appeared before the court and submitted that the notification, which had a nine-month contract to discontinue the gas supply to the CNG stations, had been withdrawn.
The court, after hearing the arguments, dismissed the petitions.
The owners of the CNG stations had approached the court, submitting that at the time of obtaining connections for their CNG stations, they had signed an agreement with the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL), that gas supplies will be disconnected in December, January and February.
However, the SNGPL wanted to disconnect supplies from March to May on the basis of its load management policy, they added.
They submitted that the action was being taken on the basis of a notification issued by the SNGPL on March 2, which orders to disconnect the gas supply to the CNG stations March 3 till further orders.
They stated that according to the load management policy, gas was being supplied to fertilizer companies. They said it was a discriminatory act under the law as one connection could not be severed to facilitate others.
They argued that the agreement said the seasonal period was defined from December to February and not from March to May, but the SNGPL had changed it on its own whim.
They requested that the load management policy be set aside and that the court restrain the SNGPL from disconnecting gas supply to their CNG stations.
