‘CNG price in Pakistan highest in region’

The All Pakistan CNG Association (APCNGA) on Tuesday said price of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) in Pakistan is highest in the region therefore it must brought down in line with other countries in the national interest. Decisions affecting CNG sector are not taken on merit but on the whims of powerful oil lobby which wants to boost its business, said Ghyas Abdullah Paracha, Chairman, Supreme Council of APCNGA.
Speaking at a hurriedly-called meeting here, he said that CNG sector needs immediate attention of authorities as billions have been invested in it, 3.5 million cars have been converted while millions are directly and indirectly employed in this sector. Prices of CNG in Pakistan should match other countries where buying power of the masses is more or less the same, it said.
He said that gas is an indigenous resource which economical and clean as compare to imported fuels which are costly and unfriendly to environment. Ghyas Abdullah Paracha informed that price of CNG in Thailand in 76.70 per cent less as compare to price of petrol. Similarly, in Bangladesh, CNG is available at 68.61 per cent lesser price, Indonesia 51.65 per cent and in India it is 58.84 per cent of the cost of petrol.
Many countries including India and Bangladesh don’t have any indigenous substitute for gasoline; they lack proper gas infrastructure but they sell CNG at low price as compare to Pakistan despite importing Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and paying for conversion to enable it for use in vehicles.
As a policy, US and many EU countries have been promoting use of gas to reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels due to uncertainty in supply chain, volatility in prices, and save foreign exchange, he said adding that many countries are doing away with expensive LPG but here CNG sector is being closed to boost import of costly fuel.
Total consumption of CNG sector is Pakistan not more than 8 per cent, it is paying more taxes as compare to any other sector using gas, yet it is being victimized while some other influential sectors are promoted despite the fact that immediate conversion of those sectors on other fuels in the national interest, Paracha observed.
He informed that before 2002, there was a ban on running thermal power plants on CNG. It was Musharraf era when country started running power stations on clean fuel despite scarcity. This decision resulted in depletion of precious gas reserves which took toll on masses and economy, deprived industry of economical fuel, and contributed to rapid environmental degradation, he added.
Government can consider reversing that decision, demanded Ghyas Paracha.