OGRA bans new gas schemes for towns, villages

In wake of the current tight energy crisis in the country, Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) on Friday imposed complete ban on new gas schemes for towns, colonies and villages.
Reliable sources in OGRA said the authority had directed Sui Northern Gas Company Limited (SNGPL) and Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGCL) to ensure availability of gas to their existing consumers first, following which they could initiate new projects of gas connections to town and villages.
The source said SNGPL had told OGRA that it had to place 4,035 km of pipelines to provide gas to new localities in the region and sought permission from the authority to allow it to charge Rs 10 billion from consumers.
Similarly SSGCL had also requested the regulatory body to allow the company to charge Rs 2 billion from consumers for its new projects.
However, OGRA rejected their applications and completely banned development schemes for new towns and villages in the country.
The source further revealed that OGRA was of the view that both companies had not been able to ensure gas supply to their existing consumers and therefore cannot be allowed to initiate new gas schemes.
In this regard, OGRA informed the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural resources about its decision, the source added.
The OGRA official also said this ban would continue until new policy guidelines are received from the federal government.
The source further added that OGRA had also refused to allow the gas companies to collect Rs 25 billion for a 222 km long LNG import project.
The regulatory authority said LNG companies operating in the country had not been able to settle the current energy crises and so far had not been able to attain financial reliability. Therefore, OGRA cannot give permission to collect billions of rupees under the facade of construction of pipelines, added the official.