ISLAMABAD - AMAD AMADANI - Reiterating its earlier stance, the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority, in its new decision on gas tariff, has declined to pass on additional burden to consumers .
Informed circles told TheNation on Saturday that Member Finnace has endorsed the decision of Ogra and has declined to go with Petroleum Ministry’s wishes regarding gas tariff determination. They said that Ogra, while issuing a new decision on gas tariff for next fiscal year, has maintained its earlier decision of reducing gas price by Rs47.54/mmbtu for Sui Northern Gas Company Limited (SNGPL) and Rs34.34/mmbtu for Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGCL) from 1st July. They informed that Ogra has sent its new decision to the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources (MP&NR) and has maintained decrease in gas prices; resultantly consumers would get a relief of Rs 6billion durig next fiscal year 2012-13.
It was also learnt that though two members of the authority (OGRA) had signed the decision document on 18th May while signature of Member Finance could not obtained due to his absence yet the MP&NR raised objections over the absence of signature of Member Finance on the decsion and insisted that the member was ready to provide relief to the gas distributing companies despite the fact that earlier the member finance had declined to pass on the additional burden of gas theft to the gas consumers. Gas theft in the country has reached 400 Million Cubic Feet per Day (MMCFD), which is sufficient to generate 2,000MW of electricity that would reduce power loadshedding, sources said.
The MP&NR had been insisting that Member Gas Mansoor Muzaffar and Member Finnace Mir Kamal Mari was ready to declare 7 per cent as Unaccounted for Gas (UfG) and operating income to non-operating income of gas companies but their signature was not taken. However, it it is a fact that Member Gas had been arrested by National Accountability Bureaue (NAB) on 18th May when Ogra issued its decision in this regard while Member Finance went missing from that day.
Earlier, Ogra, in a heart-winning move for the hard-pressed consumers bearing skyrocketing prices of gas, on 18th May had finally decreased the prices up to Rs47.54 per mmbtu for the upcoming fiscal year (FY) 2012-13 while turning a deaf ear to persistent pressure of Petroleum Ministry to jack up the gas prices. This was considered as a good news for the emptied pockets of consumers after passing long six years as gas consumers would now find a relief worth around Rs36billion during the year only with this brave decision of Ogra that given its approval to cut down the tariff of Sui Northern Gas Company Limited (SNGPL) by Rs47.54/mmbtu and of Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGCL) by Rs34.34/mmbtu. Consequently, gas consumers would get 11 per cent relief by 1st July this year in the monthly bills. Ogra also decided the benchmark of Unaccounted for Gas (UfG) at 4.5 per cent despite the unwavering incessant pressure coupled with the advice of Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources (MP&NR) to set it at 7 per cent only in the better interest of the shareholders of both gas companies (SNGPL & SSGCL).
Upon this, the public gas utilities, Sui-Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGCL) and Sui-Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL), had been pressurising the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) through Petroleum Ministry to allow them to overcharge gas consumers on account of Unaccounted for Gas (UfG) in the next fiscal year 2012-13. Consequntly, Ogra and the MP&NR remained at loggerheads over the regulator’s refusal on additional hefty collections from the hard pressed gas consumers under the gas theft head.
It is to be noted here that though both gas utilities had earlier pleaded to the regulatory authority to grant an approval to collect hefty amount worth of Rs 15 billion under the head gas theft and losses yet the regulator has finally turned down their plea by declaring it an utter violation to the consumer rights. Earlier, SNGPL had asked to decrease 47paisa while SSGCL requested Rs2 reduction in gas prices. Sources also informed that this time the authority has rebuffed the appeal of SNGPL to put extra burden on the gas consumers by collecting Rs5 billion and 75crore under head subsidy for LPG air mix project, Rs 12 billion for Distribution Development Fund (DDF), Rs 11 billion and 78crore for gas theft, and Rs26 billion for Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) pipeline infrastructure while Rs55 million for internal usage of gas by the company from them during next fiscal year. However, despite getting rejection from the regulator, SNGPL will earn Rs238 billion during next fiscal year while SSGCL will also earn worthy revenue worth Rs152billion during next FY2012-13, sources added.