ISLAMABAD: The Petroleum Division has strongly opposed the proposal of Maritime Affairs Division for allocating the existing capacity in gas pipeline to the upcoming two new liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals at Port Qasim, Karachi, saying that they should “come online first”. “These new terminals are only on paper and no construction work has yet been initiated,” the Petroleum Division officials apprised…
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Building strategic reserves for energy security
Pakistan’s current energy mix is heavily tilted towards oil and gas. Any disruption to their supply chain immediately throws the entire economy off balance. This was amply demonstrated by the disturbance to oil supplies in January 2015 and then in the middle of last year. Similarly, in the case of gas, we are witness to extended queues of vehicles before…
Read MoreChronic energy crisis persists
The energy crisis has continued to persist in Pakistan at a time when demand for oil and gas is on a rise following a rebound in industrial production and exports in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic. “The oil and gas production fell 6% and 4%, respectively, in the second quarter (Oct-Dec) of fiscal year 2021 despite new productions from…
Read MoreLNG crisis likely to worsen in country
The liquefied natural gas (LNG) suppliers have refused to give supplies to Pakistan for the month of February in the wake of recent massive hike in the prices of gas. According to details, Pakistan LNG Ltd (PLL) had advertised a tender on November 28, 2020 for the procurement of two spot LNG cargoes to be delivered in February 2021. On…
Read MoreThe upward spiral of the energy bill
Pakistan’s electricity sector is in deep trouble. The recent nationwide blackout on the night of January 9 is just another reminder of the crisis facing the collapsing power sector. But for an average consumer, the most visible impact of this crisis has been their ever-increasing electricity bill. A report published last week suggested that the government had decided to raise…
Read MoreThe galloping gap
The monster of circular debt keeps growing in the power sector. Bad governance is the overwhelming source of the circular debt build-up that is officially projected to cross the Rs2.8 trillion mark by June 30. This is almost half of the country’s about Rs5.5tr total tax revenue this year. This means an addition of Rs500 billion during the current fiscal…
Read MoreCut in gas supply to industry likely amid LNG crisis
ISLAMABAD: As foreign traders of liquefied natural gas (LNG) default on supplies amid gas shortages, the Cabinet Committee on Energy (CCoE) will meet here on Monday (today) to review the overall situation, including discontinuation of gas supplies to a large number of industries on a long-term basis. Following reports that two state-owned foreign suppliers had declined to supply their two…
Read MoreTabish Gauhar on the saddle with more powers: IPPs, govt panel set to initial amended PPAs next week
ISLAMABAD: With more powers to Special Assistant to PM on Power, Tabish Gauhar, the negotiations with the IPPs with regard to converting MoUs into the amended Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) seemed to have moved towards conclusion. “The IPPs and government negotiating team are set to initialise the amended PPAs, sometime in next week, however, the proper signing would be held…
Read MorePakistan opens bids for 20 onshore petroleum exploration blocks The minimum investment
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has opened bids for 20 onshore petroleum exploration blocks, the government said in statement on Friday. “The minimum investment to be carried out by the exploration and production (E&P) companies in these blocks for prospecting will be over $71 million in three years,” a statement from the petroleum division said. The move to grant licences for discovery comes…
Read MoreBMW aims to double fully electric vehicle sale
BMW said on Friday that it aims to double its sales of fully electric vehicles this year as the German carmaker and rivals race to release new models to comply with CO2 emissions targets and chase market leader Tesla Inc. BMW also said that including plug-in hybrids, it aims for a 50% increase in sales of electrified vehicles versus 2020.…
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