During a meeting, Aptma Chairman SM Tanveer said, “As textile industry is already hit hard by the over-valued currency phenomenon, any such increase means a compromise on the competitiveness of the textile industry regionally as well as internationally because its energy cost is already the highest in the region.”
An increase by Rs262 per mmbtu would push up the price for industry to Rs750 per mmbtu, or of 53pc, he feared. He urged the government save the textile industry from a disaster-like situation.
Likewise, the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) urged the government not to increase gas tariff. LCCI President Ijaz A. Mumtaz said that anti-business acts of Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) would hamper growth of the manufacturing sector that was already facing a number of internal and external challenges.
