KARACHI: Managing Director of Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) Imran Maniar has said has that gas crises being faced during the winter season were likely to continue for one to two more years until the new terminals for RLNG get installed at the Port.
There were difficulties and challenges but the picture is rosy as upon completion and activation of Terminal III at the Port and if the SSGC decides to make a commitment with terminal owner only if consumers of SSGC pledge to buy the additional 500 mmcf, it would certainly help in resolving gas shortage issue being suffered by all types of consumers in Karachi, he added while exchanging views at a meeting during his visit to the Karachi Chamber of Commerce & Industry (KCCI).
Chairman Businessmen Group (BMG) & Former President KCCI Zubair Motiwala, Vice Chairman BMG Jawed Bilwani, President KCCI Shariq Vohra, Senior Vice President Saqib Goodluck, Vice President Shamsul Islam Khan, Former Presidents KCCI Majyd Aziz and Younus Bashir, Former Vice President Muhammad Idrees, Chairman Public Sector Utilities Subcommittee Atif Jamil ur Rehman and Managing Committee Members along with representatives of industrial town associations also attended the meeting.
While highlighting the overall gas demand-supply situation, MD SSGC informed that a total of 4,000 mmcf gas including indigenous gas and RLNG was being used all over the country, of which around 950 mmcf was being provided to SSGC from indigenous resources in Sindh and Baluchistan while 150 mmcf of RLNG was also being given to them and the rest of gas was being used by SNGPL. SSGC takes 110 mmcf from natural resources in Baluchistan while the rest of 75 percent gas comes into the system from resources in Sindh but these gas reserves were depleting fast at a rate of 10 percent per annum.
He said that SSGC takes around 150 to 180 mmcf RLNG from two terminals at Port Qasim but the supply shrinks to 70 or 80 mmcf from these terminals during winter and the demand for gas in Baluchistan rises to 120 mmcf which creates an overall gas shortage of around 195 mmcf. To deal with gas shortages, the Ministry has designed a mechanism in which all the consumers from domestic to industrial have been ranked from top to bottom in which domestic consumers were at the top of the list, followed by export-oriented industry while CNG stations were at the bottom of the list and non-export industry was above CNG stations.
Therefore, SSGC carries out load management during winter season exactly as per list provided by the Ministry whereas RLNG supplies to KE are completely cut to zero that helps in covering the gas shortage by 75 to 80 mmcf whereas suspension of gas to CNG stations further saves 20 mmcf that leads to reducing the gas shortfall by 95 mmcf, out of a total shortfall of 195 mmcf, he added.
He further pointed out that there was a tremendous push to get villages gasified which requires significant investment of billions of rupees and huge resources including workforce and equipment who have to be sent to remote areas and villages.
