Senate Body Urges Recovery of Pending Dues from GIDC Defaulters

The meeting of Senate Standing Committee on Petroleum was held at Parliament House on Monday with Senator Mohammad Abdul Qadir in the chair. The committee was apprised of the amount of outstanding Cess recoveries from various entities and discussed the Gas Infrastructure Development Cess (GIDC) cases. Committee Chairman Mohammad Abdul Qadir noted that Rs. 445 billion was due from various institutions and urged to expedite recoveries in this regard. The Secretary Petroleum Division said that Rs. 171 billion is pending from the fertilizer sector. Given the outstanding amount owed by various entities, including fertilizer companies, all cases for GIDC recoveries have been sent to courts for expedited resolution. The committee was informed that the gas agreement between the Ministry of Petroleum and the government of Balochistan is still in the works. The Secretary informed the committee that the Ministry of Petroleum has prepared recommendations and that the agreement could be finalized if the provincial government is ready. The committee chairman urged all stakeholders to resolve the issue of pending GIDC amounts as soon as possible and said farmers should be given subsidies rather than fertilizer companies. The committee was also updated on the status of three oil and gas fields in Balochistan. According to the Secretary of Petroleum, extraction will begin in 18 months. He commented that work has been ongoing in Jandran, Balochistan, since 1975, but the field is yet to supply oil and gas. Various security and political constraints have hampered proper implementation, according to the secretary. The committee was informed by Managing Director Oil and Gas Distribution Company Limited (OGDCL) Zahid Mir that four wells had been drilled at the Jandran Gas field. He stated that a feasibility report will be ready in March, and that pipeline construction will begin by the end of April. The supply of 85 MMCFD gas from Jandran will begin this summer, he added. The Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited (SNGPL) Managing Director Amir Tufail said a gas shortage is expected in June of this year, and that all parties are working to complete the Jandran pipeline project by June.