ISLAMABAD: Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGCL) Monday informed theSenate Standing Committee on Petroleum that it was currently facing ashortfall of 115 mmcfd (million cubic feet per day) gas in the transmissionnetwork due to depletion of natural gas reserves and curtailment inproduction fields.
“In the current year, the company received around 12,000 mmcfd gas ascompared to 1,280 mmcfd gas it received last year in same period,” ManagingDirector SSGCL Muhammad Amin apprised the committee meeting, which waschaired by Mohsin Aziz.
He said the company was making all-out efforts to bridge the gap betweendemand and supply of the commodity at the earliest by implementing itsload-management plan.
He said shortfall of 80 mmcfd was due to the natural depletion ofindigenous gas reserves and in addition to reduction in gas supplies fromKunner and Gambat fields because of condensate storage problem at thefields and refineries.
To ensure supply to domestic consumers in prevailing gas shortfall, hesaid, the company issued notices to captive power customers in October2018, intimating that it would not be able to provide gas from December toFebruary. Under their agreements, the customers should make alternativefuel arrangements, he added.
The body expressed serious concerns over low gas pressure and load-sheddingin different parts of Sindh, saying that depriving the province, which isproducing around 70 per cent of the country’s total natural gas, from itsdue share was not justified.
The committee members also showed their dissatisfaction over the dataprovided about gas supply to different sectors including domestic,commercial, power, zero rated general industries, industrial and captivepower plants, cement and compressed natural gas stations.
The MD SSGCL said gas price was charged as per the rates notified by Oiland Gas Regulatory Authority, adding that the company was not receiving anyLiquefied Natural Gas supply and its total reliance was on indigenousnatural gas production.
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He shared with the committee that in the recent past no substantial gasdiscovery had been made, while existing reserves were depleting constantly,so there was no significant addition in net production of natural gas.
Commenting on increased volume of unaccounted for gas (UFG) in Balochistan,the MD said it was working on a plan to introduce fixed tariff in theprovince for consumers throughout the year, to minimize losses.
A senior official of the Petroleum and Natural Affairs Division of theEnergy Ministry said that around 10 percent constant depletion in naturalgas reserves was being recorded, highlighting the importance of expeditingoil and gas exploration activities in potential areas on war-footing.
Representatives of Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited said the company hadmanaged to overcome UFG losses in Punjab, but it was facing difficulties inKarak district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
They said the company in collaboration with the provincial government wasworking on a project to lay a network of supply lines in the district toprevent gas theft, adding that it was just waiting for funds to execute theproject.
Among others, the meeting was attended by Senators Taj Mmuhammad Afridi,Imamuddin Shouqeen, Sherry Rehman and Sassui Palijo, besides seniorofficials of the Petroleum Division and its attached departments.
