By Mehrab Shah Afridi
ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Petroleum, Ali Pervaiz Malik, has announced that domestic consumers are receiving 26 percent more gas this year compared with the previous year.
Speaking in the National Assembly during a call attention notice, Malik said the Prime Minister had instructed that households be provided uninterrupted gas supply from 5am to 10pm. He added that the Prime Minister chaired a high-level review meeting on the issue and issued directives to ensure smooth distribution.
Malik said he himself had held two to three meetings on the matter, issuing instructions for all necessary measures, particularly as gas demand rises during the winter months. “Compared with last year, load shedding has been significantly reduced,” he said.
He added that Sui Southern Gas areas were also receiving roughly 18 percent more gas, and complaints had dropped compared with the previous year. However, Malik noted that gas production in Balochistan alone cannot meet current demand, so additional supply is being provided from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh.
The minister acknowledged ongoing issues such as gas theft and meter tampering in Quetta, promising that areas with low gas pressure would be identified and addressed.
He said around 7 to 8 million households are connected to Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL). In November, the company received 80,000 to 90,000 complaints, 70–80 percent of which were related to OGRA issues. Malik emphasized that these complaints were resolved within 36 hours.
