IMF loan instalments will cost the public Rs 847 billion.

Karachi (December-20-2024) : The Chairman of National Business Group Pakistan, the President of the Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum, the President of All Karachi Industrial Alliance, the Chairman of the FPCCI Advisory Board, and the President and former provincial minister, Mian Zahid Hussain, said on Friday that the increase in gas tariff due to IMF pressure will affect the public and the industrial sector.
He said the move will also increase electricity consumption, which will reduce the losses of the bleeding power sector. Mian Zahid Hussain said that increasing the price of gas will increase the public's burden by at least Rs 847 billion, but at the same time, the gas sector's circular debt will also be reduced.
Talking to the business community, the veteran business leader said that, on the recommendation of OGRA, the gas tariff for Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has been increased by 8.7 per cent, after which the price of gas will be Rs 142.45 per MMBTU. Meanwhile, the gas tariff for Balochistan and Sindh has been increased by 25.78 per cent or Rs 361 per MMBTU, which will be implemented in February.
He informed us that the gas price had been increased by 8.7 and 25.78 percent, while the SSGC demanded an increase of at least 200 percent. The gas price hike will be made before the arrival of the IMF mission, due to which the second instalment of the loan will be available, and if this were not done, the IMF program would have gone sour, he said. Mian Zahid Hussain said that this increase has been done thoughtfully, which will balance the price of gas across the country because industrialists and consumers of the two provinces used to get gas more expensive than the other two provinces, which they complained of discrimination.
Mian Zahid Hussain said that although its price continuously increases to reduce losses in the gas sector, significant efforts are not being made to eliminate corruption, mismanagement and politics, which is regrettable.
Mian Zahid Hussain said that, on the IMF's demand, gas connections of Captive Power Plants will also be disconnected from next month so that gas-based power plants can use grid electricity. However, this may affect production and exports because interruptions in the power supply are common.
Disconnecting gas from Captive Power Plants will add additional gas to the system while gas-supplying companies will also have to bear financial losses. This will make gas more expensive for domestic consumers.
By cutting off the gas supply, the industries will no longer bear the burden of domestic gas consumers, which will
improve matters eventually.
On the other hand, the use of LNG will also be reduced, creating a gas surplus. Mian Zahid Hussain further said that along with increasing the gas price, the authorities should also focus on other issues to ease the crisis instead of increasing.