KARACHI – Mian Nasser Hyatt Maggo, President FPCCI, has expressed his concerns over unfair practices and treatment to smaller Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs). He added that smooth functioning of OMCs is indispensable for any economy and continuing investments in mid-stream and down-stream sectors are as eminent.
Mian Nasser Hyatt Maggo expressed his dissatisfaction over the fact that investigations and enquiries are still continuing over June 2020 petrol crisis and are keeping OMCs unnecessarily occupied with regulatory tangles. He added that if any wrongdoing was established on the basis of inquiry report, the culprits should have been punished by now; instead of continuing with the inquiry incessantly.
Mian Nasser Hyatt Maggo said that Pakistan’s mid-stream and down-stream sectors need huge investments in order to increase refinery capacities and modernize their end-products to minimize carbon emissions. He added that major part of these investments will come as FDI coupled with technology transfer – and, harassment of OMCs are proving to be detrimental already.
Mian Nasser Hyatt Maggo said that imposing fines and blocking NOCs for retail outlets are creating discouraging environment for OMCs and FPCCI has been approached by their representatives to make their voices heard.
Mian Nasser Hyatt Maggo also raised the issue of profit margins for OMCs and questioned that when ECC decided back in 2014 that profit margins of OMCs will be based on Consumer Price Index (CPI), why profit margins are not revised in a timely fashion. This practice will also prove discouraging to new investors in the industry, he added.
Mian Nasser Hyatt Maggo added that FPCCI is ever-ready to help resolve issues between OMCs and the government bodies through dialogue and discussion. He emphasized that it is in the larger national interest to encourage investments into oil industry and investors should be treated with dignity.
