By By Mansoor Ahmad
SHORTAGE of natural gas, CNG and LPG has followed petrol crisis and almost everyone has been affected.
The City is in the grip of severe cold weather and citizens are unable to warm their houses because of shortage of electricity and gas.
Electricity is expensive and available only for a few hours. Gas pressure in many residential areas is inadequate even for cooking or heating homes.
An acute shortage of petrol has affected the mobility of people. Petrol shortage has impacted mostly motorcyclists and luxury car owners who have not converted their vehicles to CNG. Majority of people owning CNG cars had not faced much hardship in getting fuel for their vehicles ever since cold weather set in.
Petrol shortage has resulted partly from short petrol supply and partly from storage by vehicles owners. Petrol pumps are also unwilling to stock petrol fearing a price drop. Petrol pump owners want their commission increased - something the government had agreed to implement from January 1, 2009.
They won’t be interested in buying petrol on December 30 and 31.
They also fear that petrol rates would decrease from January 1, 2009 in view of rapidly declining global crude oil rates. Dealers are not storing petrol because of fears of downward revision in its prices from January 1.
Both dealers and companies expect that supply position of petrol would ease by the next week. Chronic petrol shortage, however, would continue until supply from refineries increases.
Gas supply has always remained erratic in Lahore during the peak of cold weather. This year is no exception. Every winter, the SNGPL first cuts gas supply to industries and then to CNG stations. Gas shortage could have been lessened had government arranged supply from Sindh were gas supply is in surplus.
Moreover, the 100 mcdf gas promised from Qadirpur gas field has also not been injected in the SNGPL system.
Domestic users are suffering in many residential localities and they get adequate gas pressure only after midnight when they cook food for next day. Some localities face no gas supply problem at all. Suburbs are facing more acute shortage than the main City.
CNG stations are operating sporadically; some stations have gas but the pressure is very low. Many CNG stations have completely closed down. This has increased pressure on operating stations. Motorists’ line up for hours at CNG stations to get tanks filled.
Shortage of Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) is not so acute but its price has increased substantially. This is the kitchen fuel for people who are without Sui gas connections.
All two stroke auto-rickshaws also run on LPG. Its price has shot up from Rs 720 for 11.5 kg cylinder to Rs 1,150. Naturally, rickshaw wallahs now seek higher fare than a few days ago.