ECC directs continuation of subsidised gas for fertiliser plants

ISLAMABAD: The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet has directed the Ministry of Energy to continue the supply of gas to all fertiliser plants at subsidised rates to ensure smooth supplies of fertilisers in the market.

The ECC has also considered the import of up to 200,000 tonnes of fertiliser. In case of unavailability of gas at the subsidised rate, the import of fertilizer might reach 0.5 million tonnes.

According to official announcements made by the Ministry of Finance, Federal Minister for Finance, Revenue, and Economic Affairs Dr Shamshad Akhtar presided over a meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet on Tuesday.

The meeting discussed and reviewed the performance and trends of key economic indicators including CPI of various essential items presented by the Ministry of Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives. The meeting decided to constitute a core group comprising the secretaries of Planning, Commerce, Food Security and Industry with the mandate to present concrete proposals for monitoring and advising the ECC on prices of the essential commodities as well as maintaining the stocks of strategic products.

The Ministry of Information Technology & Telecommunication submitted a summary for approval of the “Telecom Infrastructure Sharing Framework.” The ECC discussed it in detail and approved it. The ECC also approved another summary for the release of IMT spectrum for improvement of the next-generation mobile broadband services in Pakistan. It also approved the constitution of an advisory committee for the release of the unsold IMT Spectrum along with its terms of reference.

The ECC also approved the proposal of a change of name from M/S Tuwairqi Steel Mills LTD to National Steel Complex LTD subject to further review and endorsement by the Law Division.

It also considered summaries of the Ministry of Energy and Ministry of Industries regarding pricing and allocation of gas for fertiliser plants. The ECC directed the Ministry of Energy to continue the supply of gas to all fertiliser plants to ensure a sufficient supply of fertilisers.

The committee also decided to constitute an inter-ministerial committee with the representation of the Ministries of Finance, Planning, Commerce, Food Security, Industries, Power and Energy to present recommendations on the allocation and pricing of gas for the fertiliser industry.