CNG stations to challenge gas supply suspension

MANSEHRA: All Pakistan Compressed Natural Gas Association in Hazara on Saturday decided to challenge the federal government’s decision to suspend gas supply to CNG stations across the province in December and January.

“We have called meetings of the association in Hazara and Peshawar Regions to evolve the future strategy to deal with situation after government’s decision to suspend natural gas to CNG stations for two months in in Hazara and rest of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” Khalid Latif, the divisional president of association, in Hazara told reporters here.

He said that if the government didn’t withdraw its decision to suspend natural gas supply to CNGs in Hazara and the rest of the province under its gas load management for winter, they would move the Peshawar High Court against it.

Latif said that they had called their association’s meetings in Abbottabad on Monday (November 4) and a follow-up in Peshawar next week to discuss loadshedding of gas and tariff differences between prices of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) and Compressed Natural gas (CNG).

“This meeting which would also be attended by Ghias Abdullah Paracha, the central pattern-in-chief and Pervez Khan Khattak, the chairmen of the association in KP, would also decide to hold talks with Federal Minister for Energy Musadik Malik on these issues,” he said.

Latif said they could also launch street agitation if the government didn’t withdraw its gas load management formula.

“We want the government to avoid such unilateral decisions of suspending gas to CNG stations for two months, and reduce prices of CNG over 35 percent compared with LPG to protect the domestic production,” he added.

Mohammad Kamran, the provincial general secretary of the CNG Association in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, told reporters here that a meeting of the provincial body would be held next week in Peshawar.

“We want the government to set aside its decision of shutting down of CNG stations for two months, instead it should follow the previous loadshedding formula to suspend gas supply to vehicles at morning and night,” he said.