‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath’: Nadeem Babar shares wrong figures with cabinet

ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Petroleum Nadeem Babar presented wrong figures before the cabinet on Tuesday.

Geo News programme ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath’ host Shahzeb Khanzada said in his comment that wrong decisions are being made consistently and then wrong statements are issued in defence of such decisions. He said according to Geo News sources when SAPM Nadeem Babar was asked about expensive purchase of LNG during the cabinet meeting on Tuesday, he denied it then shared wrong figures with the cabinet.

Shahzeb said the SAPM in a bid to conceal his mistake, and showing the rate of December 2019 on higher side, and current rate on lower side, presented the figures of the long-term agreement together in his press release and tweets and said that the government was receiving cheaper LNG with long-term agreements.

Shahzeb said the government got LNG in December 2019 on average rate of 10.7 percent and oil price in international market was $62. Now the government is telling that the PML-N’s long-term agreements are 13 percent. The Petroleum Ministry in its tweets says the LNG spot purchase is possible only at the time of demand. It says it was already known that the demand in winter would be three times higher than summer.

Shahzeb said Nadeem Babar admitted during Tuesday’s press conference that 17-kilometre pipeline has been established in Karachi and then blamed the PPP. He had said a month ago that the pipeline would be completed in December and 1,200 mmcfd gas would be brought through it and 1,400 mmcfd in January.

If the pipeline was completed two months ago then more gas could have been brought in January, but even the suppliers of 1,200 mmcfd for January did not arrive because of delayed tender. When the bids did not come, the media was blamed for it. But if it is supposed to be true, then how the bidders came in the last 10 days of January. Suppliers came after another emergency tender, but when the rate was 44 percent higher, then it was said the government was tendering for a better rate and they were not to purchase 14 cargos. The Petroleum Ministry tendered two cargoes for February the bids of which were very expensive. No tender was made for first 15 days of February and only two cargos were tendered for the next 15 days and now it is being said more cargos could have been brought had the Sindh government completed the pipeline earlier. The prime minister must ask Nadeem Babar who changes statements contrary to facts every week and who blames others for his mistakes.