The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet, slated to meet on Saturday, is likely to approve policy guidelines on determining revenue requirements of gas distribution companies in an attempt to pass the burden of Rs49 billion on to consumers.
This amount has been stuck with the distribution companies – Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) and Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) – since the day they obtained stay orders from courts following reversal of the increase in unaccounted-for-gas (UFG) ceiling from 5% to 7%.
The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra), headed by Tauqir Sadiq at that time, had raised the UFG ceiling – covering gas theft and leakage – for 2009-10. However after one month, it rescinded the decision and set the ceiling again at 5%.