Daily Times

KARACHI: The compressed natural gas (CNG) stations in Sindh would remain close from Monday (today) morning for 24 hours, according to the CNG Association.

According to a notification issued by the association on Sunday the CNG stations’ shutdown schedule had been restored. In an earlier notification by SSGC, CNG stations were ordered to be shut down from 8pm Sunday till Tuesday but later another notification clarified that the stations would remain open all through Sunday night and then closed on Monday morning (8 am).

CNG stations reopened all over the province after a week’s hiatus as the government restored gas supply to the CNG sector on Saturday. The Federal Minister for Petroleum Ghulam Sarwar Khan in his recent visit had assured restoration of the former schedule, according to sources.

According to the former schedule the CNG stations would remain open till 8:00 on Monday morning and then will be closed for 24 hours. Meanwhile, a spokesman of Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC), in a statement said that, in case of better gas pressure, the CNG stations would be supplied gas till Monday morning. The spokesman added that the gas shutdown schedule would be released after consultation with the CNG Association.

Federal Minister for Petroleum Ghulam Sarwar Khan had announced that gas supply had been restored to the CNG sector in Sindh on Saturday. He told the media that he met all the relevant stakeholders and reached an agreement with the CNG Association. He further said that the federal government was trying its best to ensure that the province’s industrial sector did not go through gas load shedding.

It is pertinent to note here that the people of the province continued to suffer owing to closure of CNG pumps for the sixth day on Saturday as SSGC suspended gas supply to CNG stations and power plants of all general industries for an “indefinite period of time.” The company stated that it was facing gas shortage and low pressure in the system.

Published in Daily Times, December 17^th2018.