Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Economy Watch (PEW) on Sunday asked the government to tackle gas sector circular debt before it puts a question mark on the success of the energy policy.

“The debt should be contained before it damages the gas sector like it has played havoc with the electricity sector,” PEW President Dr Murtaza Mughal said. He expressed concern over the gas sector circular debt that has touched the mark of Rs 12 billion.

He said that the country already had a circular debt of Rs 650 billion and now Rs 12 billion of gas debt was added to it, creating more uncertainty. He said the government was buying liquefied natural gas (LNG) since April 2015 and such losses in a short span were not acceptable.

He said that a gas utility has reported profit after three years of losses therefore immediate steps should be taken to streamline gas sector. Dr Murtaza Mughal said that the government inherited circular debt worth Rs 450 billion, which was now at Rs 650 billion that means the government has added Rs 200 billion to it.

He said the energy managers inefficiency continues to hinder economic growth. The Water and Power minister recently slapped a ban on using imported fuel for power generation. He demanded of the government to divulge details of the deal with the Qatar Gas to bring rumors to an end.