ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: The Federal Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has said that petrol shortage will end soon as the government is making all-out efforts to improve its supply.
Talking to media representatives in Islamabad, the minister said that demand for petrol witnessed an increase of 25 percent this month following substantial decrease in its price.
The minister said that 52,000 metric tons of petrol will reach the country today while Shell will also import 20,000 ton petrol tomorrow.
Abbasi said that the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has issued notices to oil companies in view of the shortage of petrol as they did not fulfill their obligations.
The petroleum minister also told that prices of petroleum products will further decrease next month.
In addition, he said that there is no plan to re-open CNG stations in Punjab in the near future. He said that supply of gas to domestic consumers is the first priority of the government.
The minister said that the liquefied natural gas (LNG) import will start by the end of March.
Earlier on Friday, the Minister for Water and Power Khawaja Muhammad Asif while speaking on a point of order in the National Assembly said that the shortage of petroleum products has also affected the power generation due to which load shedding has increased.
The water and power minister said that there is a shortfall of about 3,000 Megawatt electricity in hydel sector due to de-silting of canals. He said that after the completion of the de-silting and import of petrol there will be significant increase in power generation.
Khawaja Asif said that the government is taking measures to reduce load shedding in the coming summer.
