ISLAMABAD: The Petroleum Division has proposed the reconstitution of the Committee on the import of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) following seven years of unsuccessful efforts to build consensus among stakeholders since its inception in 2018, official sources revealed.
During a recent briefing to the Council of Common Interests (CCI), the Petroleum Division acknowledged that the previously constituted Committee, despite multiple consultations with stakeholders, failed to produce a consensus or final report. With a change in government, the earlier Committee ceased to function, prompting the Petroleum Division to recommend its reconstitution under the same Terms of Reference (ToRs).
The LNG issue was initially raised in 2018 at the request of the Sindh government and added to the CCI agenda. Sindh had voiced key concerns including: LNG being treated as a gas and not an import item, unauthorized swapping of RLNG with local gas, allocation of RLNG to Punjab-based projects, diversion of federal focus from local exploration, violation of Article 158 of the Constitution, and amendments in the LNG Policy, 2011 that affected gas pricing mechanisms.
Over multiple CCI meetings between 2018 and 2022, several directives were issued. These included orders for meetings between federal and provincial energy departments, consultations led by the SAPM on Petroleum, and the establishment of a high-level committee to devise a national strategy in light of declining indigenous gas reserves and rising demand.
Despite these efforts, no conclusive strategy or report has materialized. In its 49th meeting on January 13, 2022, the CCI once again directed the Petroleum Division to present the Committee’s report, which remains pending. The reconstitution is now seen as a necessary step to move forward on this long-standing issue.
Story by Mushtaq Ghumman
