Category: News & Announcement

Oil prices edged up on Monday as global equities rallied on hopes for another U.S. stimulus package, but rising virus cases fed concerns about fuel demand and kept oil futures from moving higher. Brent crude settled 51 cents, or 1.22%, higher at $42.43 per barrel. West Texas Intermediate settled 35 cents, or 0.9%, higher at $40.60 per barrel. “There is some renewed hopes that the Democrats and the Republicans can get a relief bill put together and that seems to be raising expectations that the (oil) demand outlook is going…

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ISLAMABAD: A team of the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has initiated on-site audit of the Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited (SNGPL) for the first time. Member Gas Muhammad Arif along with OGRA experts visited the SNGPL where they studied internal business control, systems and procedures adopted by the SNGPL relating to the regulated activity. The team reviewed and studied internal working of the SNGPL, and focused on the gas company’s measures to control UFG losses. The SNGPL extended all possible cooperation, and shared whatever information was requested by…

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More than its quasi-judicial muscle, the power-sector regulator has started operating through backchannels to challenge the bureaucracy’s entrenched practices that have resulted in a black hole of more than 30pc in electricity generation through transmission, distribution and cost recovery. In February this year, a team of the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) led by its top officials reached out to the prime minister, questioning the data sheets presented by his own cabinet colleagues and officials assisting them. The team asked the prime minister to declare a “national power emergency”…

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KARACHI: Pakistan’s hub of economic activities, Karachi, continued to face prolonged power outages on Wednesday that badly crippled industrial output at a time when the economy is poised to recover from the historic Covid-19 depression. K-Electric, the sole power production, transmission and distribution firm responsible to supply power across the city of ports and other parts of Sindh and Balochistan, failed to meet the energy needs as it cited low gas pressure as reason for the outages.  It has held the Sui Southern Gas Company (SSSGC) responsible for the power…

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The federal government has waived the guarantee fee on the Chinese loans being taken to construct two nuclear power plants in Karachi and also sought a report on the total outstanding employee-related liabilities of the Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM).  The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet on Wednesday approved to write off 0.5% guarantee fee on the foreign loans of the K2/K3 projects. The decision will help reducing the power projects construction cost by Rs12 billion, said a handout of the Ministry of Finance.  Adviser to the Prime Minister…

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