ISLAMABAD: As countdown to election starts, the PML-N government has accelerated the drive of offering one million additional gas connections for domestic consumers.
These directives have been issued on suggestions of the parliamentarians, majorly in gas-hungry Punjab, reported Dawn.
The cost of laying these pipelines is determined to be around Rs14 billion and is spread over 20,000 kilometers.
Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) is under immense pressure to give go-ahead for 700,000 new gas connections, said a senior Ogra official.
This move is being carried out under guise of sustainable development, although these schemes are unaffordable due to gas shortage for Sui Northern Gas Pipelines to execute, said a government official.
He disclosed over Rs50 billion amount of work orders had been issued by SNGPL in 2018 for purchase of pipelines and equipment for domestic gas schemes termed distribution lines and distribution main.
Previous years unfinished schemes are also carried over and the overall cost of approved gas schemes was determined to be around Rs1 trillion, but unexpected to be completed in a decade.
This follows on top of major gas infrastructure projects costing roughly $2 billion to transport imported liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Karachi to Punjab.
This project is now undergoing execution. Ogra according to its official had given go-ahead for 300,000 new gas connections costing roughly Rs4.2 billion, which constitutes determined revenue requirement for FY 2017-18.
To give 700,000 gas connections, Ogra has already been disbursed Rs9.5 billion for this purpose.
As per Ogra official, aside normal government channels, the regulators top officials were also told to come over to Parliament House last week to give speedy go-ahead for these projects.
He added, the regulator had given their assurances they would deliver within a week once one of its official returns from overseas.
