Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry Thursday said that the first cargo ship carrying urea will reach Pakistan on February 10 from China whereas the government would import a total of 150,000 metric tons from the neighbouring country.
Taking to his official Twitter handle, Chaudhry said, “The first cargo ship carrying 50,000 tonnes of fertiliser will reach the port by February 10 while 600,000 tonnes of local fertiliser will also be available in the market from January.”
ای سی سی نے چائنہ سے ڈیڑھ لاکھ ٹن کھاد درآمد کرنے کی منظوری دی ہے۔ 50ہزار ٹن کھاد کا پہلا جہاز10فروری کوپہنچے گا۔جنوری سے6لاکھ ٹن مقامی کھاد بھی مارکیٹ میں آنا شروع ہوجائے گی۔ عالمی منڈی میں بہت زیادہ قیمت کے باوجود ہمارے کسان کو کھاد کی کمی کا سامنا نہیں ہو گا
— Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) January 6, 2022
He added that despite a hike in prices of urea in the international market, farmers will not face a shortage of it in the country.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet approved import of 50,000 tonnes of urea from China on an immediate basis subject to clearance from the Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA).
The Fertiliser Manufacturers of Pakistan Advisory Council (FMPAC) had suggested to the government to import 100,000 tonnes of urea to build the buffer stock.
On December 24, Federal Minister for Industries and Production Makhdum Khusro Bakhtyar while chairing a fertiliser review meeting had asked the fertiliser industry to increase urea supplies by 30 per cent countrywide to ease down the market, besides directing the Petroleum Division to assure gas supply to urea plants according to revised supply priority orders.
The minister, while stating that up to 20,000 metric tonne (MT) production of urea on a daily basis was reported on an average, had advised farmers to not engage in panic buying and register complaints of overcharging and hoarding in their locality.
On December 31, the Senate Standing Committee on National Food Security and Research had noted that the gas supply disruption to fertiliser plants during the June-September period had caused a shortage of 200,000 tonnes of urea.
The parliamentary committee had observed that supplies had been affected as urea plants were non-operational between June 28 and Sept 16 despite ECC orders to keep plants operational from March to November, lamenting that the situation would result in hoarding, an artificial shortage and price hikes.
