ISLAMABAD: Following the federal government’s advice, Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has notified a revision in the gas sale price exclusively for the General Industry (Captive) category, effective February 1, 2025.
According to OGRA, the federal government, while responding to the OGRA’s determinations of SNGPL and SSGCL’s Review of estimated revenue requirement for FY 2024-25, has issued advice on gas sale prices.
Following the government’s advice, effective February 1, 2025, the gas sale price for General Industry (Captive) has been revised from Rs. 3,000/MMBTU to Rs. 3,500/MMBTU.
However, prices for all other consumer categories, including Domestic, Special Roti Tandoor, General Industry (Process), Commercial, CNG, Cement, Fertilizer, and Power, remain unchanged.
This revision was officially published in the official gazette and is also available on OGRA’s website. Earlier, OGRA had recommended a significant gas price hike to the federal government to recover Rs. 847.33 billion during the current fiscal year and address the growing circular debt in the gas sector. The regulator proposed an increase of Rs. 142.45 per MMBTU for Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) consumers and Rs. 361 per MMBTU for Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGCL) consumers.
The recommendations outlined a flat rate of Rs. 1,778.35 per MMBTU for SNGPL consumers, up from the current Rs. 1,635.90, and Rs. 1,762.51 for SSGCL consumers, up from Rs. 1,401.25.
These adjustments equate to an 8.71 % increase for SNGPL consumers and a 25.78 % hike for SSGCL consumers.
Under the amended OGRA law, the federal government is required to issue category-wise consumer rates without altering the overall revenue requirement calculated by the regulator. Despite OGRA’s proposal, the government has opted to maintain existing rates for most consumer categories while implementing a targeted increase for the captive sector.
General Industry (Captive) means an industrial unit undertaking/unit carrying out the activity of power production (with or without co-generation) for self-consumption and /or for sale of surplus power to a distribution company or bulk-power consumers.
It is pertinent to mention that this price adjustment reflects ongoing efforts to balance the financial sustainability of the gas sector while minimizing the burden on most consumer groups.
