Private Sector Opposes SNGPL 49% Tariff Hike

Islamabad, August 25, 2025, 08:24 PM PKT — The private sector has launched a fierce backlash against Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited’s (SNGPL) proposed gas transportation tariff hike of up to 49%, warning of a crushing burden on consumers, stifled competition, and discouraged private investment, as voiced during a Monday public hearing by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra), per official reports. Industry leaders argue the 46% hike for FY2024–25 and 49% for FY2025–26—justified by rising costs from Rs66 billion in 2019–20 to Rs94 billion in 2023–24 and revenue gaps, despite profits doubling to Rs38.9 billion from Rs19 billion—will undermine economic growth, raise energy costs, and jeopardize market liberalization, urging tariff alignment with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s relief pledge.

Industry accuses SNGPL of mismanagement, citing reduced gas supply, a nationwide shortage, and LNG surplus forcing 400 million cubic feet daily production cuts, with PM Sharif’s Qatar visit to renegotiate surplus LNG underway. Ghiyas Abdullah Paracha of Universal Gas Distribution Company Limited (UGDC) denounced the hike as unjustified and unsustainable, threatening SNGPL’s monopoly and market stability, demanding performance audits, profit reviews, and reforms like a multi-supplier model, separated accounts, inflation-indexed tariffs, and independent UFG scrutiny. Asim Riaz of All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) backed full liberalization for reliable supply, flagging energy mix distortions. Ogra Chairman Masroor Khan promised a balance of interests, citing Rs84 billion relief over five years and Rs57 billion currently, while SNGPL’s Saqib Abbas shifted blame to government pricing, urging private shipper burden-sharing. The hearing ended undecided, with warnings that approving the hike could devastate consumers and investors, needing reforms for competition and transparency. Web context on gas tariffs shows past disputes, while posts found on X reflect outrage—some demand reform, others question regulation. Critically, the narrative of “cost recovery” may mask monopoly protection—web data hints at past inefficiencies, and X sentiment suggests distrust in fair pricing, pointing to potential crisis.