The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) and Pakistan State Oil (PSO) have been widely criticized for their lethargic performance on Monday. This criticism involves the automation and syncing of data regarding petroleum stocks and supply. The members of the cabinet committee, comprising of high-ranking officials, showed their dissatisfaction at the poor visibility of petroleum stocks. This lack of visibility made it possible for market manipulators to stock up products as prices soared.
The cabinet committee was established by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to keep an eye on the prices of petroleum products. It was chaired by the finance minister Muhammad Aurangzeb. Climate Change Minister Dr Musadik Malik is also the former energy minister. He pointed out the issue of making profits out of the industry without any immediate measures being taken. It is important to note that even the public-sector company PSO managed only 60 percent synchronization of its retail units.
Government moves to tighten oversight
As such, it was recommended that law enforcement agencies be brought into the picture. This is for the purposes of better surveillance of the retail shops as well as reducing hoarding. This resulted in the creation of joint teams. These teams will comprise members of the Petroleum Division, OGRA, FIA, and PSO, among others, to visit select fuel stations in Islamabad.
The committee laid great stress on ensuring full activation of the online system of OGRA. This system can help to monitor stock levels, sales, and delivery from depots to the more than 12,000 fuel stations in Pakistan. Finance minister Aurangzeb urged all stakeholders to accelerate the process of providing data through this online portal.
Supply situation remains stable for now
They were assured by the officials that, in general, petroleum stock is quite good. Diesel can be relied upon for a period of about 25 days. Petrol stock is satisfactory for present demand. Meanwhile, crude oil stock is good enough for 12 days. The refining of crude oil has continued as usual. Importation in future weeks has also been planned.
In addition to this, the committee deliberated on gas stock. They emphasized that there should be even distribution between domestic users and the power generation industry. They warned about unauthorized storage in this regard.
Such measures are being taken to avoid any problem regarding the supply of fuel. This comes at a time when prices have kept changing both locally and internationally.
