ISLAMABAD: To settle on a price fixed of gasifier to streamline fertiliser manufacture, the Ministry of Industries has convened a conference of fertiliser manufacturing businesses for this Wednesday.
Three federal ministers co-chaired a meeting on Monday & resolved to call a meeting of the manufacturing enterprises on Wednesday to decide on the price of feed gas in accordance with the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet’s instructions.
The meeting was co-chaired by federal ministers Tariq Bashir Cheema, Syed Murtaza Mahmud, and Dr. Musadik Malik. The meeting’s participants believed that fertiliser businesses should be provided with gas at a uniform tariff and on an even playing field.
Food security depends on agricultural output, and to ensure food security, all relevant ministries and depts should sit together and work coherently, according to Food Security Minister Mr. Cheema, who also emphasised the significance of the welfare of farmers and stated that “we aim to provide direct subsidy to the farmers.”
The industries and producing ministry presented a synopsis of the problems experienced by two SNGPL-based fertiliser facilities that use RLNG on a cost-sharing basis. The ECC meeting was conducted on July 28. The Variable Contribution Margin is used to calculate the gas rate for running these facilities (VCM).
Both plants have asked the industries ministry to revise the VCM and cap the GST at the amount paid by the plants due to rising fuel costs and other factors. In order to assure compliance with the prior decision by the ECC and the federal cabinet to switch both facilities on domestic gas, the ECC had authorised the proposal.
