PM Shehbaz says power tariff hike not to burden 63% of domestic consumers

With focus on energy requirements, Pakistan has signed a framework agreement with Azerbaijan for procurement of LNG on flexible terms, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.  

The signing of the agreement between Pakistan LNG Limited and Azeri Company SOCAR in Lahore on Monday was witnessed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. 

Speaking on the occasion, Shehbaz Sharif said the life of this agreement is one year which is extendable to one more year. He said under the agreement, Azerbaijan will offer one cargo of LNG each month and it will be up to Pakistan to either accept the cargo or not. He said there will be no financial penalty if Pakistan does not accept the cargo.

Shehbaz Sharif termed the agreement a major milestone in the fraternal relations between Pakistan and Azerbaijan. He especially thanked the President of Azerbaijan for playing a pivotal role in this agreement.

Alluding to his recent productive and fruitful discussions with the President of Azerbaijan, the prime ,inister said we have given approval to Azeri airline to land in Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi.  This is a big step forward to promote tourism and investment and exchange of delegations between the two countries.

براہِ راست - لاہور: وزیرِ اعظم شہباز شریف کی پاکستان اور آذربائیجان کے مابین پیٹرولیم کی صنعت میں تعاون کے معاہدے پر دستخط کی تقریب میں بطور مہمانِ خصوصی شرکت https://t.co/AUKWcqTMUA

— Government of Pakistan (@GovtofPakistan) July 24, 2023

Shehbaz Sharif said an Azeri delegation of horticulture experts is also arriving in Pakistan today on his invitation. He said we want to learn from their expertise to make the landscape of Karachi, Peshawar, Quetta and Lahore as beautiful as that of Baku.

On the occasion, the prime minister also touched upon the matter of recent increase in the power tariff saying it was done so under the agreement reached with the IMF.

He however clarified that this increase will not burden about 63 percent of the total domestic consumers. He said 31 percent of the consumers have also been given partial subsidy.

In his remarks on the occasion, the Ambassador of Azerbaijan said that both the countries are deepening their cooperation in diverse fields including energy, defence, IT and transport.

He said the two sides are also negotiating a preferential trade agreement, expressing the confidence that they will be successful in this regard as well. 

PM lays foundation stone of three industrial zones of Lahore

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday said that the utilization of modern technology and alternative energy by the industrial sector were inevitable to make exports competitive in the international market.

The prime minister, addressing the soft launching of Ombre Special Economic Zone, Sundar Green Special Economic Zone and Smart Special Economic Zone, said owing to surging oil prices, the only option was to exploit the potential of solar, wind and hydel energy for the cost-effectiveness of local products.

He said the issue of circular debt was required to be addressed on a war-footing basis, which was swelling due to wasting billions of rupees annually because of line and transmission losses as well as power theft.

براہِ راست - وزیرِ اعظم شہباز شریف کا لاہور میں اومبر اسپیشل اکنامک زون، سندر گرین اسپیشل اکنامک زون اور اسمارٹ اسپیشل اکنامک زون شیخوپورہ کا سنگ بنیاد رکھنے کی تقریب سے خطاب https://t.co/dHxLH5V8TI

— Government of Pakistan (@GovtofPakistan) July 24, 2023

The prime minister appreciated the private sector for chalking out a plan to establish the three special economic zones and assured all-out support from the federal and Punjab governments.

He said the commitment by the private sector to attract investment worth billions of rupees was also laudable, besides their plans to set up a three-megawatt solar power plant and other allied facilities like the vocational training center.

He hoped that the interim government would also take all possible measures to keep the national economy on track of progress, as the incumbent one was already making necessary legislation to pave the way for future course of action.

The prime minister told the gathering that an agreement between Pakistan and Azerbaijan for the import of LNG was signed earlier in the day under which the latter would provide an LNG shipment per month with the former having the option to purchase it or not, in accordance with the needs and without any penalty.

Similarly, he said, the private sector should also sign the deals with Qatar to import LNG for industrial use – not for sale in the market – and assured that the Federal Government would facilitate them at the Karachi Port.

Prime Minister Shehbaz also called for spreading the network of SEZs across the country. He said during Nawaz Sharif’s last government, the SEZs were planned across the country under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, but, despite complete mapping and other formalities, all the projects faced unnecessary delay, except Rashakai.

He said the agreement with International Monetary Fund was signed to ebb away the risk of default and put the country on the course toward progress.

The prime minister said as far as the SEZs by the public sector were concerned, the government would provide land free of charge to the investors, as it had done for the Bahawalpur Solar Park.

However, he said the use of SEZs’ land for non-industrial use would not be tolerated and recalled similar “misconduct” by some parties in Faisalabad and other SEZs where people had been minting money by selling out the land.