Government planning to set up petroleum regulatory authority
The government is working on a plan to set up an independent Pakistan Petroleum (Exploration and Production) Regulatory Authority (PPEPRA) on the pattern of National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) in a bid to define policy and regulatory functions for the upstream sector as well as attract investment and develop a resource base.
Work on establishing the authority got under way after several foreign companies pulled out of Pakistan in the past few years in the wake of bureaucratic hurdles and policy issues.
Now, the independent authority, when established, will provide a level playing field for the investors seeking to pour capital into the upstream petroleum sector.
The authority would be created in consultation with the provincial governments, sources said, quoting a plan submitted in a recent meeting of the Council of Common Interests (CCI).
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Pakistan’s fertiliser sector builds inventory of 1m tons
Pakistan’s fertiliser sector has built up urea inventory of one million tons, which is going to weaken the pricing power of the companies if the government does not allow them to export.
As per the latest data released by the National Fertiliser Development Corporation (NFDC), the sale of urea surged 2.2 times to 381,000 tons in November as compared to 119,000 tons in the previous month. On the other hand, DAP offtake showed comparatively muted growth of 49percent on a month-on-month basis in the period under review.
“Overall nutrient offtake showed an upward growth of 80percent month-on-month as better rains and availability of water support higher demand of nutrients in Rabi sowing season,” stated a report by Aba Ali Habib Securities.
Despite this improvement, the sector has piled up a huge stock, which will force it on the back foot and push down prices as the demand inside the country does not match the extensively high production.
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Hydel power stations generate 34.7b units in 2019
The year 2019 turned out to be a historic one for the development of water and hydroelectric power resources in Pakistan.
A record high hydel electricity was generated and supplied to the national grid during the year, besides start of construction work on Mohmand Dam in May after five decades, said Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) in a statement on Friday.
The hydel power stations owned and operated by Wapda provided 34.678 billion units of electricity – the highest-ever contribution of clean energy – to the system in 2019. It was higher by 6.321 billion units compared to last year when 28.357 billion units were supplied.
The optimal operation of three hydroelectric power projects, completed last year in a phased manner, proved to be a good omen for hydel generation in the country. These projects alone generated 9.372 billion units cumulatively in 2019.
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| Petroleum Prices (Rs/Ltr) | |
|---|---|
| Product | Retail Price |
| HOBC | 109.7 |
| Premium | 113.99 |
| High Speed Diesel | 125.01 |
| Light Speed Diesel | 82.43 |
| Kerosene Oil | 96.35 |
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PTEA demands measures to raise exports
The Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA) has appreciated the significant drop of 33percent in the trade deficit, however, they urged for measures to boost industrialisation and exports as growth in exports has remained tepid during the July-November period.
Hailing the sharp fall in the trade deficit, PTEA Chairman Sohail Pasha pointed out that this decline in the deficit is mainly contributed by the import side and not from exports, as growth in exports remained weak.
Quoting official figures, he said that exports have fallen by 0.67percent in November over the preceding month while the average rise in exports in the first five months is less than 5percent, indicating that achieving the export target will again be the toughest this year.
For the first time in the last 15 years, imports are decreasing but low export volumes are still the issue for the country’s economic growth. “Lack of diversification of export destinations and products and the high cost of doing business are among key factors for low exports,” he added.
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Cotton production predicted at 9.5mn bales
The Cotton Crop Assessment Committee (CCAC) has estimated the country’s cotton output at 9.451 million bales against the production target of 12 million bales for the current season.
Cotton Commissioner Dr Khalid Abdullah told APP on Friday that Minister for National Food Security and Research Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar chaired a meeting that assessed the output of current cotton crop in the country.
Presenting an overview of the cotton production scenario, Abdullah told the meeting that cotton output in Punjab was expected to hit 6.671 million bales and in Sindh, it was assessed at 2.68 million bales.
The crop output in Balochistan was estimated at 0.098 million bales, he said, adding that the cotton crop faced an extraordinary rise in temperature in critical stages of development followed by an unexpected rise in temperature by 2-degree Celsius to 5-degree Celsius in September compared to the same month in the past few years.
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Official stresses adopting Chinese farming model
Pakistan-China Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCJCCI) has urged the government to adopt Chin’s eco-farming model for increasing agricultural yields to avert the growing food crisis.
While introducing the Chinese Cultivation Model of ‘Eco-Farming’ in the PCJCCI think-tank session, PCJCCI President Zarak Khan emphasised benefiting from Chinese friendship in the field of agriculture.
He said that the Chinese cultivation model involved the usage of hybrid seeds, better water management, the increased role of government for ensuring effective safety and support mechanisms such as making a reservoir of food grain and also public-private partnerships to overcome the future food crisis. He said that China, accounting for only 10percent arable land, produces food for 20percent of the world’s population and it ranks first in worldwide farm output.
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President promulgates NAB amendment ordinance 2019
Financial sectors excluded from NAB purview
President Dr Arif Alvi on Friday promulgated the NAB Amendment Ordinance 2019 – a move which curtails the sweeping powers of the anti-corruption watchdog to act against any individual accused of corruption at will.
The new ordinance provides more protection to a public office holder or government official while at the same time excludes several financial sectors from the purview of the country’s premier anti-corruption watchdog.
In a major amendment to the NAB law, the government mandates the NAB chairman to submit a report on complaints against the bureau to the federal government. Earlier, the NAB chief used to submit the report to the president.
As per the ordinance, it has been made mandatory for NAB to obtain approval of a scrutiny committee, comprising NAB chairman, cabinet secretary, SECP chairman, FBR chief, and a law ministry representative, before acting against any government official.