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Pakistan's ambassador to Russia Shafqat Ali Khan said his country is committed to the Pakistan Stream gas pipeline project with Moscow, adding that legal discussions are underway between the two countries.
This comes amid the declining Russian energy exports amid the Ukraine conflict. The European Union last week banned the import of Russian oil into the EU, thereby cutting a massive source of revenue for Russia. "The exact date [when work on the project will be completed] is unknown yet. There are several legal issues. There are no particular problems. As for political will, both countries are committed to this project," the Pakistan diplomat told Sputnik news agency. Pakistan Stream Gas Pipeline Project, stretching from Sindh to Punjab, is a 1,100-kilometre gas pipeline. The USD 2.5 billion project, which was first signed in 2015, is tentatively slated to begin in 2023. Russia is the world's second-biggest producer of natural gas while Pakistan is energy scarce country. With the declining gas reserves, Pakistan faces a major supply problem as gas still makes up a substantial part of its energy mix. Last week, the Pakistan government determined a 45 per cent increase in the prescribed prices of natural gas for the 2022-23 fiscal year to meet the revenue requirements of the two gas utilities. After the hike in petroleum products prices, the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has approved the hike in gas prices for Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) and Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL). The gas price hiked up to 44 per cent for SSGC consumers and 45 per cent for SNGPL consumers, ARY News reported. After the hike, the new gas price for SSGC consumers was fixed at Rs 1007 with an increase of Rs 308.53 and the new price for SNGPL consumers was fixed at Rs 854.52. The new gas prices will come into effect from July 1 following a notification to be issued by the federal government. (ANI)
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