Gas Billing Debacle: Pakistan's PKR 50 Billion Investigation Unfolds

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has launched an investigation into the colossal PKR 50 billion gas billing controversy that has blindsided numerous industrial and Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) consumers with retroactive charges drawn from nearly a decade ago, as reported by Dawn. The move follows widespread discontent among businesses unexpectedly burdened with bills for supposed dues amassed between 2015 and 2022.

Leading the inquiry is former federal secretary Shahid Khan, while industrial groups and CNG operators express their dissent. Central to the dispute is the Lahore-headquartered Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL), which recalculated the bills premised on updated price notifications issued by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra), according to the Dawn.

The recalculated dues indicate that the power sector allegedly owes PKR 40 billion, the industrial sector PKR 14.4 billion, CNG PKR 3.8 billion, and the fertilizer industry PKR 2.4 billion, bringing the total to nearly PKR 60 billion, inclusive of General Sales Tax and late payment surcharges. The revised bills, based on Regasified Liquefied Natural Gas (RLNG) prices supposedly actualized late, were quietly removed from Ogra's website before being reissued in March 2025. This financial burden has left thousands of businesses in legal uncertainty, inciting anger over regulatory mismanagement.

Businesses contend that product sales and exports occurred long ago, with little recourse to absorb the sudden charges. Dawn also reports the crisis revealing a PKR 76 billion subsidy discrepancy, highlighting the government's unresolved challenge of reconciling RLNG market rates with the subsidized prices offered to priority industries.

Ogra and SNGPL are currently locked in a blame exchange. SNGPL maintains that it acted according to regulatory guidelines under clause 3 of the Gas Sales Agreement, while Ogra insists that the recoveries are in accordance with legal stipulations. (ANI)

(With inputs from agencies.)