Recent gas supply issues emanating out of Annual Turn Around (ATA) of Kunnar-Pasakhi Deep (KPD) gas field and Engro LNG Terminal dry docking has been proactively managed by SSGC. At the start of the ATA crisis, it was projected that the gas supply situation would ease by around 9th of July. The Company’s prompt approach throughout the episode, however, led to the normal supplies to the captive power units getting restored on the 4th of July followed by opening of CNG stations the next day. The easing of the situation would not have been possible without taking all the stakeholders into confidence in order to avert a crisis situation. Having said that, the level of cooperation displayed by every stakeholder to augment gas supplies was exemplary and help to ensure a positive outcome.
The ATA of the upstream KPD resulted in a shortfall of 177 mmcfd gas to SSGC’s system, compelling the latter to resort to the Government of Pakistan’s Gas Load Management Plan. That meant curtailing supply to CNG sector and captive power units of general industries and non-export industrial units so that domestic and commercial customers continue to get uninterrupted gas supply. While it was boldly overcoming issues arising from KPD’s ATA, the issue of LNG Terminal’s dry docking surfaced that threatened to further worsen the supply situation. SSGC took up the issue of dry docking as a major challenge for an early resolution. The Company played a key role in overcoming supply situation on this front through regular consultation and correspondence with the LNG Terminal operators (EETPL) and the Ministry of Energy (Petroleum Division).
To avert the gas crunch, SSGC took a number of timely measures. The Company after detailed discussions with the concerned stakeholders signed a short-term MoU with Karachi’s trade associations to avert the gas crisis affecting industrial output, whereby the industries agreed to a full-pressure supply in all 7 industrial zones for 6 days a week, in exchange for the zones agreeing to not consume gas for one day of the week. SSGC also requested the existing gas fields to ramp up their gas volumes to have sufficient gas available for the customers for bridging the gap. While SSGC continued to prioritize domestic and commercial customers as per load management plan, the Company kept on providing normal gas supply to the export oriented sectors.
On the thorny issue of dry docking, persistent efforts from SSGC with full proactive support from the Ministry of Energy helped to regasify RLNG volumes from the replacement Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU), well ahead of schedule.
