Page 12 - AsianOil Week 47 2021
P. 12
AsianOil SOUTH ASIA AsianOil
Pakistan’s fuel stations
strike in price control protest
POLICY PAKISTAN’S fuel retailers have gone on strike in Committee] ECC and a decision will be taken
protest at government price controls they claim in its next session”.
have left them with unsustainably thin margins. PPDA chairman Abdul Sami Khan told
The country’s fuel stations launched the strike reporters on November 24, however, that the
on November 25 in an effort to put pressure on the government had previously made empty prom-
government to lift controls that will more than dou- ises in relation to fuel retailers’ complaints.
ble their profit margins from 2.5% to 6%. The move “We had meetings and discussions with
comes after an earlier strike planned for November the authorities, who agreed to our demand
5 was postponed after the government invited the of increasing our margin,” Khan said, before
Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association (PPDA) adding: “We were told the summary for the
representatives to negotiations. same would be shared with us before its sub-
“Petrol pumps across the country will remain mission to the ECC; however, no such consul-
closed today,” a PPDA spokesperson said. “The tation took place.”
government did not accept our demands. He added that this lack of progress had
[Unless] the government [increases] the dealers’ forced the decision to shutter the fuel stations
margin to 6%, we will not negotiate with them,” for an “indefinite period”, adding that while the
he added. PPDA understood the impact it would have on
The government had tried to head of the consumers, “the government didn’t leave us with
strike, with Pakistani Energy Minister Hammad any option”.
Azhar tweeting the day before that the ministry The effects of the strike are already being felt,
was talking with the PPDA and that “a summary with consumers in Karachi telling local media
regarding revision of their margins has already outlet Geo News on November 25 that they had
been tabled in [the Economic Coordination struggled to find gasoline for sale.
“We searched far and wide for petrol, from
Clifton to Liaquatabad, but could not get any,”
one commuter said, with other outlets reporting
similar scenes across the country’s cities.
Panic buying reportedly took place the
evening before, with large queues forming out-
side fuel stations as consumers attempted to
stockpile before the strike set in.
SOUTHEAST ASIA
Dozens of Indonesian projects
still looking for state partner
PROJECTS & INDONESIAN upstream regulator SKK Migas expenditure to that date, to a BUMD following
COMPANIES has revealed that there are more than 60 plans of a project’s first commercial discovery.
development (PODs) that must still bring on a Contractors are expected to carry the BUMD
state partner, a key step in securing the govern- during development, with costs to be repaid
ment’s final approval. from future oil and gas production. If for some
SKK Migas head of legal Didik Setyadi reason a BUMD does not enter the project, the
revealed this week that the operators of 61 pro- operator must offer the same deal to state-owned
jects were in talks with regionally owned com- Pertamina.
panies (Badan Usaha Milik Daerah – BUMD) Setyadi said that of the 61 projects, 36 had
concerning the farm-down of 10% stakes. entered the preliminary POD phase, while the
The Indonesian government introduced remaining 25 were either managing stake trans-
new legislation in November 2016 that required fers or extensions.
contractors to offer a 10% participating inter- “[I]n 2021, there are 28 [projects] whose
est, based upon the net book value (NBV) of status is still at the stage of appointing a
P12 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 47 26•November•2021
