The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has imposed heavy fines on six Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) for creating a country’s artificial petrol shortage and has notified three others.
On June 9, OGRA inspection teams conducted a raid at depots Hascol and HOPL in Keemari and Port Qasim, Karachi, and found over 40 million liters of petrol hoarded there. Shell Pakistan has also been found involved in the hoarding of petrol at its depot in Taru Janna, Peshawar, in a separate development.
FIRs were launched and notices were issued against those firms. Together with a few others, the mentioned OMCs were slapped with heavy fines for contravening contracts.
M/s Shell Pakistan Ltd and Total Parco Pakistan Ltd have each received penalties for Rs.10 million, while M/s Hascol Pakistan Ltd, Attock Petroleum Ltd, Gas & Oil Pakistan Ltd, and Puma Energy (Pvt) Ltd have been fined Rs. 5 million.
Likewise, the M / s Byco Petroleum Pakistan Ltd, Askari Oil Services Ltd, and Be Energy Ltd have been issued with show-cause notices, and their response is required.
Such OMCs face fines of up to Rs.10 million which are payable within 30 days.
In addition, these OMCs have been asked by the oil and gas regulator to immediately improve supplies to their respective outlets or face more stringent action and greater fines.
These show-cause notices were served on June 3, while OGRA spokesman Imran Ghaznavi said an inspection of the depots, started earlier this week, will continue.
