ISLAMABAD: In the middle of oil supply challenges and pricing controversies, the government on Wednesday removed acting chairman of the Oil & Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) and appointed an officer of the Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS), formerly District Management Group (DMG), on an interim basis.
In a notification issued by the Cabinet Division, Nabeel Ahmed Awan, a BS-22 officer of PAS, presently posted as secretary, Establishment Division, has been given the additional charge of Ogra chairman with immediate effect and for a period of three months or till the appointment of a regular Ogra chairperson.
The incumbent, Shahzad Iqbal, who had also been serving as the regulator’s top official on a look-after basis, will continue in his position as Member Gas.
He had earlier come under criticism during a meeting of the finance minister–led Cabinet Committee on Oil Products Monitoring for poor progress on the automation and integration of the supply chain and petroleum pricing. Participants noted that he was unable to adequately explain the situation and failed to defend the regulator’s position.
The government has been running the all-important regulator on an ad hoc basis for more than a year. After the completion of his term, it extended the tenure of former chairman Masroor Khan without legal cover, instead of initiating the process to appoint a regular chairman.
Earlier this year, it again refrained from appointing a permanent chairman and instead assigned the charge to Iqbal.
Last week, the Ogra and Pakistan State Oil (PSO) had come under fire at a meeting of the special cabinet committee on petroleum for insufficient and lethargic online integration and automation of stock and supply position of oil products for improved visibility and monitoring.
Therefore, the government decided to activate law enforcement and investigation agencies for improved monitoring of retail petroleum outlets and to check hoarding.
Members of the committee had also raised questions over certain loopholes in the petroleum pricing, particularly in the diesel rate build-up.
Dawn had reported that Dr Musadik Malik, who previously held the positions of energy and petroleum minister, suspected that the oil industry had apparently been allowed to windfall and proactive corrective measures were not taken as prices went through the roof.
Both Malik and Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb expressed displeasure that even PSO had not been able to integrate its retail outlets and depots, despite being a public sector company. Ogra was also criticised for moving too slowly on data integration, despite the process having been officially ordered more than three weeks ago.
In such a situation, market manipulators appeared to have taken advantage and resorted to aggressive hoarding amid continuously rising prices both domestically and internationally. It was reported that PSO’s retail integration was close to 60pc, but the situation was even worse among private sector players in the supply chain.
This was reinforced in an official statement issued by the Ministry of Finance after the meeting.
“To reinforce implementation, it was decided that joint teams comprising representatives of the Petroleum Division, Ogra, FIA, and PSO will be deployed to selected PSO petrol pumps in Islamabad to support timely data entry, improve stock transparency, and ensure operational compliance,” it said.
The prime minister was updated on the situation, who approved the reshuffle, official sources said.
Earlier, a meeting had been called after the recent price adjustments to review the petroleum supply situation and market conditions.
The meeting took a comprehensive review of petroleum stock positions, import plans, and refinery operations. The panel was informed that the overall supply position remained stable, with diesel stocks providing approximately 25 days of cover, petrol availability sufficient to meet current demand, and crude oil stocks at around 12 days of cover, supported by incoming cargoes and scheduled imports.
