Pakistan: Official data shows gas prices surged by 1,109 percent in a year

The official data of the Sensitive Price Index (SPI) released on Friday shows that gas charges for lower quintile witnessed a hike in prices by 1108.59 percent in the latest week, reported The News International.

On other hand, the Ministry of Energy claimed that gas prices went up 65 percent on average with effect from November 2023, so there is something fundamentally wrong somewhere resulting into massive differences in calculation worked out by both sides.

Top official sources confirmed to The News International on Friday that the Ministry of Energy took up the issue with the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) and inquired about the used methodology to calculate such a massive hike. In the last week Sensitive Price Index (SPI), the PBS had calculated gas charges for lowest quintile in the range of 480 percent for the latest week compared to the same week of the last year.

The Ministry of Energy and PBS high-ups held meetings but both sides failed to strike a consensus on any workable solution mutually agreed by both sides.

The Ministry of Energy took the stance that there were two categories, protected and non-protected, and almost 57 percent customers belonged to the category of protected customers where there was no surge in the prices. Ministry of Energy high-ups inquired about the used methodology and asked the PBS to furnish the notification of OGRA (Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority).

It was also inquired whether the PBS took the Ministry of Energy or OGRA into confidence or secured any authentication at the time of changing price data methodology few years back.

“We have sought an authentication letter from the PBS but it was argued that there was set methodology which cannot be changed in line with international standards,” sources told the newspaper.