ISLAMABAD: Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) has enforced gas load management for domestic consumers in Islamabad, Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, restricting supplies to three daily cooking-time slots from today (Wednesday), as dwindling LNG availability and rising winter demand put additional pressure on the country’s already strained gas supply system.
Under the new schedule, domestic consumers will receive gas from 6:30am to 9:00am, 12 noon to 2:30pm and 6:00pm to 9:00pm. The restrictions will also apply to Islamabad, with the government prioritising household consumption over other sectors to manage available supplies during the winter season.
SNGPL has also reduced gas supplies to the compressed natural gas (CNG) sector from 50 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) to 35 mmcfd, with plans to bring supplies down to zero in the coming days. The cement industry has already switched to coal, while industrial consumers connected to the distribution network are also facing reduced supplies. Industries connected directly to the transmission network, including export-oriented and non-export industries, are currently receiving approximately 200 mmcfd. However, further reductions in supplies cannot be ruled out. Meanwhile, the power sector is receiving around 140 mmcfd of gas, while the fertiliser industry is being supplied approximately 53 mmcfd.
