Lahore continues to face gas and power outage in Ramzan

People in several localities of Lahore have complained of substantial pressure reduction as well as unannounced power cuts, bringing the natural gas and power shortages back in the holy month of Ramzan.

On Friday, customers reported that natural gas load shedding had resumed in the city, making cooking at home difficult. Natural gas pressure only improved to a limited extent during Sehri and Iftari hours due to micromanagement by Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Ltd (SNGPL).

As per the gas load management plan, gas supply to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) filling stations has been a concern in the country, which has yet to be updated to accommodate this sector.

Shortages, according to experts, are due to a gap in the import of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) shipments. After long-term sellers were unable to deliver, the government attempted to negotiate cargoes of spot LNG as a backup plan. Such attempts, however, have yet to show positive outcomes. The same goes for power load shedding.

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Gas disruptions and load shedding have become the norm, according to residents. Affected locations include Canal Bank Housing Scheme, Bedian Road, Taj Bagh, Mughalpura, Saddar, Johar Town, and many more Lahore neighbourhoods.