Toyota celebrates rare opening of Japan plant

Workers give the final check on Yaris compact sedans at the new plant in Ohira - AP PHOTO

OHIRA: Toyota celebrated the opening of an auto plant in a forsaken rural area of central Japan on Wednesday – its first new Japanese factory in 18 years that promises to grow into a significant production base for the world’s largest car maker.

Dotted with rice paddies and sometimes covered by snow, the Tohoku region where the new Toyota plant is located is the true boondocks of Japan.

US backs trans-Afghanistan natural gas pipeline

The US is believed to be opposed to energy-hungry India and Pakistan drawing supplies from Iran via a proposed $7 billion gas pipeline, which could come online by 2015. — File Photo

ASHGABAT: The United States says it supports a planned pipeline taking natural gas from Turkmenistan to India through volatile regions in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

US deputy Assistant Secretary of State Susan Elliott said Thursday that the pipeline could boost stability across the war-torn region. She spoke at n energy conference in the capital of this Central Asian country, Ashgabat.

Gas loadshedding to reduce

Supplies from Zamzama gas field resume.

 

Sui Northern Gas authorities issued a new gas loadshedding schedule after gas supplies from the Zamzama gas field resumed on Thursday.

Industries will now experience gas load shedding for two days a week while CNG stations will remain closed for one day instead of two.

Authorities say the gas supply from Zamzama gas field was suspended for nine days for repair work. This led to an increase in the gas cuts for industries and CNG stations.

Gas load shedding schedule for Punjab announced

All CNG stations across Punjab will close for two days a week, as per the gas load shedding schedule. –File Photo

 

LAHORE: Sui Northern Gas (SNG) announced a three-month gas load shedding plan for Punjab on Saturday. According to the schedule, there will be three-day a week load shedding for industries and two-day a week load shedding for CNG stations. The schedule will be implemented from today.


The management of the SNG said that the decision was taken after the closure of the Zamzama gas field to ensure gas supply for houses.

LPG price hits record Rs 95,000 per ton

"A total of 48,152 tons of LPG has been imported between the first ten months of current year." — File Photo

KARACHI: The price of imported liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has surged by Rs 12,000 to hit record high at Rs 95,000 per tons as Saudi Aramco contract price (CP) climbed by $ 93 to touch $788 in the international market.

This was stated by the chairman of FPCCI Standing Committee on LPG and All Pakistan LPG Distributors Association Hadi Khan in a statement here Monday.

Lengthy procedures delaying IP gas pipeline

KARACHI: Work on Iran-Pakistan (IP) gas pipeline faces continuous delay because of lengthy procedures, an official said on Wednesday.

The government was to award consultancy contract for the billion-dollar pipeline to Munich-based ILF Consulting Engineers a month ago, which would have marked the first step toward its construction. Documents for the contract were finally prepared in early September, but they are being redrafted for approval by Petroleum Minister Naveed Qamar and the special steering committee overseeing the project.

SSGC wants industries to reduce gas consumption

KARACHI: Factories and captive power plants in Sindh and Balochistan would shut down from Wednesday if consumption was not immediately reduced, Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) warned on Tuesday.

It said supply from some of the major fields had reduced considerably. Total supply of gas that SSGC buys from petroleum exploration companies has dropped 19 percent to 999 million cubic feet per day (MMCFD) in October from 1197 MMCFD in the same month of last year, said Azeem Siddiqui, SSGC deputy managing director, at a press conference.

OGDC profits surge

KARACHI: Oil and Gas Development Company (OGDC) has announced a net profit of Rs16.709 billion, translating into an earning per share (EPS) of Rs3.89 for the quarter ended on September 30 against a profit of Rs12.065 billion and an EPS of Rs2.81 during the corresponding quarter last year, a company statement said on Tuesday.

The net sales revenue of the company surged to Rs39.451 billion during the period under review from Rs31.825 billion last year.

Tacit FoDP, US support for Iran gas pipeline

US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke talks with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi. – Photo by AFP (File)

ISLAMABAD: The FoDP (Friends of Democratic Pakistan) has supported Pakistan’s plan to import natural gas from Iran to meet its increasing energy needs and the United States, which is an active component of the forum, is also reported to have tacitly agreed not to oppose the pipeline.

This was stated here on Sunday by official sources who cited a report prepared by a task force on Pakistan’s grim energy situation and steps needed to cope with the situation. The Pak-Iran gas pipeline featured prominently in the report, the sources said.

Russia shows interest in gas pipeline

Turkmenistan sits atop the world's fourth-biggest natural gas reserves and Russia, China and the West are vying to expand their presence there. – AFP Photo (File)

TURKMENBASHI CITY: Russia’s state-owned gas company Gazprom could take part in a project to build gas pipeline from Turkmenistan to Pakistan and India via Afghanistan, Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin said on Friday.

Turkmenistan, holder of the world’s fourth-largest natural gas reserves, is keen to revive plans to build the TAPI (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India) pipeline. The project has been stalled by war in Afghanistan.

Russia shows interest in gas pipeline

Turkmenistan sits atop the world's fourth-biggest natural gas reserves and Russia, China and the West are vying to expand their presence there. – AFP Photo (File)

TURKMENBASHI CITY: Russia’s state-owned gas company Gazprom could take part in a project to build gas pipeline from Turkmenistan to Pakistan and India via Afghanistan, Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin said on Friday.

Turkmenistan, holder of the world’s fourth-largest natural gas reserves, is keen to revive plans to build the TAPI (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India) pipeline. The project has been stalled by war in Afghanistan.

New gas supply plan lays stress on power plants

Gas supply to defaulters will not be restored while allocation of gas for captive power plants will be stopped till the completion of gas import plans. – File Photo

ISLAMABAD: The government is working on a plan to put in place a new gas supply mechanism envisaging diversion of maximum gas available in the system to the power sector without affecting the existing contracts.

Informed sources said that under the new gas allocation policy, priority would be given to the power sector to contain the rising electricity tariff. The cost of gas-based electricity generation is about 70 per cent less than that of the furnace oil-based generation.

Supreme Court scraps GDF Suez LNG deal

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court scrapped on Wednesday a government deal to buy natural gas from a French energy company over suspected irregularities, a move which could encourage investment in the troubled power industry.
 
The Supreme Court said the petroleum ministry had not taken awarding procedures seriously, and a decision by the government's economic decision-making body in February to award the contract to France's GDF Suez “shall be of no consequence”.

Country may face gas shortfall of around 2.7bcfd by 2014

KARACHI: Pakistan is likely to face a gas shortfall of around 2.7 billion cubic feet per day by 2014 due to around 7.0 per cent per annum rise in the demand for the commodity.

Experts believe that the gas shortage will increase by 1.7 billion cubic feet per day during the current year and would touch around 2.7 billion cubic feet per day by 2014.

If projects, such as Uch-II, Qadirpur gas compression project, Sinjhoro and Tando Allah Yar, start production during the next two years, it is expected that the gas shortage will come down to 2.2 billion cubic feet per day by 2014.

OGDCL suffering in power tussle

ISLAMABAD: The board of directors of Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL), its management and the ministry of petroleum are at the loggerheads over the sale of a gas field and appointment of a professional managing director of the country’s largest oil and gas producer.

Informed sources told Dawn that the relationship between OGDCL Chairman Farooq Rehmatullah and officiating Managing Director Shah Mahboob Alam have reached to a stage that Mr Alam has accused Mr Rehmatullah of interference in the affairs of the company.

Pakistan delays LNG contract with French company

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s oil ministry said on Wednesday it would delay signing a contract with French company GDF Suez for the import of liquefied natural gas because the Supreme Court had decided to look into the deal.

PSO inks deal with Petrosin for LPG supply

KARACHI: Pakistan State Oil (PSO) has signed agreement with a Singapore-based company Petrosin to sell liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) from its fuel stations, PSO said on Monday. Petrosin will invest around Rs8 billion to build storage tanks and dispensers at 200 fuel stations of the PSO in the next two years, Irfan Qureshi, PSO Managing Director, told The News.

“This is a big step for the PSO. The CNG business is no longer viable as every time in winter there is a gas shortage,” he said. “We will target to bring diesel-run vehicles to use LPG.” He said it will take some time for manufactures of LPG auto kits to set up businesses. But, he added, once LPG auto stations start operation the industry will prop up itself.

$500mn OGDC convertible bond issue hits snags

ISLAMABAD: The Privatisation Commission’s plan to sell $500 million worth of OGDCL convertible bonds has hit snags at the outset following protests by three international financial institutions over alleged breach of their two-year old contracts for the transaction.
As if that was not enough, the ministry of finance has also raised objections over the move by Privatisation Minister Senator Waqar Ahmad to issue convertible bonds of Pakistan’s largest oil and gas producer – Oil and Gas Development Company Limited – in defiance of limits defined under the 1973 Rules of Business. It said issuance of bonds fell under the domain of finance ministry because it has to take the responsibility for the country’s all debts and liabilities.

Govt plans to auction 43 oil, gas blocks: official

KARACHI: The government has planned to auction 43 oil and gas exploration blocks in June 2010 in an attempt to mitigate the energy crises in the country, which has aggravated owing to the rising fuel prices, said an official of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Resources.

The auction includes five offshore blocks and the remaining blocks are located in all the four provinces of country - Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan and North West Frontier Province.

Shell, PetroChina set gas exploration deal

BEIJING: Royal Dutch Shell PLC said on Tuesday it had agreed to explore for natural gas with China National Petroleum Corp in the southwestern province of Sichuan, the second deal between the companies announced this week.

Shell Chief Executive Peter Voser told a news conference in Beijing that Shell and CNPC unit PetroChina Ltd had signed a 30-year contract to jointly develop and produce natural gas in Sichuan. Shell, Europe’s largest oil company, said a production-sharing contract has been sent to China’s central government for approval, but Voser would not reveal the terms of the deal or when approval was expected.