The Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) has announced reduced supply of gas from its Naimat basal field, worsening the misery of Karachi residents who are already facing sporadic outages and low gas pressure since winter started.
SSGC said supply in their system has observed a reduction. “There is a technical fault at the Naimat Basal Gas Field,” the company said in a statement issued on Tuesday.
Karachi will witness a shortfall of 100 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) because of the fault.
SSGC says low pressure has made it immensely difficult to meet the high demand of the industrial and domestic sectors.
The statement said SSGC’s line pack has been affected due to low pressure in Karachi, adding that the far-flung areas of the city or those at the end of the company’s network will face the most problem in gas supply.
“Efforts are being made to meet the demand of the commercial and domestic users, according to the government’s gas load management policy,” read the statement. “We are trying our best to meet the demand of the commercial and domestic sectors through our gas load management policy.”
Karachi residents suffer without gas
The shortage in gas supply has affected Saddar, Lyari, Keamari, Lines Area, DHA, Clifton, PECHS and PIB Colony the most.
Areas of Malir, Surjani Town, Korangi, North Nazimabad, Nazimabad, North Karachi, New Karachi, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Safoora Chowrangi, Gulistan-e-Jauhar, Jafar-e-Tayyar Society, Saudabad, Khokhrapar, Kharadar and Martin Quarters are also badly affected.
“The situation in our area was already very bad,” said Salman from Nazimabad, adding that now that the gas company has officially announced a reduction in gas supply, they fear the worst. “For the past few days we’ve been relying on takeaway because we don’t have proper gas supply.”
District South residents, especially those in Saddar Town and DHA, have been facing the worst situation. A tea shop owner in the Saddar market said he had to get gas cylinders to continue making tea for his customers.
“We have a commercial gas meter, but now we have to buy gas cylinders,” he lamented. He pointed out that since the gas pressure is low, it takes at least two hours to boil water.
