ISLAMABAD, Jan 1: The Economic Coordination Committee of the Cabinet (ECC)  Tuesday approved the proposal of Ministry of Energy (Petroleum Division) for supply of up to 25 MMCFD additional gas from Adhi Gas Field to Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Ltd. (SNGPL) to meet the existing gas demand on the system.

The meeting of the ECC was held here with Finance Minister Asad Umar in the chair.

On the occasion, ECC also reviewed the demand and supply situation of urea in the country.

The Committee directed Ministry of Industries and Production to chalk out a plan for continuous and smooth operation of urea plants in the country throughout the year.

The exercise, ECC observed would help ensure availability of sufficient stocks of the fertilizer to meet demand of the farmers’ community.

The ECC while considering the proposal regarding provision of funds for personnel related dues in the Pakistan Machine Tool Factory (PMTF), directed Ministry of Industries & Production to share with the Committee,  a strategy to revitalize the PMTF.

The ECC observed that the institution had done great service for the engineering sector and had the potential to effectively carry on this role, for which it needed to be strengthened.

ECC also discussed proposal of Ministry of Energy (Petroleum Division) for fuel supply agreement between Pakistan State Oil (PSO) and State Oil Company of Republic of Azerbaijan.

The Committee advised Ministry of Energy to carry out further consultations with stakeholders including Ministry of Commerce and Public Procurement Regulatory Authority before a final decision in the matter.

The Ministry of National Food Security and Research presented the overall position of surplus wheat stock and wheat products in the country and presented modalities for the export of 0.5 million tons surplus wheat stock and wheat products of the public sector.

The ECC approved the above modalities in order to create space for the next procurement and also directed ministry of national food security and research to consult provinces and PASSCO to manage the production of wheat.

The ECC also observed that there should be a balance among the cultivation areas of major crops viz wheat, cotton, and sugarcane matching the demand and supply of the products.

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