February 20, 2020: Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance and Revenue Dr. Abdul Hafeez Shaikh chaired a meeting at the Finance Division to review various energy sector issues that were pending between the Federal Government and the Government of Balochistan for many years.
Balochistan Government was represented by Secretary Energy Department Balochistan, and Federal Government was represented by the Minister for Energy and the Adviser to the PM on Petroleum. There were other members of the Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination.
In the meeting, various issues regarding the extension of lease of gas fields of Balochistan, rights, and share of Government of Balochistan in the new and old oil and gas exploration business, rationalization of gas tariff for the local population, gas allocation to power plants and the creation of training fund for Balochistan were discussed. For creating a training fund, it was decided that the matter shall be resolved within a fortnight.
After discussion on the other issues, the Adviser decided that the representatives from the Government of Balochistan and the relevant Federal Ministers should hold further meetings with representatives of the Law Division among them for expert advice and firm up proposals with consensus that could benefit both the Federal and Provincial Governments without violating the spirit of the18th Constitutional Amendment and the interests of any private party involved in the business. The groups are expected to hold meetings within a month to firm up appropriate proposals for submission before the competent forum for final approval.
