Short-sighted policies

Pakistan has not run out of gas overnight. At the turn of the 21st century, sufficient gas supplies and sources were available in Pakistan. As per a study by Hagler Bailey, there were limitations on the gas transmission system to lift gas from all the sources, but there was no gas shortage for any segment of the consumers. The said study, however, had a limited scope of finding a market for the newly discovered Miano gas field of Australian multinational OMV. To determine the overall demand and supply situation for the short or long term, a detailed and comprehensive study should have been done rather than relying on such a limited-purpose study. It seems that the federal government has wrongly taken the findings of such a study. It came up with the regressive Petroleum Policy 2001 in terms of fiscal terms offered to the riskiest exploration business in Pakistan regarding hydrocarbon prospects and cost of operations in remote areas with high-risk law and order situations.