Petroleum Minister Assures Dealers of Profit Margin Increase, Strike Postponed

ISLAMABAD: Chairman of the Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association (PPDA) Malik Khuda Bakhsh has said that the petroleum minister has assured dealers of an increase in their profit margin, prompting the association to postpone its nationwide strike.

Speaking at an emergency press conference, Malik Khuda Bakhsh said the petroleum minister spoke to him on the phone for around half an hour and assured him that the dealers’ profit margin would be increased.

He said the minister had indicated that, after obtaining special approval from the prime minister, the profit margin would be increased by Rs1.34 per litre.

According to Malik Khuda Bakhsh, a meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) was also convened following the petroleum minister’s intervention. He said a special committee was being formed to address the issue of eliminating the quota system imposed by oil marketing companies.

He announced that the nationwide strike planned by petroleum dealers had been postponed.

Malik Khuda Bakhsh said the government had accepted two of the dealers’ key demands. He added that the association would continue working with the government to secure maximum benefits for the petroleum industry.

He said the government had also appreciated the dealers for supporting the state during difficult circumstances.

Regarding the mechanism for daily petroleum price determination, Malik Khuda Bakhsh said the issue would be resolved in three stages and the process could take around two weeks.

He said the government had accepted their demand for a mechanism to determine petroleum prices on a daily basis. The dealers had proposed fixing prices for one month, while the government could agree to a seven-day pricing mechanism, he added.

PPDA Vice Chairman Tariq Hassan said the government had withheld around $50 million owed to dealers over the past four years under the annual inflation-based adjustment of Rs1.34 per litre.

He said the dealers’ profit margin per litre would now increase from Rs8.84 to Rs10.