Ogra, PSO come under fire for lethargic monitoring of oil stocks

ISLAMABAD: The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) and Pakistan State Oil (PSO) on Monday came under fire for insufficient and lethargic online integration and automation of stock and supply position of oil products for improved visibility and monitoring.

Subsequently, the government decided to activate law enforcement and investigation agencies for improved monitoring of retail petroleum outlets and to check hoarding.

The development came during a meeting of the cabinet committee, constituted by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to monitor petroleum prices in the wake of the emerging situation.

During the meeting, chaired by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, members raised questions over certain loopholes in petroleum pricing, particularly in the diesel rate build-up.

Informed sources said Climate Change Minister Dr Musadik Malik, who previously held the positions of energy and petroleum minister, suspected that the oil industry had apparently been allowed a windfall and proactive corrective measures were not taken as prices went through the roof.

Both Malik and the finance minister expressed displeasure that even Pakistan State Oil (PSO) had not been able to integrate its retail outlets and depots despite being a public sector company.

Ogra was also on the receiving end of their ire for moving too slowly on data integration despite being officially ordered more than three weeks ago, the sources added.

In such a situation, market manipulators appeared to have taken advantage and resorted to aggressive hoarding in the midst of continuously rising prices at home and abroad. It was reported that PSO’s retail integration was close to 60 per cent but the situation was even poorer in the private sector players in the supply chain.

This was reinforced in an official statement issued by the Ministry of Finance after the meeting.

“To reinforce implementation, it was decided that joint teams comprising representatives of the Petroleum Division, Ogra, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and PSO will be deployed to selected PSO petrol pumps in Islamabad to support timely data entry, improve stock transparency, and ensure operational compliance,” the handout said.

The committee underscored the importance of institutionalising such mechanisms to strengthen oversight, enhance accountability, and promote consistency in reporting practices across the retail network,........

© Dawn Business