KARACHI, Dec 29: Consumers are facing severe problems in filling fuel tanks of their vehicles as many pump owners especially in Punjab have suspended petrol sales, while the situation in Sindh is not that serious.

In Karachi, some pump owners at the University Road and Gulistan-e-Jauhar areas on Monday were reported to have stopped their sales without giving any reasons.

As the consumers are in a quandary, petroleum dealers and oil marketing companies (OMCs) are indulged in a blame game, while the government keeps a mum.

An official in the Pakistan State Oil (PSO), who asked not to be named, said that dealers had been in a bad practice of suspending purchase of petrol from the OMCs to avoid inventory losses after they smelled that the government was intending to reduce prices.

He said that the PSO had imported 25,000 tons of petrol on December 24 to avert any petrol shortage.

“The supply is being made at a normal routine. There is no justification on the part of pump owners to suspend sale on the pretext that they are not getting enough from the OMCs,” he added.

In the last fortnight the market was abuzz with reports that the government would curtail prices, but it kept them unchanged. Now the same situation has again arisen as the fortnightly price review draws near.

On the contrary, Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association (PPDA) Chairman Abdul Sami Khan said that 30 per cent petrol pumps in Punjab areas had dried out.

He rejected the impression that dealers had deliberately closed down their pumps to avoid inventory losses in case the government reduces the rate on December 31.

“There are reports in the print media that the government has no plan to reduce the prices,” he added.

However, he said there were three factors that had led to this situation, firstly, the government’s decision to reduce the inventory to 10 days from 20 days at the main country-wide depots, secondly, the local refineries were operating at

50 per cent capacity and the thirdly the OMCs had also slowed down their supplies to the dealers.

Oil Companies Advisory Committee (OCAC) Secretary General Dr Nazir Abass Zaidi told Dawn that “there is no logic of any pump closure or creating any artificial shortage as the country’s stocks of petrol and diesel are for 12 and 13-14 days respectively.”

However, he said that the refineries were running at 70-85 per cent capacity owing mainly to circular debt (delay or holding back of payments among the refineries, power producers, OMCs etc).

He said it did not mean that the refineries were responsible for petroleum product crisis.

Even, he said, the OMCs were maintaining their regular supplies to the petroleum dealers but the dealers were hesitant in lifting petrol and diesel in fear of inventory losses in case the rates were reduced. However, he said that the government on Monday categorically ruled any chances of price cut on December 31.