Country faces fuel shortage as oil tankers go on strike

It appears that a sever fuel crisis will likely take place as several fuel stations in Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad, Peshawar, Quetta and other cities have closed down due to lack of supply and high demand.

The All Pakistan Oil Tankers Association (APOTA) went on a strike, which has now entered its third day, over the government’s ‘unfair’ practices. Due to this, majority of the fuel stations have closed down and long queues could be observed at the stations which did have some fuel left.

Tourists who had gone to Gilgit-Baltistan and surrounding areas, found themselves stranded there due to fuel shortage and a halt in public transport services.

The APOTA announced its strike on Monday and since then negotiations have been going on between itself and the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA). The association members announced the strike for an indefinite period of time and it will remain in place till their demands are met by the government.

The issue started when OGRA said that it would start checking the tankers which are being used by oil marketing companies as it was being feared that many of them did not fulfill the quality criteria.

Even the regulators became more active after the horrific accident which took place in Ahmedpur East when an oil tanker turned and caught fire, leaving over 200 people dead.

Meanwhile the APOTA has refused to comply with the government’s orders and continues to hold the strike until the time an agreement is reached between both parties.

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Posted by fatimaarshad on Jul 26 2017. Filed under Latest News, Pakistan. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.