RLNG consumption: PHC stays imposition of cost actualisation charges

PESHAWAR: Peshawar High Court (PHC) has granted a stay order in response to a writ petition challenging the imposition of cost actualization charges on Re-gasified Liquefied Natural Gas (RLNG) in March 2025 for RLNG consumed during the period April 2015 to June 2022.

The petitioner industries have contested the retrospective application of cost actualization charges by Oil & Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) to be billed to consumers through utility bills by Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL).

Counsels Barrister Ibrahim Khan Afridi and Lawangeen Khan Adv. argued that the imposition of such charges nearly a decade after the initial consumption period is both arbitrary and without legal justification.

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It was further argued that retrospective implementation of Section 43B for a period prior to the year 2022, a provision inserted into the OGRA Ordinance, 2002 vide an Amendment Act in 2022, is violative of the fundamental rights of the petitioners and against the intention of the legislature.

After preliminary hearings, a bench comprising of Honorable Justice Wiqar Ali Khan and Honorable Justice Kamran Hayat Miankhel, restrained SNGPL from recovery of the contested charges and disconnection of gas supply to the petitioners.

The bench also issued notices to the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA), the gas utility involved, and the Ministry of Energy (Petroleum Division), directing them to submit their responses within a fortnight of the hearing.

The stay comes amid growing concerns among industrial stakeholders over rising energy costs and the implications of retrospective billing practices on business planning and competitiveness.

The court is expected to take up the matter again in the coming weeks. Until then, the enforcement of the cost actualization charges from the specified period shall remain suspended.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025