A parliamentary audit has uncovered more than Rs. 1.7 billion in controversial expenditures by Pakistan’s two state-owned gas utilities, raising concerns over the use of consumer-funded resources and employee benefits.
The findings emerged during a meeting of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) Sub-Committee-II, which reviewed audit observations related to the Petroleum Division covering the period from 2011-12 to 2022-23.
According to the audit, Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) paid Rs. 1.604 billion in bonuses to executives and employees despite the company not reporting a profit. Auditors said the payments were inconsistent with Finance Division guidelines and included bonuses awarded to the company’s managing director.
SSGC management defended the payments, stating that the bonuses were performance-based and approved under the company’s service rules. Officials argued that the incentives were linked to individual performance rather than the company’s financial results.
In a separate observation, auditors questioned Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) for spending Rs. 115.6 million on tea, coffee, club memberships, and subscriptions in 2018. The audit noted that these expenses were classified as human resource costs and recovered through gas tariffs charged to consumers.
Auditors maintained that such expenditures were unrelated to the utility’s core business and should have been paid from corporate profits instead of being passed on to gas consumers.
SNGPL management told the committee that employee benefits, including club memberships, were provided under board-approved service rules. Company officials also said employees now bear nearly half the cost of tea and coffee.
During the meeting, PAC Convener Syed Naveed Qamar questioned the unusually high spending on refreshments and criticized the inclusion of executive club memberships in costs ultimately borne by consumers. He remarked that the public has every right to question such expenditures, particularly when gas prices continue to rise.
The committee was informed that the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has excluded club memberships, subscriptions, and several other non-operational expenses from gas tariff calculations since 2021. As a result, the audit objection against SNGPL was subsequently settled.
