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Petrol pump owners announce nationwide strike over…

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The All Pakistan Petrol Pumps Owners Association (APPPOA) has announced a nationwide strike beginning Wednesday night after negotiations with the government over the proposed daily petroleum pricing mechanism ended without an agreement.

The decision was announced following talks between representatives of the association and a government delegation led by Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik. The discussions focused on the government’s plan to introduce daily fuel price adjustments, but both sides failed to reach a consensus.

Speaking after the meeting, APPPOA leaders said the proposed pricing system was unacceptable and would seriously affect the financial stability of petrol pump owners across the country. They argued that the new mechanism would create uncertainty for businesses already operating on narrow profit margins.

Association officials said nearly 15,000 petrol pumps across Pakistan are expected to remain closed if the strike goes ahead, warning that the shutdown could disrupt fuel supplies nationwide.

Vice Chairman Nauman Ali Butt said petrol dealers wanted petroleum prices to continue being revised on a monthly basis rather than daily. He also pointed out that dealers’ commissions had not been increased for the past three years despite rising operating costs.

APPPOA Chairman Humayun Khan said petrol pump owners were already facing financial pressure due to regulatory requirements, policies of oil marketing companies and increasing business expenses. He argued that daily price revisions would benefit oil marketing companies while placing additional risks on retail dealers.

According to the association, frequent price changes could create confusion in the market and make inventory management more difficult for petrol pump operators.

The association also criticised the government for introducing the policy without consulting key stakeholders. It urged authorities to suspend the daily pricing mechanism, increase dealers’ commissions and involve petrol pump owners in future policy decisions.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan Petroleum Dealers Association (PPDA) said it would hold a meeting of its executive committee on Wednesday to decide whether it would also join the nationwide strike.

PPDA representatives acknowledged that discussions with government officials and the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) had taken place. They said OGRA officials sought additional time to review the concerns raised by dealers before making further recommendations to the government.

The government maintains that the new pricing mechanism is intended to improve transparency and ensure domestic fuel prices reflect changes in international oil markets more quickly. Under the proposed system, petroleum prices would be updated daily using a rolling average of global market prices.

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