The government is facing difficulties in unloading oil consignments from ships because of port congestion and infrastructure limitations, resulting in supply shortages in flood affected areas of Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Northern parts of the country.

Sources in the petroleum ministry told Dawn on Monday that the country’s oil consumption had dropped by about 50 per cent after the recent floods as transport activities had substantially slumped because of damage caused to the road infrastructure.

They said the stocks of petroleum products diesel, furnace oil and petrol were enough for more than 28 days of the country’s usual requirement but transportation problems were resulting in short supplies in many parts of the country, particularly in Sindh and Gilgit-Baltistan.

A senior government official said that because of supply disruptions, there were reports of overcharging and artificial shortage by the private petroleum dealers in many areas where stocks were more than enough for the local consumption.

He said the petroleum ministry issued a directive on Monday to the provincial governments and Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) to take note of the situation and conduct raids on petrol pumps to ensure smooth sales and sufficient stocks of petroleum products.

He said the provincial governments and Ogra had also been asked to seal premises and impose fines on dealers who were engaged in short supplies or overcharging customers.

The sources said at least four ships loaded with furnace oil petrol and diesel were waiting for unloading at the Karachi port.

He said a number of locations along the Indus Highway in Sindh including Shikarpur, Kashmore and Jacobabad could not be supplied with petroleum products because of heavy floods and inundation of roads and other infrastructure facilities.

Likewise, oil supplies in Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were also facing shortages of petroleum products due to heavy damages to roads, bridges and allied transport network. They said the government initially considered to airlift petroleum products in these areas but was now finding it difficult to access such locations even through helicopters.

[via DAWN News]

Shamrock is organizing a conference for Oil and Gas industry in Pakistan. For more details, please visit Shamrock Conferences web site

Read more about OPEN Forum at TelecomPk.Net

Session I
Where’s the Green in Clean? Investment Opportunities, Valuations and the Funding Gap in Cleantech

Traditionally, early stage company executive and investor financial expertise has been focused on company financing. Yet, in many cases, Cleantech demands more.

Many Cleantech executives will be shepherding technologies to commercialization that will require large amounts of capital. Cleantech companies and capital sources will need to build well-informed financial relationships and new financial structures to facilitate capital deployment and allow Cleantech companies to tap into the appropriate financial sources. This need for information and collaboration is more important than ever, given the current state of traditional credit and financial markets.

This discussion will feature a wide range of investors (venture capitalists, private equity investors, hedge fund managers, public financiers, and investment bankers) to delve into the full range of financing the Cleantech industry – from seed financing of nascent inventors, venture financing of emerging-stage companies through international and cross industry joint ventures, from first commercial demonstration to utility scale project development and finance, to IPO, PIPEs and beyond.

The panelists will discuss the capital flow implications for the Cleantech sector. Where Cleantech money is really coming from, what the investment criteria is for each type of investor, where the money is going and why, and how the money is being spent.

The UET Alumni Association organized a technical seminar and panel discussion titled “Pakistan’s Energy Needs” in Potomac, Maryland, a suburb of Washington, DC. The seminar was held on October 11, 2008 and it was attended by about fifty participants associated with the energy field.

The focus of the seminar was to build on collective experiences of the panelists, each a recognized authority in their areas, to put forward constructive ideas that can help Pakistan meet its energy needs in a timely manner utilizing established and alternate sources. A total of five panelists participated in the seminar. The panelists and the titles of their presentations are as follows:

• Mr. Ziad Alahdad, The World Bank. Presentation title “Institutional Structure for Integrated Energy Planning: The Case for Pakistan“.
• Mr. Iftikhar Khalil, The World Bank, and UET alumnus. Presentation title “Power Shortages – Recent Global Developments & Lessons Learned for Pakistan“.
• Mr. Furqan Siddiqi, Synergics Energy Services. Presentation title “Alternate or Renewable Energy Options for Pakistan“.
• Mr. Bashir Syed, Alternate Energy Technologies. Presentation title “Energy Crisis in Pakistan and Viable Solutions“
• Professor Sameul Lakeou, University of the District of Columbia presented information about emerging technologies for alternative energy production in developing countries.

Organizers of the seminar included UETAA officers Mr. Saeed Rana, President; Mr. Irfan Malik, Vice President; Mr. Abdul Hai Shaikh, Secretary; and Mr. Amir Khwaja, Treasurer. The panel discussion was moderated by Mr. Salman Sheikh, also a UET alumnus.

More information is available at UET Alumni organziation website.

Abu Dhabi is hosting an international event: World Future Energy Summit. Top government officials, heads of global organisations, leading environmentalists and the largest international investors are meeting once again at the World Future Energy Summit, 19-21 January 2009, Abu Dhabi to discuss, debate and plan the world’s future energy. The Summit is the platform for policy decision making, investment and high-level business deals.

Prominent leaders and personalities are planning to attend.

• His Royal Highness Prince Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, Prince of Orange
• H.E. Abdulrahman Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah, Secretary-General, GCC 
• Dr. Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, CEO, MASDAR, Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company
• Ana Aguirre Zurutuza, Minister for Industry and Commerce, Basque Government
• Dan Arvizu, Director, National Renewable Energy Lab, USA
• Tony Blair, Former Prime Minister, UK
• Preston Chiaro, Chief Executive Energy, London, Rio Tinto
• Vivienne Cox, Chief Executive, BP Alternative Energy
• Henry Derwent, President and CEO, International Emissions Trading Association
• Ditlev Engel, CEO, Vestas
• Sigmar Gabriel, (representing Angela Merkel) Federal Minister for the Environment, Germany
• Prof. Herbert Girardet, Director of Programmes, World Future Council
• H.E. Connie Hedegaard, Minister for Climate and Energy, Denmark
• Dr. Susan Hockfield, President, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Jean-Paul Jeanrenaud, Head of Business and Industry Policy, WWF International
• Vinod Khosla, Khosla Ventures
• Dr. Gerd Leipold, International Executive Director, Greenpeace International
• H.E. Moritz Leuenberger, Minister of Energy, Environment and Public Transport, Switzerland
• Dr. Frank Mastiaux, CEO. E.ON Climate and Renewables
• Esteban Morrás, CEO and Board Member, Accciona Energy
• Dr. Rajendra Pachauri, Chairman, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
• Andris Piebalgs, Commissioner for Energy, European Commission
• Kevin Parker, Managing Director – Global Head, Asset Management, Deutsche Bank
• Prof. Hermann Requardt, Chief Technology Officer, Siemens AG
• Dr. Hermann Scheer, President of EUROSOLAR, General Chairman of the World Council for Renewable Energy (WCRE), President of the International Parliamentary Forum on Renewable Energies; Member of the German Bundestag.