The association has also written letters to the authorities concerned to take actions against the factors causing damage to the Textile industry in the country.
LAHORE: (UrduPoint/Pakistan Point News-Feb 14th, 2024) All Pakistan Textile Mills Association warned that the textile industry was at the verge of collapse, saying that it is breaking down.
The Association said that a significant industrial shutdown could take place due to soaring energy prices. The association anticipated the major industries shutting down in the coming months.
They said that the letters were written to the Ministry of Energy, Ministry of Commerce and SIFC. It said that the closure of industries would result in job losse.
The letter stated that Pakistan's export market share is declining, and the industry is breaking down.
Currently, the industry is being supplied electricity at Rs50 per unit. The Association in its letter said that the electricity at 18.5 cents per kilowatt-hour is higher than regional countries.
Gas and RLNG prices are also doubled for the textile sector.
All Pakistan Textile Mills Association mentioned in the letter that last year, a 250% increase in gas prices was implemented for industries.
On the other hand, Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry's Regional Chairman Zaki Aijaz said that the increase in gas prices for captive power plants will lead to the textile industry's destruction. Out of four hundred units in this sector, one hundred and sixty units have already been closed.
Addressing a press conference at the FPCCI Regional Office on Wednesday, he said that the approved increase in gas prices would lead to more than five lakh workers becoming unemployed and more textile units being closed. The textile industry is already paying Rs50 per unit for electricity, which is double that of other countries in the region.
He said that the price of gas has already doubled compared to India, Bangladesh, and Vietnam, and as a result, the country's six hundred million Dollars production capacity has become unusable. If there is a further increase in gas prices, there is a risk of sixty to seventy percent of the industry being shut down. He said that we are not asking for cheap gas and electricity; our only demand is that the prices prevailing in the countries of the region should also be charged to us.
