The oil industry has sounded the alarm over a threatening fuel deficiency in Lahore due to restrictions on the movement of oil tankers. Oil companies Advisory Council (OCAC), representing refineries, oil marketing companies (OMCs) and a pipeline company, expressed concern about the traffic police’s ban on heavy vehicles from 1 pm. 06:00 to 23:00, which has also affected petroleum oil and lubricant (pole) tankers.

This restriction has severely disturbed fuel supplies to over 400 petrol pumps in Lahore, a city with a population exceeding 5 million. Ocac noted that Karachi enforcing a similar ban exempts pole tankers, allowing an uninterrupted fuel supply.

In a formal appeal to Punjab Chief Secretary, OCAC urged an urgent exception for Lahore Pol-Tanker to prevent a full-blown fuel crisis and secure public convenience. The Council urged the provincial government to immediately review its advice and protect the city’s fuel supply chain.

In November 2024, Lahore faces a similar situation as the ongoing protests from Pakistan Tehreek-E-Insaf (PTI) led to significant road blocks, which resulted in a serious disturbance in supplying oil products over Punjab, including Lahore and Twin Cities.

Khawaja Aatif, secretary of the Petroleum Dealers Association, had emphasized that Lahore’s daily gasoline consumption exceeds 5 million liters and the total daily consumption in Punjab is close to 50 million liters.

In response to the crisis, the Ministry of Oil had sent a letter to the chief secretary of Punjab and requested immediate action to tackle the defect.

The letter specifically called for the restoration of the crude oil supply from Attock Oil Refinery to ensure a uninterrupted fuel supply throughout the province.