Call to maintain competitive energy tariff to increase exports

FAISALABAD: Pakistan Textile Exporters Association (PTEA) patron-in-chief Khurram Mukhtar has said it is imperative to maintain a competitive energy tariff and urgently eliminate the capital shortage faced by exporters to increase exports.

In a statement, he said, “Payment of refunds to exporters has been completely stopped since January 6, while many exporters have not received any refund payment against the orders of September due to which textile exporters are facing a shortfall of Rs200-250 billion.”

He said the government should clarify the roadmap for the payment of pending refunds in the form of sales tax, duty on local taxes and levies, technology upgradation fund, and mark-up support facility so that the industry could follow the strategy to achieve export targets. Increasing exports, he maintained, should be made the first priority to keep foreign exchange reserves stable and eliminate economic imbalance. “It is necessary to continue the competitive energy tariff to maintain the increase in exports for eight to ten years in a row and to increase exports from 8 to 15pc of GDP,” he suggested.

He added that the government was looking for a workable solution to maintain the competitive energy tariff given to export industries. “The PTEA has proposed the government set the price of electricity at nine cents per kilowatt and it is hoped the issue will be resolved in the next week,” he added.

He warned that it was not possible to provide relief to the common people unless the undocumented economy was eliminated. “At present, the entire burden of the country’s economy is on the corporate sector. The government should make the undocumented economy a part of the tax net instead of imposing new taxes on those already paying taxes,” he maintained.