Sources told The Express Tribune that Mari Energies had received bids from 50 parties for gas allocation to the private sector under a new policy approved by the federal government to open the gas market. Earlier, oil and gas exploration companies were bound to allocate gas to state-owned distribution companies and could provide only 10% gas to private parties under the previous policy. Oil and gas exploration companies have welcomed the move to open the gas sector, saying that the third-party gas allocation policy will further boost exploration activities due to improved cash flow. Pakistan is currently facing a circular debt of over Rs1.5 trillion in the gas sector, which has also affected oil and gas exploration companies. Owing to this, the government introduced an amendment to the policy relating to gas allocation to the private sector to resolve the issue of gas curtailment.