By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Finance minister met with executives from automation firm Honeywell International Inc. in Washington to discuss a proposal to modernise the South Asian nation’s refining sector, as Islamabad looks to cut its dependence on imported fuel.
Muhammad Aurangzeb held talks Monday with a delegation from Honeywell Technologies led by Vice President and General Manager Barry Glickman, according to a statement from finance ministry. The discussion centered on Honeywell’s technology and equipment offerings, along with potential financing routes including the US Export-Import Bank, the US International Development Finance Corp., export credit agencies and international lenders.
Aurangzeb said the initiative would bolster Pakistan’s energy security and support industrial development, the ministry said.
The meeting formed part of a three-day visit during which Aurangzeb is scheduled to hold talks with the Office of the US Trade Representative, the Exim Bank, the DFC and the International Monetary Fund. Pakistani and US officials resumed broader economic discussions Monday covering tariffs, market access and investment, continuing negotiations that began last week over duties affecting Pakistani exports following global tariff measures announced by President Donald Trump in April 2025.
Pakistan’s refining industry has long struggled to keep pace with fuel demand. The country’s five refiners — Pak-Arab Refinery Co., Attock Refinery Ltd., National Refinery Ltd., Pakistan Refinery Ltd. and Cnergyico PK Ltd. — rely mostly on decades-old hydro-skimming technology that yields a high share of furnace oil, a product whose domestic demand has dwindled as power plants shift away from it. That leaves refiners short on higher-value products such as gasoline and diesel.
The sector also faces tight refining margins, a credit squeeze and heavy capital requirements to upgrade plants to Euro-V emissions standards, according to the finance ministry. Honeywell, a unit of Charlotte, North Carolina-based Honeywell International, supplies process technology and engineering solutions used by refiners globally to produce cleaner fuels and improve efficiency.
Pakistan has pushed to expand domestic refining capacity for several years, arguing that a stronger processing base would reduce its import bill and shield the economy from swings in global fuel supply.
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