Islamabad is looking to source 20 percent of its oil imports from Russia, said the Minister of State for Petroleum in a written reply submitted in Senate.
By Naveed Naqvi
ISLAMABAD: The authorities are looking to sort out the nuts and bolts of petroleum imports from Russia before March with a view to starting imports by April, the Upper House of Pakistan’s Parliament was told Friday.
In a written response in Senate on the issue of buying oil from Russia, Minister of State for Petroleum Dr Musadik Malik, said negotiations are underway for Russia to meet 20 percent of Pakistan’s crude oil import requirements from that country.
Pakistani officials held a series of meetings and signed a number of agreements to further collaboration in various areas with Russian officials when they were in Islamabad last month for a meeting of an intergovernmental commission on trade and economy.
Russian Energy Minister Nikolay Shulginov was also among the dignitaries who visited as part of the annual event, and energy cooperation was one of the key areas of cooperation mooted. The two sides signed a number of agreements to further collaboration in various areas including energy cooperation.
Malik reported that negotiations with Russia for the purchase of cheap oil were completed in 45 days, and a preliminary agreement has been reached between the two countries after exhaustive negotiations. He nevertheless said trade terms and crude oil specifications will be discussed in future meetings.
The Minister said Russia has assured Pakistan to supply cheaper oil than other countries, and hoped that Russian oil will start arriving by April.
He said that Pakistan cannot buy oil and gas directly from Iran due to international sanctions. Iran is a neighbouring country, he said, adding Pakistan was looking into starting barter trade with Iran.
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