By Staff Reporter
KARACHI: Pakistan received its second shipment of Russian crude oil on Tuesday, as part of a deal to import 100,000 tonnes of discounted oil from Moscow to ease its energy crisis.
The cargo of 56,000 tonnes arrived at the port city of Karachi on a ship named Clyde Noble, according to the Karachi Port Trust (KPT). The first shipment of 45,122 tonnes reached Pakistan on June 11.
“The ship has docked and the transfer of crude oil will start soon,” a KPT spokesperson said.
Pakistan aims to meet 20 percent of its oil needs through imports from Russia, Minister of State for Petroleum Musadik Malik said in May. The payment for the initial import was made in Chinese currency.
Pakistan Refinery Limited (PRL) is blending Russian Urals oil with crude from traditional Gulf markets. Oil industry insiders said PRL was refining the Russian crude to produce petroleum products.
The oil shipment came at a critical time for Pakistan, which has foreign exchange reserves of only $3.5 billion, barely enough to cover a month of imports. The country is also awaiting $1.1 billion in stalled International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout funds.
Oil and energy make up a large chunk of Pakistan’s import bill, and the country is facing a balance of payments crisis due to dwindling foreign reserves. It has also struggled to procure liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the global market due to high spot prices, worsening its energy woes.
Pakistan LNG Limited (PLL), a government subsidiary responsible for LNG procurement, did not receive any offers for six cargoes for October and December delivery to Port Qasim.
Pakistan meets only 16 percent of its oil requirements through domestic sources, while the rest is imported.
The country’s petroleum imports have fallen by 22 percent to $15.38 billion in the first 11 months of the current fiscal year, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS). This includes 7 million tonnes of crude oil worth $4.5 billion.
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