By Staff Reporter
KARACHI: Pakistan’s state grain buyer received bids for 656,000 metric tons of wheat in its first import tender of the season, falling short of a 750,000-ton target as the South Asian nation moves to head off a supply gap flagged by its provinces.
The Trading Corporation of Pakistan received offers from nine suppliers ranging from $348.83 to $369.95 a ton on a cost-and-freight basis, according to tender results. The bids were opened on Wednesday at TCP’s head office in Karachi, days after the agency floated the international tender on Sept. 8 under instructions from the federal government.
Singapore-based Agrocorp International Pte submitted the lowest offer, agreeing to supply 55,000 tons at $348.83 a ton. Geneva-based Louis Dreyfus Co. offered the next-lowest price at $349.97 a ton for a larger 110,000-ton consignment. Bunge Global SA bid $356.86 a ton for 116,000 tons, the largest single offer in the tender.
Falcon Bridge Commodities Pte quoted $357.49 a ton for 50,000 tons, while Soufflet Group offered $357.70 a ton for 110,000 tons. Aston Resources bid $360 a ton for 50,000 tons, Ameropa AG offered $363.74 a ton for 55,000 tons, and CHS Inc. quoted $364.50 a ton for 55,000 tons. Olam Agri submitted the highest bid, at $369.95 a ton for 55,000 tons.
TCP said 13 companies took part in the tender, with two withdrawing through regret letters and two others deemed non-responsive, leaving nine bids that qualified on both technical and financial grounds. The agency is now evaluating those offers, a process it did not say when it expects to complete.
Bidders were required to offer a minimum of 50,000 tons under the tender’s terms, which sought 750,000 tons of wheat, with a variance of plus or minus 10%, for delivery in bulk to Karachi or Gwadar port.
Pakistan is turning to imports after domestic wheat production fell short of expected consumption needs, prompting provincial governments to request federal intervention to avoid a shortage in local markets. The purchase would mark the country’s first significant wheat import program in recent seasons, underscoring the pressure on South Asian grain balances as producers globally navigate uneven harvests and shifting trade flows.
TCP has not disclosed a timeline for awarding contracts or announced plans for a follow-up tender to secure the roughly 94,000-ton gap between bids received and the government’s stated target.
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