Govt denies reports of discounted oil deal with Moscow

ISLAMABAD: Minister for Petroleum Musadik Malik on Wednesday rubbished the reports suggesting that Pakistan and Russia had reached an agreement for the supply of discounted crude oil.

Speaking to reporters, Malik said: “The news of a deal with Russia on crude oil is absolutely false. No agreement has been reached with Russia regarding such a deal”.

The minister’s rebuttal comes in the wake of rumours claiming that Islamabad had decided to import Russian crude oil at a discounted rate on the offer of Moscow.

Media reports suggested that during the Inter-Governmental Commission (IGC) meeting being held in Moscow, both countries had agreed to restart the crude oil trade from January 2025 and that Pakistan would import one cargo each month under the government-to-government arrangement.

However, elaborating on the issue, the petroleum minister said that the government wasn’t buying any crude oil cargo from Russia. “We are creating such a framework that the consumer gets cheap oil.”

Touching upon the liquefied natural gas (LNG) issue, he said that the country would not receive any additional LNG cargo due to an existing surplus.

“Pakistan has already postponed five of its LNG cargoes and the postponement of five additional cargoes is being considered further,” he added.

Revealing the factors contributing towards the LNG surplus, he cited the lack of purchase by the power plants and said that the private sector was not buying LNG due to high cost.

He also said that the gas plan for the winter season would be ready in a few days.

Malik also revealed that Pakistan has signed MoUs worth $2.7 billion with Saudi Arabia. According to the federal minister, seven of these MoUs have already transformed into agreements.

He said that five Saudi companies participated in a roadshow held by Pakistan Refinery Limited (PRL) in Saudi Arabia, with one of them expressing interest in investing $1.7 billion in PRL.

Malik added that a roadshow for establishing a new refinery in Pakistan will be held in Saudi Arabia soon.

The petroleum ministry is currently working on the roadshow for the Greenfield refinery project, he noted.

The minister also disclosed that an understanding has been reached with Saudi Arabia for the provision of trained personnel.

Additionally, Saudi companies have shown significant interest in investing in Pakistan’s mineral sector, he said.