Ahmed Mukhtar Naqshbandi
ISLAMABAD: The cargo ships carrying Russian oil and crude products, would possibly start arriving in the country from April this year, Minister of State for Petroleum Dr. Musadik Malik told the Senate on Friday.
While responding to a question tabled by Senator Mushtaq Ahmed during a question hour session in the Senate, the minister said that negotiations with National Shipping Corporation (NSC) were going on for transporting Russian oil.
Arrival of fuel cargoes
The minister further said that before the arrival of the fuel cargoes, high-level meetings were held between the delegates of Russia and Pakistan on the trade of petroleum products last month. He further added that a long-term contract for importing crude oil with Russia was under discussion, which would meet up to 20% of Pakistan’s crude oil import requirements.
Meanwhile, matters, including commercial terms, freight arrangements, crude oil specification, and insurance coverage, would also be discussed in upcoming meetings, he said.
The Minister also revealed that the details related to fuel import from Russia would be finalized by next month.
It is worth noting that the government is trying to explore alternate venues for having cheap crude oil. Meanwhile, oil imports from Iran would be complex due to the sanctions imposed on Iran. Presently, some trade was going on with Iran on a barter basis.
