Today will see the arrival of a Russian delegation for the oil discussions.
Islamabad and the Kremlin will undertake bilateral negotiations on cheap oil and the highly-touted flagship PSGP project, which would cost $3 billion.
ISLAMABAD:
The energy minister of Russia will lead a high-level delegation that will arrive in Pakistan on Tuesday (today) to attend the 8th session of the Inter-Governmental Commission (IGC) on trade and cooperation, which will be held from January 18–20.
The delegation, which consists of 80 people, will have bilateral discussions on the much-touted $3 billion Pakistan Stream Gas Pipeline (PSGP) project as well as the long-term trade agreement for oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG).
It will arrive in Pakistan for three days of bilateral discussions organised through the IGC forum.
Views on cooperation in oil and gas production, hydropower, renewable energy sources, electric power, and other topics will be discussed between Islamabad and the Kremlin. Pakistan’s ability to negotiate transactions at a 30% discount would allow the nation to save over $2 billion every year despite its financial difficulties.
The discussion of discounted oil comes at a time when Pakistan is having difficulty supplying its LNG demands as its gas reserves are declining by as much as 10% annually and its ability to buy fossil fuels is being limited by its depleting foreign exchange reserves.
Musadik Malik, the state minister for petroleum, disclosed last month that Russia has agreed to supply crude oil at a reduced cost. This development may lower Pakistan’s import expenses for energy.
In order to sign the contract to purchase crude oil, gasoline, and diesel at a reduced price, Malik announced at a news conference that an intergovernmental delegation headed by the Russian energy minister would visit Pakistan the next month.
He withheld details like the discount provided by Moscow or the timeline for Islamabad’s ability to buy Russian petroleum products.
According to him, the discounted pricing will be the same as the rate being provided to other nations around the globe.
