4 fuel-laden ships reach Pakistan amid concerns about shortages, 3 yet to berth

ISLAMABAD: Three ships carrying petrol have arrived in Pakistan while one has already discharged its diesel cargo to replenish the fuel stocks in the country amid global shortages, it emerged on Tuesday.

The berthing for three ships that are yet to discharge their cargoes is scheduled for the coming days this week.

According to a statement issued by the Port Qasim Authority (PQA), a marine tanker, Torm Damini, reached Pakistan on March 8 and has offloaded 37,000 tonnes of diesel.

Meanwhile, another tanker, Nave Atropos, carrying 50,000 tonnes of petrol, has reached Port Qasim and is scheduled to berth on Wednesday, the statement said.

The process is expected to take around 30 hours.

Another tanker, Spruce 2, carrying 55,000 tonnes of petrol, is expected to berth on Thursday.

A fourth ship, Sea Clipper, carrying 34,000 tonnes of petrol, will berth on March 13 or 14, the statement said.

It added that another vessel, bringing petrol for the state-owned Pakistan State Oil, is expected to arrive after March 16.

LPG cargoes

According to the PQA, four ships carrying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) had also arrived.

The statement said that a vessel, MD23, had discharged 3,500 tonnes of LPG while the two other vessel were in the process of offloading their cargoes at terminals.

Navigator Atlantic was discharging 12,000 tonnes of LPG at Engro Vopak Terminal Limited, brought from Oman at Engro Vopak Terminal Limited. Meanwhile, Navigator Aries was discharging 11,000 tonnes of LPG mix from Iraq at Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) LPG terminal, it added.

The statement said that a fourth ship, Ullswater, was outside the port area, waiting with 3,700 tonnes of LPG mix from Iraq, to discharge the cargo at the SSGC LPG terminal.

‘Petrol, diesel stocks for 25 days’

A senior official of the petroleum ministry told Dawn that the country had petrol and diesel stocks for 25 days.

“The import of petrol and diesel will ensure that their supply is not dried up, ” the official said, adding that people had started conserving fuel after the recent hike in petroleum prices, which, too, was helping with maintaining the stock.

The decision to raise the prices came as the country felt the economic impacts of the US-Israel war on Iran, which has paralysed trade via the Strait of Hormuz — a route Pakistan relies heavily on for its oil supplies.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed the finance and petroleum ministers to work with provincial governments on a strategy to conserve and ensure an uninterrupted supply of petroleum products.

Subsequently, Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik had informed a briefing on Sunday that three petroleum shipments were expected to reach Pakistan by Monday.

Speaking on Geo News programme ‘Capital Talk’ today, he said Saudi Arabia had been providing “immense” help to Pakistan in procuring fuel.

He said that with the assistance of the Saudi government, arrangements were made for fuel procurement through Yanbu port.

The minister added that Saudi Arabia was also arranging ships. “They arranged a big vessel, and we are trying to get the [fuel] transferred to smaller vessels in Oman, but we are unable to get insurance for that.”

He also said that there were chances that there would not be any considerable fluctuation in petroleum prices in the near future, but added he could not make an estimation with accuracy.

The minister also stated that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had decided to try his best to “buffer” any future increase in prices through belt-tightening and fuel conservation measures.

“So I think the price will not fluctuate considerably as the government has decided to absorb [the hike],” he added.