Russia refused to give Pakistan a 30-40% discount on Russian crude oil saying that it could not offer anything right now as all volumes were committed.
During talks in Moscow, the Pakistan delegation which included State Minister for Petroleum Musadik Malik, the joint secretary, and representatives of the Pakistan Embassy in Moscow asked for a discount.
The talks ended with no cogent conclusion but the Russian side promised to consider Pakistan’s demand and to share its mind later on through diplomatic channels.
However, according to insiders, Russia can provide oil at the rates it is currently offering to its major client countries, which are stable and solid economies, at an appropriate time. All quantities are currently contracted with significant purchasers, they claimed.
The Russian side asked Pakistan to start by keeping its word over the Pakistan Stream Gas Pipeline, which will be built from Karachi to Lahore, Punjab.
During the talks, the Pakistani side expressed a desire to alter the PSGP project’s model. The Russian side said that only a few provisions of the shareholding agreement needed to be finalized and that the model of the project under the GtG structure had already been established.
Pakistan’s official delegation left for Moscow on November 29 on a three-day visit for talks with the Russian authorities to explore possibilities of import of crude oil at a discounted price, mode of payment and shipment cost.
According to industrial ministry sources, Russian crude oil can be processed in Pakistan’s refineries, and in the past one private refinery had used Russian crude oil to deliver finished products.
