Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Petroleum Ali Pervaiz Malik on Monday, reaffirmed the government’s commitment to supporting refinery upgradation as a national priority, stating that modernizing Pakistan’s refining infrastructure was essential for ensuring energy security, promoting cleaner fuels and strengthening the country’s resilience against external disruptions. The federal minister gave the assurance while chairing a high-level meeting at the Petroleum Division with the CEOs and Managing Directors of the country’s oil refineries to review and accelerate the operationalization of the Brownfield Upgradation Refinery Policy.
At the outset, the minister underscored the strategic importance of the refining sector and emphasized that local refineries were critical national assets for ensuring uninterrupted fuel supplies and strengthening Pakistan’s energy security.
He said that the ongoing regional situation arising from the US-Iran conflict had further highlighted the urgency of reducing reliance on external supply chains and ensuring maximum domestic refining flexibility and capability.
The minister stressed that the timely up-gradation of existing refineries was essential to enhance production capacity, improve efficiency and ensure the supply of cleaner Euro-V fuels in line with international standards.
He said that refinery up-gradation would enable Pakistan’s refineries to produce Euro-V-compliant fuels, contributing significantly to improved environmental outcomes, better engine performance and reduced emissions.
The minister observed that despite the issuance of both refining policies in 2023, progress on implementation had remained stalled.
He added that removing bottlenecks was crucial for advancing refinery modernization and attracting long-term investment in the sector.
During the meeting, the refining policies and the Upgradation Agreement template were reviewed in detail to ensure their effective and timely operationalization.
The CEOs and Managing Directors highlighted key challenges and proposed practical measures for their resolution. They expressed full confidence in the efforts of the Petroleum Division.
The exemption of sales tax on petroleum products was identified as the key issue affecting the viability of up-gradation projects.
The minister directed that a comprehensive proposal addressing these challenges be finalized and submitted to the relevant forum before the finalization of the upcoming budget so that the refining policies could be implemented without delay.
The meeting was attended by the Secretary of Petroleum, Additional Secretary (Policy), Director General (Oil), CEO of Pakistan Refinery Limited, Managing Director of PARCO, CEO of Attock Refinery Limited, CEO of Cynergico, and CEO of National Refinery Limited.
