Indo-Pak oil ministers dicuss diesel export
India is keen on exporting diesel to Pakistan to help the neighbouring country meet its fuel shortfall and the issue is likely to resurface in the meeting between Petroleum Minister Jaipal Reddy and his Pakistani counterpart Asim Hussain on Wednesday.
The talks between India and Pakistan on shipment of petroleum products has been going on since 2005, but trade cooperation between the two countries has remained abysmal due to uneasy bilateral ties.
“We would like to export petroleum products, especially diesel to them (Pakistan) and a fresh beginning can be made in this direction after the talks of most favoured nation (MFN) status between the two countries,” a senior oil ministry official told Deccan Herald.
Pakistan has in principal agreed to grant most favoured nation status to India but the issue hinges on Islamabad taking petroleum products off its long list of negative items or the list of items the neighbouring country does not allow to be imported.
India, on the other hand, has a large refining capacity, although it imports about 80 per cent of the oil it consumes.
India’s refining capacity has expanded rapidly in the past decade making it a key player in the international market. India exports 25 per cent of its 185 mt refining capacity.
India has two oil refineries, one in Panipat, referred to as India’s most modern refinery with 12 mt capacity, commissioned in 1998, and the other in Bhatinda, both close to the India–Pakistan border.
The nine-million-tonne Bhatinda refinery is expected to be commissioned this year. Promoted by L N Mittal group and Hindustan Petroleum Corp, the refinery is keen on the Pakistan market for its products, the official said.
India has in the past exported some petrochemicals such as purified terephthalic acid (PTA) and lube oil base stock (LOBS) to Pakistan by sea.
Private sector Reliance Industries is also exploring the prospect of shipping fuel from its Jamnagar refinery to Karachi.
An Indian trade delegation led by Commerce Minister Anand Sharma is scheduled to visit Pakistan on February 13 to review and discuss trade normalisation process between the two countries.
