Month: June 2022

Russia’s Middle East Footprint Expands With New Iran-Iraq Plan

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Three events occurred in the last week or so involving either Iran or Iraq separately, or both together, that put Russia back front and centre in the Middle East, to the detriment of the U.S. In order of timing, these events were: a series of meetings between Russia’s veteran foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, and Iran’s senior political and military figures, including President, Ebrahim Raisi; the withdrawal from the Iraqi parliament of the country’s long-time de facto leader, Moqtada al-Sadr, and his 73-member political bloc, the largest group in the legislative…

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To strike staff-level pact with IMF, Rs10/litre petroleum levy on the cards

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In order to strike a staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the government is considering slapping Rs10 per litre petroleum levy on POL However, there is no possibility of imposition of general sales tax (GST) on POL products from July 2022, and it will be kept at zero for the time being. In an interesting but well-thought-out strategy, devised by the economic team of the coalition government, the Ministry of Finance is going to recommend that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif should slap a petroleum levy of Rs10 per…

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Musadik given overview of PSO’s performance

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Minister of State (Petroleum Division), Ministry of Energy, Musadik Malik visited PSO’s Head Office here. Managing Director and CEO, Pakistan State Oil (PSO), Syed Taha welcomed the guest along with the company’s senior management.The minister was given an overview of the company’s financial and operational performance, milestones achieved and key challenges. The minister acknowledged PSO’s role in reshaping Pakistan’s energy landscape with technological advancements and digitization. Pakistan State Oil continues to set new industry benchmarks and reaffirm its role as the national flag bearer and leader of positive change in…

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SHC dismisses Hascol ex-CEO’s lawsuit against senator

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Sindh High Court on Monday dismissed a lawsuit filed by a former chief executive officer (CEO) of Hascol Petroleum, seeking injunction against proceedings of the Senate’s Standing Committee on Petroleum over allegations of corruption during his tenure at the company. Plaintiff Saleem Butt, former CEO of HASCOL, and others have challenged the allegations leveled by Pakistan Muslim League (N) Senator Dr Afnanullah Khan in a letter to chairman senate standing committee as well as proceedings of parliamentary committee meeting. Senator Khan had drawn attention of the chairman of the Senate…

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Pakistan’s fuel oil imports hit 4 year high as it struggles to buy LNG

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Pakistan’s monthly fuel oil imports are set to hit a four-year high in June, Refinitiv data showed, as the country struggles to buy liquefied natural gas (LNG) for power generation amid a heatwave that is driving demand. The resurgence in residue fuel demand at power plants underscores the energy crisis faced by the South Asian country and slows its efforts to switch to cleaner fuel. Pakistan had cut fuel oil imports since the second half of 2018 as LNG prices were low, but it had to at times switch back…

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