Category: oil and gas

The ongoing turmoil in the Middle East has exposed a stark reality: Pakistan’s energy security is perilously dependent on external sources. The ongoing conflict between Iran and the United States, coupled with the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, has disrupted nearly 80% of Pakistan’s energy imports. Oil prices have surged from $75–80 per barrel to $118, while LNG supply disruptions have left national reserves sufficient for only two weeks. Industries are under severe pressure, exports are threatened, and inflation is escalating. This crisis is a clarion call for Pakistan…

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Global energy markets rely on a network of critical maritime routes that transport oil from producing regions to major consuming economies. While oil is traded globally, it does not move freely across oceans. Instead, much of the world’s supply passes through a small number of narrow maritime chokepoints that serve as vital arteries for international energy trade. In 2023, global oil consumption averaged about 100 million barrels per day. A significant portion of this supply moves through a few highly concentrated routes. The Strait of Hormuz is the most important…

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Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PSX: PPL) reported a softer earnings performance in 1HFY26, as a modest decline in revenue, rising operating costs, and a sharp drop in other income weighed on profitability despite the company remaining solidly in the black. During the first half of FY26, revenue from contracts with customers fell 7 percent year-on-year. The decline in the topline proved significant, particularly as the company’s cost structure did not adjust proportionately. While royalties and levies declined 10 percent year-on-year, offering partial relief, operating expenses rose 10 percent, resulting in margin…

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ISLAMABAD: The Petroleum Division is facing a complex policy challenge after the Independent System and Market Operator (ISMO) sought further reductions in nearly 10 additional RLNG cargoes for 2026—beyond already adjusted volumes—raising concerns about a potential breach of the Integrated Generation Capacity Expansion Plan (IGCEP). According to senior officials, Special Secretary Petroleum Mirza Nasiruddin Mashhood Ahmad, in a letter to the Power Division, referred to ISMO’s December 13, 2025 communication that revised downward the RLNG demand for the power sector for calendar year 2026. Under long-term LNG Sale and Purchase…

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How much oil does Pakistan really have? In 2013, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) – the statistical arm of the US Department of Energy – released one of the most comprehensive assessments of global shale resources. Conducted in collaboration with Advanced Resources International (ARI), the report – titled ‘Technically Recoverable Shale Oil and Shale Gas Resources: An Assessment of 137 Shale Formations in 41 Countries Outside the United States’ – offered detailed, country-specific estimates. For Pakistan, it provided the most authoritative data yet on the nation’s untapped shale oil…

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