Pakistani agency denies fuel shortage in country, says sufficient stocks available

A petrol station worker in Islamabad, Pakistan, on April 22, 2020. (AFP/File)
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Updated 25 January 2023
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Pakistani agency denies fuel shortage in country, says sufficient stocks available

  • People speculated after a massive power breakdown on Monday the country was out of fuel to run energy plants
  • OGRA says local refineries in Pakistan are playing their role in meeting the demand for petroleum products

KARACHI: The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) on Tuesday denied Pakistan was facing a shortage of petrol and diesel, saying the country had sufficient fuel stocks available.

The statement was released after a nationwide power breakdown that affected about 220 million people, leading to speculations that Pakistan did not have enough fuel to operate its energy plants.

“OGRA strongly rebuts the speculations on petrol/diesel shortages,” the official statement said. “The country has sufficient petrol and diesel stocks for meeting demand for 18 and 37 days, respectively.”

It added local refineries were playing their role in meeting the demand for petroleum products.

“Furthermore,” the statement continued, “ships carrying 101,000MT petrol are at berth/outer anchorage.”

Earlier, the country’s power minister, Khurram Dastgir, also told a news conference there was sufficient fuel available in Pakistan.

“We have diesel and furnace oil and there is no shortage of fuel in the country,” he said.

 


Pakistan expresses solidarity with Canada as school shooting claims 9 lives

Updated 11 February 2026
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Pakistan expresses solidarity with Canada as school shooting claims 9 lives

  • At least 9 dead, 27 wounded in shooting incident at secondary school, residence in British Columbia on Tuesday
  • Officials say the shooter was found dead with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after the incident

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday expressed solidarity with Canada as a high school shooting incident in a British Columbia town left at least nine dead, more than 20 others injured. 

Six people were found at the Tumbler Ridge Secondary School while a seventh died on the way to the hospital, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said in a statement on Tuesday. Two other people were found dead at a home that police believe is connected to the shooting at the school. A total of 27 people were wounded in the attack. 

In an initial emergency alert, police described the suspect as a “female in a dress with brown hair,” with officials saying she was found dead with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.

“Saddened by the tragic shooting in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia,” Sharif wrote on social media platform X.

He conveyed his condolences to the families of the victims, wishing a swift recovery to those injured in the attack. 

“Pakistan stands in solidarity with the people and Government of Canada in this difficult time,” he added. 

Canadian police have not yet released any information about the age of the shooter or the victims.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he was “devastated” by the violence, announcing he had suspended plans to travel to the Munich Security Conference on Wednesday.

While mass shootings are rare in Canada, last April, a vehicle attack that targeted a Filipino cultural festival in Vancouver killed 11 people.

British Columbia Premier David Eby called the latest violence “unimaginable.”

Nina Krieger, British Columbia’s minister of public safety, described it as one of the “worst mass shootings” in Canada’s history.