ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has “sufficient” petroleum reserves to meet the national demand until the third week of June, the deputy prime minister’s office said on Monday, amid supply disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz due to prevailing tensions between the United States (US) and Iran.
Despite a ceasefire since April 8, Iran has maintained a stranglehold on the strait, a key waterway for global energy and cargo supplies, since Feb. 28, when the US and Israel launched their war on Iran. The US last month imposed a counter-blockade on Iranian ports.
For Pakistan, which imports the bulk of its fuel, the impact has been immediate and severe, with rising oil prices feeding into inflation, transport costs and broader economic pressures on the South Asian nation.
Pakistani Deputy PM Ishaq Dar on Monday presided over a meeting to review position of the country’s petroleum, oil and lubricants (POL) stocks to ensure effective oversight and proactive supply chain management during the ongoing conflict.
“The Petroleum Ministry briefed the committee on the prevailing supply situation, confirming that, after factoring in incoming shipments, sufficient stock levels are available to ensure uninterrupted availability of POL products throughout Pakistan until the third week of June,” Dar’s office said.
Since the conflict began, Pakistan has announced multiple hikes in petroleum prices as well as austerity measures to conserve fuel. On April 30, the government once again raised the prices of petrol and diesel by Rs6.51 and Rs19.39 per liter.
Hours earlier, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif approved a one-month extension in subsidies previously announced for motorcyclists and transport operators.
The government had announced a subsidy of Rs100 ($0.36) per liter for motorcyclists, capped at 20 liters per month. To cushion the impact of surging fuel costs, the government also announced up to Rs70,000 ($252) subsidy per month for freight trucks, Rs80,000 ($288) for larger transport vehicles and Rs100,000 ($360) per month for public passenger buses.
