Pakistan is not ‘pursuing or receiving’ any discounted energy from Russia: FM Bilawal Bhutto

Pakistan is not “pursuing or receiving” any discounted energy from Russia, according to Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, who is in the US for a seven-day visit.

Earlier, State Minister for Petroleum Musadik Malik had announced that Russia had decided to provide crude oil, petrol, and diesel to Pakistan at lesser rates.

He had stated that specific terms and conditions of the discounted oil commodities will be decided upon during the upcoming visit of the Russian energy minister to Islamabad by mid-January, but that prices would be on par with or even lower than those being offered to other nations, according to Geo.

Before that meeting, Malik had stated, the two parties would refine their ideas to the point at which an executive summary or an agreement could be signed and supplies would begin to flow.

As winter approaches, Pakistan struggles to meet domestic gas supply needs while also trying to control a current account deficit that has been swollen by energy purchases, largely for oil.

Because spot prices are still out of reach for the nation and shipments under long-term contracts are still insufficient to meet the expanding demand, the nation has been unable to purchase liquefied natural gas from the international market.

In an interview, the PPP chairman said: “As far as Russia is concerned, we aren’t pursuing or receiving any discounted energy, but we are facing an extremely difficult economic situation, inflation, pump prices.”

However, he acknowledged Pakistan’s energy insecurity. “We are exploring various avenues to expand our areas where we can get our energy from,” FM Bilawal said, adding that “any energy from Russia will take a long time for us to develop.”