ISLAMABAD: The Federal Minister for Petroleum Ghulam Sarwar Khan asserted the government would announce new petroleum policy in March.
Talking to journalists, Ghulam Sarwar Khan said that producer provinces had been given first right on their resources after the 18th Amendment.
He said that the heads of gas companies were removed due to their incompetency and added that LNG terminal remained closed for 15 days due to their negligence.
Ghulam Sarwar said that Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prime Mohammed bin Salman would visit Pakistan in February to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to set up an oil refinery in Gwadar at a cost of $10 billion. The minister said that the oil refinery would fulfill the demand of petroleum products of the country.
Earlier, the Saudi Arabia’s energy minister, on January 13, had said that his country would set up a $10bn oil refinery in Pakistan’s deepwater port of Gwadar.
“Saudi Arabia wants to make Pakistan’s economic development stable through establishing an oil refinery and partnership with Pakistan in the China Pakistan Economic Corridor,” Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih had told reporters in Gwadar.
Pakistan wants to attract investment and other financial support to tackle a soaring current account deficit caused partly by rising oil prices. Last year, Saudi Arabia offered Pakistan a $6bn package that included help to finance crude imports.
