Fuel oil imports fall 0.9% in February

PSO seeks 650,000 tons of fuel oil.

SINGAPORE:

Pakistan bought less than 400,000 tons of fuel oil for the second consecutive month this year, official data showed on Thursday.

Total fuel oil imports for February stood at around 390,000 tons, a slight 0.9% drop over the previous month, figures from the Oil Companies Advisory Committee showed.

Imports of high-sulphur fuel oil (HSFO) fell 20% to 260,000 tons, while imports of low-sulphur fuel oil (LSFO) climbed 88% to around 130,000 tons.

The country’s main buyer, Pakistan State Oil, had earlier secured a total of 890,000 tons of fuel oil for February and March through a tender, which means March imports are likely to be higher.

Meanwhile, Pakistan State Oil (PSO) is seeking up to 650,000 tons of high-sulphur fuel oil (HSFO) for the second quarter, shying away from low-sulphur parcels though, tender details on its website showed on Thursday.

Total volume sought for the HSFO grade is steady to the previous February-March period, with three 65,000-ton lots required for April 15-30 delivery, four 65,000-ton parcels to be delivered in June and another three 65,000-ton cargoes to land between May to June.

Bids are to be made on a cost-and-freight basis to Karachi, with the tender closing on March 19 and remaining valid for a week till March 26.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 9^th, 2012.