According to TASS news agency, this initial shipment was transported by land from the Orenburg region, Russia, via the Serajs special economic zone, in northeastern Iran, due to the lack of a direct land link between Russia and Pakistan.

ForteInvest, Russia’s largest independent oil refiner, received a request from Pakistan to purchase gasoline, diesel and a new shipment of LPG.

The Russian side is negotiating to maintain the transit through the Serajs special economic zone so as to continue supplying fuel to Pakistan.

In April 2023, Islamabad ordered one hundred thousand tons of Russian Ural crude from Russia, explaining that it was a test shipment to verify the capacity of national refineries to process Russian oil.

In June, two tankers arrived at the port of Karachi loaded with a total of 101,000 tons of Russian oil, which Pakistan considered commercially viable.

A delegation from the Pakistani Ministry of Energy, led by acting minister Mohamed Ali, will travel to Russia on October 10th to negotiate long-term contracts for the supply of oil and liquefied natural gas.

The parties are also expected to address, in upcoming talks, issues of cooperation in investment matters for the construction of the Pakistan Stream trunk gas pipeline.

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