This guide covers everything you need to know about fuel, oil, and gas. It includes information on importing, extracting, and supplying petrol to petrol pumps, as well as how the government set petrol price in Pakistan.
Additionally, below are are the latest petrol prices:
Latest Petrol Prices (Last Revision 16th May 2024)
Fuel | Price Change from Last Revision | New Latest Price |
Petrol | -15.39 PKR | 273.10 PKR |
Hi-speed Diesel | -7.88 PKR | 274.08 PKR |
Declassifying OGRA’s Formula to Set Petrol Price in Pakistan
OGRA uses a special formula to set the petrol price in Pakistan. We’re declassifying it exclusively for this article. The OGRA’s formula comprises six components with specific weightage. Here’s the table with an explanation:
No. | Formula Component | Weightage (%) | Price | Explanation |
1 | Ex-Refinery Price | 62.5% | 170.625 | This is the cost at which refineries sell petrol to oil marketing companies (OMCs) like PSO, Shell, and Total. The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) sets this price, which is based on the import parity price (IPP) formula. The IPP formula takes the average price of Arab Gulf Gasoline (92 RON) and adds import costs and surcharges to arrive at a price that reflects what it would cost to import petrol. |
2 | IFEM | 3.6% | 9.828 | This is a margin added to ensure a uniform price across the country. Without IFEM, petrol prices in cities far from refineries would be much higher than in cities close by. |
3 | Distributor Margin | 2.8% | 7.644 | Maximum profit per liter that OMCs can earn. The government sets this margin. |
4 | Dealer Commission | 3.7% | 10.101 | A maximum commission that petrol pump owners can earn per liter. The government also sets this commission. |
5 | Petroleum Levy | 14.2% | 38.766 | Tax collected by the government. The rate of this levy is set by the Ministry of Energy. |
6 | Sales Tax | 13.3% | 36.309 | General sales tax is applied to the sum of all the other components. |
Total latest price | 100% | Rs.273.10 |
Current Petrol Price in Pakistan
The latest petrol price in Pakistan is Rs.273.10/;. We’ve done the above calculation as per the latest figures, and we’ll keep it updated after every petrol price revision. The same calculation is for Hi-speed diesel as well.
Crude Oil Imports of Pakistan
In 2022, Pakistan has imported $5.23B worth of Crude oil, becoming the 29th largest Crude oil importer in the world. Additionally, Crude oil is our second biggest imported product.
Our major crude oil import partners are:
- Saudi Arabia ($2.77B)
- UAE ($2.29B)
- Kuwait ($171M)
Source: Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC)
Imports of Refined Fuels
Note that our local refineries extract enough fuel to meet a specific percentage of country requirements:
| Name of Product | Production (tons/annum) | % of Country Requirements |
| Jet Fuels/Kerosene | 0.7 Million | More than 100% |
| Hi-speed Diesel | 4.0 Million | 45% |
| Gasoline | 2.5 Million | 30% |
The rest of the fuel is imported in refined form by OMCs (petrol pump companies) and refineries themselves to meet the deficit.
Pakistan’s 5 Big Refining Companies that Process the Crude Oil
Pakistan’s petroleum demand is 19 million tons. While we produce almost half of our petroleum needs through domestic crude oil production, we also import $5.23B worth of Crude oil from other countries as mentioned above.
The crude oil is imported and refined locally by our 5 big refinery companies which are:
- Pak-Arab Refinery Limited (PARCO)
- National Refinery Limited (NRL)
- Pakistan Refinery Limited (PRL)
- Attock Refinery Limited (ARL)
- Cnergyico Pk Limited (CPL)
Their market share is:
These refineries process the crude oil on a domestic level and extract hydrocarbon fuels and lubricants, including:
- LPG
- Naptha
- Gasoline (Petrol)
- Jet Fuel (JP-1)
- Diesel (Hi-speed Diesel)
- Furnace Oil (FO)
Here’s the diagram for your ease:
All products are produced simultaneously.
Supplying Process From Refinery to OMCs (Petrol Pump Companies)
After processing the crude oil, these refineries sell the processed fuel and lubricants to:
- OMCs, e.g., Shell, PSO, Hascol, GO, Byco, and many more
- Military, e.g., Navy, Pakistan Army, and Pakistan Air Force, so that they can fuel their fighter jets, tanks, military vehicles, and warships.
These OMCs then sell the fuel to B2B and B2C consumers through petrol pumps to customers or directly to factories, industries, and private aviation companies like AirBlue and Serene Air.
OMCs and Their Retail Network
OMCs have a total of 11,848 retail networks (petrol pumps) spread across the country, including, but not limited to, PSO, Shell, Total Parco, Hascol, GO, Euro, and Byco.
Network-wise, PSO has the largest number of retail networks across the country:
TPPL: Total Parco, SPL: Shell Pakistan, APL: Attock
Products-wise sales of each OMC company
(Million Tons, per year average)
Sr. No. | Product | PSO | TPPL | Hascol | SPL | APL | GO | Cnergyico | BEE | Others | Total |
1 | MS | 3.98 | 1.10 | 0.16 | 0.95 | 0.75 | 0.84 | 0.21 | 0.26 | 0.76 | 9.01 |
2 | HOBC (95/97 RON) | 0.05 | 0.03 | 0.00 | 0.06 | 0.01 | 0.01 | 0.00 | – | 0.00 | 0.15 |
3 | HSD | 4.60 | 0.94 | 0.08 | 0.71 | 0.77 | 0.75 | 0.26 | 0.18 | 0.62 | 8.92 |
4 | FO | 2.54 | 0.05 | 0.01 | – | 0.61 | 0.01 | 0.26 | 0.21 | 0.56 | 4.26 |
5 | JP-1 | 0.29 | – | – | 0.00 | 0.01 | – | – | – | – | 0.29 |
6 | Kerosene | 0.04 | 0.01 | – | – | 0.02 | – | 0.00 | – | – | 0.06 |
7 | LDO | 0.01 | 0.00 | – | – | 0.01 | – | – | – | – | 0.02 |
8 | 100 LL | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 0.00 | 0.00 |
Total | 11.51 | 2.12 | 0.25 | 1.73 | 2.17 | 1.61 | 0.73 | 0.65 | 1.94 | 22.70 |
MS: Petrol, HOBC: Hi-Octane, HSD: High-Speed Diesel, JP-1: Jet Fuel, FO: Furnace Oil, LDO: Light-Diesel Oil, 100 LL: Low Lead Aviation Fuel
Consumption of Petroleum Products as Per the Industries
(Million tons)
| Sr.No. | Sector | MS | HSD | Kero | Aviation Fuels | FO | LDO | Total Energy | Total Non- Energy | Grand Total |
| 1 | Transport | 9.13 | 8.01 | – | 0.27 | 0.00 | – | 17.41 | 0.12 | 17.53 |
| 2 | Power | – | 0.25 | – | – | 3.44 | – | 3.68 | 0.00 | 3.68 |
| 3 | Industry | 0.01 | 0.49 | 0.01 | – | 0.82 | 0.00 | 1.33 | 0.17 | 1.50 |
| 4 | Government | 0.02 | 0.16 | 0.03 | 0.16 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.38 | 0.04 | 0.42 |
| 5 | Domestic | – | – | 0.03 | – | 0.00 | – | 0.03 | 0.00 | 0.03 |
| 6 | Agriculture | – | – | – | – | – | 0.01 | 0.01 | – | 0.01 |
| 7 | Overseas/ Export | – | 0.00 | – | 0.24 | 0.06 | – | 0.30 | 0.00 | 0.30 |
| Total FY 2021-22 | 9.16 | 8.92 | 0.07 | 0.67 | 4.31 | 0.02 | 23.14 | 0.34 | 23.48 | |
| Total FY 2020-21 | 8.46 | 7.76 | 0.07 | 0.36 | 2.92 | 0.02 | 19.60 | 0.32 | 19.92 | |
| %growth | 8.26 | 14.94 | (1.87) | 85.73 | 47.64 | (21.86) | 18.07 | 5.26 | 17.87 | |
Top Three Pakistani Sectors That Depend on Petroleum
- Transportation 59% dependency
- Power (electricity) 32% dependency
- Industry 8% dependency
Most Consumed Petroleum Products
Petrol (9.5 million tons)
High-Speed Diesel (9 million tons)
Furnace Oil (4.3 million tons)
Flaws in the Refining Sector of Pakistan
Pakistan’s current oil refining capacity is 450,000 barrels per day, equivalent to 20 million tonnes each year. This includes the total capacity of all five local refineries. Here’s the breakdown table of each refinery’s maximum capacity:
Refinery | Year | Technology | Capacity (bpd) | Capacity (MT) |
PARCO | 2000 2010 (Euro II) 2011 (AABU) 2020 (upgrade) | Mild Conversion | 120,000 | 5.5 |
ARL | 1922(original) 1981(new) 1999(upgrade) 2016(upgrade / capacity enhanced) | Hydroskimming | 53,400 | 2.4 |
NRL | 1966(lube) 1977 (fuel) 2017 & 2018 (upgrade & revamp) 2021 (capacity enhanced) | Lube Refinery + Hydroskimming | 70,000 | 3.2 |
PRL | 1962 2015(upgrade) | Hydroskimming | 50,000 | 2.3 |
CPL I | 2004 (commissioned) 2008 (revamp/capacity enhanced) | Hydroskimming | 36,000 | 1.6 |
CPL II | 2015 (commissioned) 2017 (Upgrade Isomerization) | Hydroskimming | 120,000 | 5.5 |
Total Capacity | 450,000 | 20.5 |
The actual capacity utilization is at around 10 million tons. This is due to the lower demand for furnace oil (FO). Explained below:
- Power Plants Shift from FO: Power plants in Pakistan are shifting away from FO and using other fuels like heavy diesel and petrol. This means there’s less need for FO, a product that is naturally created during the Crude oil refining process.
- Refineries Can’t Choose What to Produce: When crude oil is refined, it creates a mix of products like gasoline (MS), diesel (HSD), and Furnace oil (FO). Refineries can’t just produce more gasoline or diesel if there’s no demand for FO—they all come together naturally.
- Lower Overall Production: Because refineries can’t avoid producing FO, they have to lower the total extraction of Crude oil to match the lower demand for FO. This leads to underutilized capacity (refineries not working at their full potential).
Why Only 5 Refineries From 70 Years?
For over 70 years, we have only had 5 oil refineries; why is that? Here’s what OGRA’s “PAKISTAN OIL REFINING POLICY, 2023” says about it:
Source: PAKISTAN OIL REFINING POLICY, 2023 PDF
Let’s break it down into an easy understanding of why we don’t have many investments in the petroleum refinery sector:
- High Capital Intensity: Building a refinery requires a lot of investment, i.e., a large area of land, heavy machinery that is way too expensive, a lot of labor, and skilled engineers that are costly to afford. Importing millions of tons of crude oil is also significantly pricey.
- Volatile Crude & Product Prices: The price of crude oil and refined products fluctuates periodically, making it difficult for refineries to establish a profit structure.
- Minimal Tariff Protection: Pakistan’s refineries do not have a high level of tariff protection, which means that they face competition from imported refined products.
- Policy Vacuum since 1997: The refining sector in Pakistan has not had a clear and consistent policy framework since 1997, which has discouraged investment.
- Limited Availability of Domestic Crude: Pakistan does not produce much crude oil, so refineries have to import most of it.
- Government-instructed pricing: Refineries can’t just sell the fuel at their profit margin, resulting in a significantly lower profit ratio relative to billions of rupees of investment; it just doesn’t make sense for an investor.
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