India offers cheaper petroleum products

Himalayan News Service

Islamabad, June 6:

India has offered to supply 325,000 tonnes of diesel at concessional rates to Pakistan from its refinery at Panipat from October. The export will depend on Pakistan agreeing to lift the ban on import of petroleum and petrochemical products from India, a matter that would be raised when Indian petroleum minister Mani Shankar Aiyar meets Pakistani commerce minister Humayun Akhtar. India is keen to export diesel from the Indian Oil Corporation (IndianOil) refinery at Panipat in Haryana from October to March and has offered to do so at rates which “should be more favourable even compared to the concessional rates at which Pakistan is getting supplies from Kuwait,” sources said. “Aiyar will be requesting Pakistan commerce minister to remove the petroleum and petrochemical products from the negative list, pav-ing the way for the export of 325,000 tonnes of diesel and, possibly at a later date, petrochemicals like purified terephthalic acid used for polyester fibre and linear alkyl benzene,” they said.