Pakistan urges refineries to explore Libyan crude imports
Pakistan has encouraged its domestic refineries to explore imports of Libyan crude oil as part of an effort to diversify supply sources and keep alternative options open should key maritime routes be disrupted, Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik said. According to a statement released on Monday, he raised the matter in a bilateral meeting with Libya's Minister of Oil and Gas, Khalifa Rajab Abdulsadek, on the sidelines of the 17th International Energy Forum Ministerial Meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Ali Pervaiz said Pakistan aimed to strengthen energy security by widening its crude supply base, with alternatives in place in the event of disruption to routes including the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab al-Mandeb Strait. Khalifa Rajab described Pakistan as an important country for Libya and said he would encourage Libya's national oil company to allocate greater volumes of crude to Pakistani companies. He also said Libya planned to upgrade its refineries and was interested in learning from Pakistan's experience in refinery upgradation, according to the statement.
Separately, Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar called on Ali Pervaiz and said he looked forward to visiting Pakistan next month to receive a TPAO seismic vessel and begin data acquisition in the Indus Basin. The petroleum minister also held a breakfast meeting with Qatar's Energy Minister, Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, to explore possibilities for cooperation in the LNG sector.
Addressing a plenary session titled "Investment and Trade in Sustainable Energy Solutions: Making Energy Clean, Accessible and Affordable", Ali Pervaiz said the global energy sector was entering a new investment cycle in which energy security, affordability and sustainability must advance together. He said investment was needed not only in renewable energy but also in hydrocarbons, critical minerals and essential infrastructure including grids and pipelines. Referring to what he described as the unprecedented global energy supply shock of 2026, he noted that the crisis extended beyond oil and gas to shipping and insurance.
Despite Pakistan's heavy dependence on imported energy, the minister said, the country had navigated the crisis without rationing major energy sources, supported by the government's response and cooperation from countries he described as brotherly, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait. He said Pakistan was working to strengthen its long-term energy security architecture through strategic reserves, a bonded reserves scheme, greater indigenous production, critical infrastructure including refineries and tank farms, competitive electricity and gas markets, and targeted relief mechanisms. He added that international investment and trade frameworks must balance innovation and sustainability with affordability, equity and access.
