KARACHI: Pakistan oil imports bill during July-November current year jacked up by 31 percent to reach at $3.39 billion, while this could further go up with the fast growing economy.
During the first five months of the current fiscal year, petroleum products’ imports swelled by 23 percent to reach at 7.3 million tons as against nearly 6 million tons during the same period last fiscal year.
The government and the industrial sources told that the escalating demand for oil by the government organizations and private sector’s power producers played a dominant role in the pushing up of the petroleum products’ imports.
Finance ministry’s Advisor for Economic Affairs, Dr. Ashfaque Hassan told that the Pakistan’s economy growing by over 6 percent per annum generated high demand for energy, which triggered increased dependence on oil in the backdrop of the specified quantum of power production from the hydle and gas fueled plants and, therefore, the oil imports increased, despite more water being available in the Dams