Islamabad: Russian Energy Minister Nikolay Shulginov has said that Pakistan will pay for energy purchases from Moscow, when they start in late March, in currencies of friendly countries.
Minister Nikolay Shulginov, who is visiting Pakistan for an annual inter-governmental commission held between Pakistan and Russia, also said that the two countries have agreed on late March as the timeline for crude oil export to Pakistan.
Shulginov also stated that the oil and gas trade between Russia and Pakistan “will be structured in a way that is mutually beneficial for both countries”.
At the conclusion of the 8th session of the three-day Pakistan-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission (IGC) on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation, Shulginov said the process for energy trade will be completed in late March.
Pakistan and Russia also signed a bilateral agreement to set up import-based industries and sharing of customs data. The two sides also signed agreements related to the aviation sector. Details of the agreements, however, were not announced during the press briefing.
Speaking ahead of the joint briefing, Minister for Economic Affairs Ayaz Sadiq had said that “a few agreements of mutual cooperation would be signed and some of them were in the pipeline”.
Confirming the news, Minister of State for Petroleum Musadik Malik revealed that Pakistan wants to import 35% of its total crude oil requirement from Russia.
The state minister also mentioned that currently, Russia does not have liquefied natural gas (LNG) for Pakistan.
