Lobbies at work to handicap Pakistan’s Refining Strategic Assets

Ibn-E-Ameer

‘However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results’ said once by the great Winston Churchill, but sadly the results and outcome are occasionally missed out in our state.

The dark looming clouds of uncertainty that circle the Capital City of Pakistan and the national and international forces behind them do not for second pay heed to what is to come for this beautiful nation.

Pakistan has always been troubled by not only internationally led proxy wars but from forces within and another episode of an anti-state move is rising within the technocrats and diplomats involved.

• CCoE refuses to approve Policy for refineries in Pakistan
• Govt set to remove the cap on refineries’ dividends
• Refineries face Rs 25 billion inventory losses
• Refineries claim Rs 47 billion losses

This episode ‘Refines’ the international oil trader mafia and cartel’s intentions of displaying Pakistan’s refineries for sale and to have them replaced for times to come with imported POL so that the oil cartel which has previously shown its intention of using Pakistan as a dumping ground for POL products can export POL products and other goods to Pakistan.

Crude oil refineries in Pakistan

Now there are five crude oil refineries in Pakistan that are operating to meet the domestic needs of the country. They also produce finished petroleum products to meet the requirements of Pakistan’s army as well.

Now let’s sit back and think for a minute, if refineries that are a national asset and a backbone for the future petrochemical industry are replaced with imported POL, what happens if Pakistan God forbid gets sanctions placed and the import is sealed?

How do our esteemed forces use their assets? How does the ever-vigilant and fantastic Pakistan Air Force use their fighter jets in case of another episode of February 27, 2019 repeats?

Will they be able to down another Abhinandan Airplane and protect the Pakistani borders or will the battle-hardened army of Pakistan be able to use their Ordnance Factory and run their tanks and machinery? How will the Pakistan Navy run its ships and submarines to protect the waters and any threats coming from the sea?

 Pakistan simply cannot depend on imported POL products and replacing its refineries with imported POL, tantamounts to replacing local or agricultural produce, cement, or fertilizer, which again are national assets.

The question now arises, who is behind this cartel pushing for a complete replacement of one of Pakistan’s major national strategic assets.

If it was an international threat, one takes a note but when it’s from within, one has to be serious and on their toes. The current Government has many ministers and technocrats who are currently playing this innings as we speak, yet no one seems to notice.

Farooq Rehmatullah, former CEO Shell Pakistan has proposed closure of three oil refineries in Pakistan that are strategic assets. The closure of refineries will beneift to the international cartel and the oil trader mafia to switch country towards oil imports hub.

Rehmatullah has vast experience in the field of oil marketing and has been Advisor for different business groups. He has also been chairman of Pakistan Refinery.

After retirement from Shell, he joined Hascol’s Board, became its Chairman and it later transpires, he also had equity in `Hascol.

This is where Rahmatullah came to know of Vitol, the international oil trader. So, history shows Rehmatullah has been connected to companies like Hascol and Shell that were named in the oil crisis in June 2020. Ogra had also imposed a fine on these companies.

He is now a member of the Economic Advisory Council and heading the experts’ group on Petroleum.

 Being part of EAC, he is backing the notion that Pakistan should replace its refineries with imported POL from other countries.

The government should not digest this as it would lead to making the country dependent on imported products to benefit the oil traders.

These traders and cartels have very deep pockets, so deep that they manipulate the stock market and the shares of these refineries day in day out.

When this “Oil Refinery Policy” was made public in June 2020. Rehmatullah and co have been against the incoming refinery policy which was laid out quite brilliantly by then SAPM Nadeem Babar.

Maritime Minister has also been more interested in setting up two more LNG terminals at Karachi ports despite the fact there is congestion and Pakistan State Oil continue paying millions of dollars as demurrage.

Ex-Hascol CEO Likely to Become SAPM on Petroleum

Rehmatullah is also reportedly lobbying to bring ex Hascol CEO as the Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Petroleum so that they have another player in their team to back a move of shutting down three refineries-PRL, Byco, and NRL.

The ex Hascol head Waheed Sheikh is part of the same lobby which wants the local refineries shut down that will benefit the traders’.

Does Waheed Sheikh know oil marketing, yes, from 20 years ago when he worked in Shell, does he knows to refine? No.

He spent the last 20 years of his professional career as an errand boy for Ammar Dabagh and Petromin – a blender and seller of lubricants in Saudi Arabia!

Crude oil refineries have produced and refined different products and have saved Pakistan millions of dollars worth of FOREX, being national assets.

Not only do these refineries employ millions of workers in all parts of the country, but they also produce and are equipped and aligned with international standards.

Some refineries have even committed to expanding and have locked in millions of USD for incoming projects, but the cartel seems to be having an edge.

Does Pakistan really need to depend on the international oil trading mafia and cartel instead of bolstering its own strategic and national assets or does it really need to back its own people to reduce the dependency on imports hence reducing its import bill?

This is an eye-opener because if they do opt to replace the refineries with POL imports due to an evil game-plan led by some people sitting in the Federal Capital.

Resultantly,  it’s not just the refinery industry that goes down, the forces and their strategic machinery will all become handicapped.

Given the emergence of Pakistan’s importance in this region due to the Taliban’s taking over of Afghanistan, the esteemed forces and the people running this country should really take a deep look at what is being built around this nation to cut its hands.

In Pakistan, if a Pakistani citizen or Pakistani co won’t invest or won’t be allowed to invest, why will a foreigner or a foreign company?

By leaving Pakistanis out of Pakistan, will this country ever be able to achieve any success in the economic arena?