Oil rose towards $116 a barrel on Tuesday, adding to a 7% surge the previous day, supported by supply risks from a potential European Union oil embargo on Russia and concern about attacks on Saudi oil facilities. European Union foreign ministers are split on whether to join the United States in banning Russian oil. Some countries, including Germany, say the…
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The American Petroleum Institute (API) estimated that there was a surprise draw this week for crude oil of 4.28 million barrels, compared to analyst predictions of a 25,000 barrels build. U.S. crude inventories have shed some 77 million barrels since the start of 2021 and about 20 million barrels since the start of 2020. In the week prior, the API…
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The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $300 million loan to further develop Pakistan’s capital markets, promote private investment in the country, and help to mobilise domestic resources to finance sustainable growth.The second subprogramme of ADB’s Third Capital Market Development Programme builds on institutional and regulatory reforms put in place under the first subprogramme approved in 2020. It aims…
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Petroleum Division proposed exclusion of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) premium from price computation of high speed diesel (HSD) for the April-June 2022 period due to price volatility in the global market, The News learnt on Tuesday. According to a summary of the Petroleum Division, due to the volatile market conditions in the wake of Russia-Ukraine war and high demand of…
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National Power Parks Management Company (Pvt.) Limited (NPPMCL) received an unprecedented response from a syndicate of local banks for project financing in excess of Rs100 billion, said a press release issued on Monday. NPPMCL, which owns and operates two state-of-the-art power plants, is being privatized by the Privatisation Commission which led to the recapitalization of the government of Pakistan’s equity…
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Prime Minister’s constituted National Coordination Committee on Foreign Funded Projects (NCC-FFP) has scrutinized a total of 171 projects with involvement of foreign funding of almost $30 billion and found 70 projects as problematic with a cost of $13.28 billion during the last fiscal year 2020-21. According to the Year Book 2020-21 released on Monday, the NCC-FFP scrutinized 171 projects and…
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Despite a visible slowdown in cement demand—though expectations earlier ran contrary to what transpired—and ballooning energy costs, cement industry in the first half of the fiscal year far exceeded estimates. Revenues and earnings grew substantially on the back of impressive retention, reduced overheads and financial costs, as well as a reasonable improvement in “other incomes”. Total cement dispatches dropped 4…
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Amid declining domestic gas production and expensive fuel imports, a new policy for conversion of Coal-to-Gas (LTG) and Coal-to-Liquid (CTL) with lucrative tax holidays and duty exemptions is being finalised to be made part of the upcoming federal budget 2022-23. Informed sources said the draft Policy on Coal-to-Liquid and Coal-to-Gas was prepared by Oracle Power and China National Coal Development…
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The Islamic Development Bank has signed three financing agreements, valued at $180 million, with the Government of Pakistan, to support its green agenda, it said, in a statement. The financing is set to fund the Mohmand Dam and Hydropower Plant project. It aims to add 800 megawatts to Pakistan’s installed hydropower capacity and generate approximately 2,862 gigawatt hours annually. “We are…
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