Pakistan to import US oil for the first time after Cnergyico booked one million barrels of West Texas Intermediate from the trader Vitol.
The cargo will leave Houston this month and reach Karachi in the second half of October, vice chairman Usama Qureshi told Reuters.
The shipment follows a breakthrough trade deal announced in Washington, where Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb met US officials just hours before the purchase was revealed.
The agreement is expected to lower tariffs on Pakistani exports and open wider energy cooperation.
US oil: test run could become a monthly flow
Qureshi called the order a “test spot cargo” under an umbrella agreement with Vitol.
If pricing and logistics work, the refiner may lift at least one parcel each month.
Cnergyico runs Pakistan’s largest coastal refinery and its own single point mooring near Karachi, giving it flexibility to handle VLCC sized imports.
The deal caps months of talks that began in April after US president Donald Trump threatened tariffs on Pakistani goods.
In Thursday’s social media post, Trump said Washington and Islamabad would “work together on developing Pakistan’s massive oil reserves,”.
Signaling deeper energy ties beyond the Houston shipment.
While Islamabad and Washington have not published the full text.
The Finance Ministry says the accord will cut reciprocal tariffs, expand trade, and attract investment.
For Pakistan, a regular WTI stream could diversify crude supply away from the Middle East.
Reduce freight costs through shorter positioning voyages, and give refiners a lighter blend suited to producing petrol and naphtha.
Market watchers will track the Houston Karachi run for unit economics and quality yields.
If the pilot succeeds, Pakistan to import US oil could evolve from headline first to steady fixture on the country’s crude slate.
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