The Russian tanker carrying over 45,000 metric tons of crude oil started discharging into Pakistai Refinery tanks at Karachi Port on Monday, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
The process began at 10:24 am today and will complete in 26 to 36 hours.
Earlie, the Russian tanker was connected to the oil terminal at the Karachi Port and machines have been installed at the berth for supply to Pakistan Refinery.
The Russian crude oil is being directly shifted to the Pakistan Refinery’s tanks.
The arrival of inexpensive Russian crude oil is expected to impact the high inflation and the petroleum prices in Pakistan.
The shipment had left Russia over a month ago and reached Pakistan via Oman. The oil would be processed by the Pakistan Refinery Limited (PRL).
During its long journey, the cargo of over 100,000 metric tons oil was split into two at Oman because the Karachi port was unable to handle the bigger ships. From Oman, the two smaller ships set sails for Karachi.
With the arrival of the cargo, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wrote on Twitter that it marked “a transformative day”, and stated that “I have fulfilled another of my promises to the nation.”
Russian FM message
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov recorded a congratulatory video message on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Russia and Pakistan.
The Russian Embassy in Islamabad uploaded the video on its twitter handle on the day a Russian tanker docked at the Karachi Port carrying crude oil for energy-hungry Pakistan.
Reporter Ashraf Khan