Refineries urge Railways to use domestic diesel

ISLAMABAD: The country’s refineries have urged Pakistan Railways to use locally produced high-speed diesel (HSD) for transportation purposes instead of imported diesel.

They argue that this will benefit both stakeholders and help conserve precious foreign exchange reserves currently depleted due to the import of diesel. The Oil Companies Advisory Council (OCAC) raised this issue in a letter dated May 31, 2024, addressed to the secretary of the Railways Division.

The letter states that Pakistan Railways, in its tenders for the supply of HSD, specifies a flash point of 66 degrees Celsius minimum, which only applies to imported HSD.

In contrast, locally produced HSD has an approved specification of 54 degrees Celsius minimum. This discrepancy prevents the use of locally produced diesel by Pakistan Railways, making it dependent on imported diesel.

The letter notes that this issue has remained unresolved for many years, despite various correspondences and meetings between local refineries and railway authorities.

OCAC chairman Adil Khattak stated, “We are at a loss to understand why Pakistan Railways insists on a 66-degree Celsius flash point for imported diesel when many countries like the USA, Canada, European Union, Japan, China, South Korea, India, and South American countries use the same or even lower flash point specs than Pakistan’s for locally produced diesel.”

He added in the letter, “We also provided copies of Indian Railways’ tender specifying a 35-degree Celsius flash point, much lower than Pakistan’s specs for locally produced diesel. Moreover, Pakistan Railways’ committee had confirmed in May 2021 that there was no issue with using 54-degree Celsius flash point HSD, but the matter remains unresolved.”

The OCAC hopes that the current minister, chairman, and CEO of Pakistan Railways will take a positive decision at the earliest to resolve this long-standing issue.