PSO - Fuelling success

For the past 35 years, Pakistan State Oil has been driving the wheels of the national economy, all the way from product supplies to meeting the needs of critical sectors of the economy such as power companies, agriculture, railways, aviation, marine sector, defence, etc. No wonder, PSO is not just any company. It is a name that touches the lives of 2.8 million Pakistanis on a daily basis in more ways than one.
PSO's vision of being 'an innovative and dynamic energy company that gets to the future first' is the idea that has provided boundless impetus to its management and employees. It has also been the inspiration and driving force behind the company's desire to achieve excellence in all facets of its operations.
PSO imports over 90% of POL products and has over a million metric tonnes of oil storage facilities nation-wide. It also supplies fuel at 9 airports and 3 seaports besides meeting the needs of over 2,000 industrial units and business houses across the country. The company has a state-of-the-art Lube manufacturing terminal where it produces and blends its own range of lubricants.
Dynamic growth is at the core of the company's heart and soul. Keeping this in view PSO's new Managing Director & CEO, Naeem Yahya Mir has developed a vision for the future, aimed at taking PSO forward from being just an oil marketing and distribution company to a fully integrated oil company.
Having vast and in-depth corporate experience spanning over 21 years at leading national and international oil firms, Naeem Yahya Mir has drawn upon his experience as a refinery and international market expert to chalk out a clear vision for the company's future direction.
He is pursuing a strategy of rapid development and decision making and has already begun to turn his plans into reality by working to enhance links with upstream organisations. His systematic approach includes partnering with refineries and building up PSO's own logistical network to further reduce dependence on external supply chains. His future road map also includes exploring new product markets, expanding the lubricants product range, expansion of the company's retail network and reducing product movement costs. To achieve these goals, PSO will focus on operational streamlining, cost reduction, minimising product losses, expanding cash sales and improving quality and quantity testing to offer premier products to its customers.
Under his guidance, the PSO management is charting out a new course on the lines of proactive leadership. Due significance is also being given to corporate governance and promoting a more transparent culture that heralds the beginning of a new era where the focus is on strengthening the institution with sound policies and business practices.
As part of his overall plan, the MD intends to develop an integrated supply chain that incorporates all aspects including exploration, refining, shipping and distribution under a single organisational umbrella. He foresees that under this plan, PSO may well rise to become the nation's most dynamic company in the next two years, a regional player in four and a force to be reckoned with in the international market in the next six years and join the Fortune 500 league. For him, a fully integrated vertical supply chain is the only way for PSO to enter the international arena. He plans to make PSO wholly competitive on the domestic level and to challenge oil giants like Petro China and Petronas which are government-owned entities with integrated supply chains that allow them to be operate on a global scale.
On the subject of the benefits of vertical integration, Mir is of the view that the core objective of any firm is profitability and, by incorporating all the supply chain components, PSO should be able to dramatically reduce its operational costs which would, in turn, translate into cost benefits for the Government and the general public. Having a self-sufficient supply chain would also allow the country to reduce its dependence on external supply sources and this would result in an increase in company profitability and viability.
Naeem Yahya Mir encourages all his employees to bring in new and innovative ideas to increase revenue streams for the company. A number of operational refinements including streamlining operational activities, infrastructure development, and expansion of retail network would also be implemented. The human resource structure is also being revamped at PSO to ensure that there are right people for the right jobs who are motivated and inspired to work together and achieve targets.
While PSO's key objectives are financial in nature, Mir's future ideas also include a strong element of giving back to the people of Pakistan. To further this, he has called for early implementation of structured CSR programs which harness PSO's root level infrastructure to actively engage the local communities. He also plans to engage PSO employees in welfare work directly, thereby giving a sense of ownership to the PSO family and allowing them to carry out charitable activities on a personal level far into the future.
Despite being cash strapped due to non-payments from the power sector, Pakistan State Oil has played a pivotal role in energising the nation by ensuring uninterrupted and continuous fuel supply to energy producers. Even in the face of rising circular debt and mounting liquidity issues, PSO delivered on its promise to provide for the nation in a responsible manner by providing over 32,000 MTs of furnace oil per day to power plants located across the country.
Even during the devastating floods of 2010 and monsoon rains of 2011, PSO deployed its resources in a time-conscious manner and provided uninterrupted fuel supplies to the affected areas. PSO also ensured that its 3,300 retail outlets remained operational while maintenance and repair work was carried out to revive affected outlets in flood-affected areas.
PSO has introduced several innovations in the field of non-fuel services at its retail outlets including Auto Car Wash Service, ATMs and self-service Banking Centres and convenience stores known as Stop Shops. The company was also the first to introduce fuel cards in the Pakistani market and currently has the largest base of fuel card customers across the nation.
With its inherent strengths and the government's support, PSO continues to play a vital role in the national economy. Providing for the needs of the country at every turn, it ensures availability of POL products in times of crisis, provides a means of livelihood for thousands and supports the national economy by being one of the largest tax payers in the country. It is for this reason that the Company's name has become synonymous with nation-building and community improvement.