Dar chairs meeting on ethanol blending with locally refined petrol

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar on Thursday chaired a high-level meeting to review a proposal for blending ethanol with locally produced petrol by domestic refineries.

During the meeting, Chairman of the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) gave a detailed presentation on the proposed framework. After deliberations, the committee noted that ethanol prices are currently higher than petrol prices, making mandatory blending commercially unviable at this stage.

The meeting recommended that a voluntary ethanol blending policy be allowed, subject to financial viability for both refineries and ethanol manufacturers.

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OGRA was directed to conduct a quarterly review comparing the financial outcomes of ethanol exports with its use in domestic petrol blending. The regulator will submit its findings through the Petroleum Division for consideration by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

The meeting was attended by Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Tariq Bajwa, secretaries of Petroleum and Industries & Production, Chairman OGRA, and representatives of the Pakistan Ethanol Manufacturers Association and the Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers Association.