Pakistan receives first-ever US crude oil shipment following trade deal

KARACHI: Pakistan received its first-ever shipment of US crude oil, loaded with one million barrels of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude, on Wednesday.

The development came nearly three months after the two countries signed the landmark agreement to strengthen bilateral economic cooperation and diversify Pakistan’s energy supply.

The crude cargo was loaded from Houston on September 14 and was received by Pakistan’s largest refiner, Cnergyico’s Single Point Mooring (SPM) facility in Hub, Balochistan, after completing its transoceanic voyage.

The Suezmax vessel MT Pegasus docked at Cnergyico’s offshore terminal this morning, also marking a historic milestone as the largest crude oil vessel ever to dock at a Pakistani port.

After that, the company confirmed that a second cargo of 1 million barrels of US crude is expected to arrive by mid-November, while a third shipment is planned for early 2026.

A Cnergyico spokesperson said the milestone reflects the company’s commitment to strengthening Pakistan’s energy resilience while advancing Pakistan-US trade relations.

The US-Pakistan trade deal, finalised on July 31, was shared by US President Donald Trump himself on his Truth Social account.

“We have just concluded a Deal with the Country of Pakistan, whereby Pakistan and the United States will work together on developing their massive Oil Reserves,” Trump wrote on July 31 this year.

“We are in the process of choosing the Oil Company that will lead this Partnership.”