KARACHI: The transport sector’s petroleum consumption surged by over 0.5 million metric tonnes in the first half of this fiscal year (FY25) compared to the same period in the last fiscal on the back of an uptick in economic activity in the country.
The total consumption by various sectors totalled 8.9 million metric tonnes in the first half of the fiscal compared to 8.3 million metric tonnes in the same period of the last financial year.
The latest data of oil consumption by the various sectors of the economy showed the transport sector consumed 7.2 million metric tonnes of petroleum products in the first half compared to 6.6 million in the corresponding period of the last fiscal.
“The growth in consumption came from the accelerated economic activity in 2024 following the slowdown in the economy in the year 2023” oil sector experts told The News.
In the transport sector, the highest consumption was registered by road transport followed by railway. Road transport consumed 6.9 million metric tonnes of oil products in the months under review, compared to 6.4 million in the same period of the previous fiscal, while railway transport consumed 58,201 metric tonnes against 50,744 metric tonnes in the same period a year ago.
The industrial sector was the second highest consumer of petroleum products after the transport sector. It burned 0.5 million metric tonnes of oil products, the same as in the corresponding months of the last fiscal. The cement and other sectors of the economy recorded growth in the consumption of oil products. The consumption of petroleum products in the agriculture sector recorded a decline in the first half of the current fiscal.
The consumption in the power sector plunged massively as it burned only 95,312 metric tonnes of petroleum products during the period under review as compared to 345,000 metric tonnes in the corresponding period in the last fiscal year.
The consumption in the power sector decreased due to low electricity generation from fuel oil in this sector. The power generation from fuel oil declined massively in the first half of this fiscal, experts said.
Oil consumption by KE, Pakistan Electric Power Company (Pepco), Kot Addu Power Limited, Hubco Power Company, Narowal Energy and other private power producers fell sharply during the period.
The government sector’s consumption of oil products slightly improved in the first half as its total consumption stood at 150,000 metric tonnes compared to 144,000 metric tonnes in the same period of last fiscal.