Pakistan Refinery says it has achieved historic production in September

Pakistan Refinery Limited (PRL), a subsidiary of Pakistan State Oil Company Limited (PSO), said it achieved a historic level of production of petroleum products in the month of September.

The development was shared by PRL in its notice to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) on Wednesday.

“Pakistan Refinery Limited has achieved historic production levels in September 2023, marking a significant milestone,” read the notice.

The company said that successful strategic shifts and efficient operations led to the highest-ever sales and production in a month, bolstering profitability.

“PRL achieved an unprecedented average feed rate of 5,340 tons. The production of middle distillate soared over 77,000 tons, with diesel accounting for 73,423 tons, an all-time high in the refinery’s history,” it said.

The OMC shared that diesel sales reached over 82,000 tons, marking the highest-ever sales of the product in a single month.

“To maximise revenue and product availability, PRL took a strategic decision to convert Naphtha into Motor Spirit (MS), resulting in the production of over 26,000 tons of MS 92, another record-breaking achievement,” read the notice.

Back in July, PRL launched the Refinery Expansion and Upgrade Project (REUP) to enhance and modernise its refining capabilities.

The REUP project involves the expansion of PRL’s crude processing capacity from the current 50,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 100,000 bpd, along with the installation of deep conversion capabilities.

This would have enabled the conversion of the entire fuel oil production into valuable products such as petrol and diesel while adhering to the stringent EURO V standard for environmentally friendly fuels.

As per PRL’s latest financial results, the company witnessed a significant decline of over 85% YoY in its profitability, Its earnings stood at Rs1.82 billion in FY23, compared to profit of Rs12.57 billion in the same period last year (SPLY).

The company said the decline came amid depletion of the country’s foreign exchange reserves, depreciation of PKR, a steep increase in the interest rate and highest-ever inflation.