ISLAMABAD: Minister of state for Petroleum Musadik Malik and the petroleum secretary have flown to Russia to hold discussions on oil and gas, a person familiar with the matter said on Monday on condition of anonymity.

Malik did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The sources provided no further details, such as the exact agenda, who the Pakistani officials would meet in Russia or when the talks will take place.

Ishaq Dar says Pakistani delegation to leave for Russia for potential oil deal

Earlier, Federal Minister for Finance Ishaq Dar had said that the delegation will look to negotiate a potential oil deal with Moscow.

“We should pray the visit is successful and the government manages to secure a deal on favourable terms and conditions," he said during an interview on 24 News on Friday night.

Purchase of Russian crude at cheaper rates has become a hot topic in recent months as prices of energy commodities have increased significantly. This has been painful, especially for developing economies like Pakistan, which rely heavily on petroleum imports to meet their energy needs.

Delegation to visit Russia for talks on oil, says Dar

As per data provided by the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Pakistan imported petroleum products worth $7.547 billion during the first four months of the ongoing fiscal year.

Earlier, addressing a gathering in Dubai on November 13, Dar had said Islamabad aimed to sign an import deal with Moscow on terms similar to New Delhi's. He said that the US had been told that Pakistan could buy oil from Russian because India was doing the same.

Last month, an official of Petroleum Division told Business Recorder on condition of anonymity that crude oil and refined products from Russia at a discounted rate could save no more than an estimated $1 billion a year due to limited local oil refineries' capacity and their long-term contracts with Middle East oil companies.