Pakistan Scrambles for Oil Alternatives as Hormuz, Red Sea Risks Mount

Pakistan’s refiners are urgently seeking crude oil alternatives outside the Middle East as escalating tensions around the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea threaten supply routes. According to the report, Pakistan Refinery Limited, Parco and National Refinery are looking at cargoes from the U.S., Nigeria, Singapore and Central Asia, while continuing some imports through Fujairah in the UAE, which lies outside Hormuz. Saudi crude shipments via Yanbu are now seen as uncertain because of Houthi threats to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The situation has also disrupted Pakistan’s LNG procurement, forcing the country to buy expensive spot LNG after cargoes from Qatar were stranded. The article underscores how geopolitical risk in key shipping lanes is already reshaping trade flows and likely raising Pakistan’s energy import costs, with broader implications for regional oil and gas prices.