Pakistan in talks With Azerbaijan, China, Russia to buy urea fertilizer for Rabi season

ISLAMABAD – Pakistan has approached Azerbaijan, Russia, and China to get 0.2 million tons of urea fertiliser for Rabi season.

The proposal presented by Ministry of Industries and Production gets a green signal from Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) Board and the federal cabinet, and Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) will grant approval for the negotiated price range.

The development comes as South Asian nation is facing a shortage of 200,000 metric tons of urea fertilizer in the wake of the closure of local plants for several weeks, and urea demand increased during December and January, along with demand for the Wheat sowing season.

It was reported that the minimum required stock of urea is 200,000 metric tons, and Ministry of Industries and Production has submitted five summaries in the wake of the shortage.

Considering low gas supplies in winters, Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) mulled import of 200,000 metric tons of urea, subject to G2G agreements and ensuring a price discovery mechanism.

The price discovery mechanism will be managed through tendering, the standard international tendering time is 45 days.

Urea pricing in China and other countries is said to be within the range of $415 to $420 CFR Karachi, which might increase, considering the Ministry imported urea at a higher price last year.