Islamabad | May 1, 2026 — Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Petroleum, Ali Malik, has issued a sobering assessment of the nation’s energy security, revealing that Pakistan lacks the strategic infrastructure necessary to weather the current global oil shock.

In a candid address, Malik highlighted the stark contrast between Pakistan’s precarious position and the relative stability maintained by India during this period of extreme market volatility.

The Resilience Gap

As global crude prices have surged toward $126 per barrel due to the escalating US-Iran conflict and maritime disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, the Minister pointed to India’s Strategic Petroleum Reserves (SPR) as a gold standard for energy security.

"We are not like India which has 60–70 days of reserves and can release it with just a single signature," Malik stated, acknowledging that Pakistan currently possesses zero days of strategic reserves.

A Growing Economic Burden

The lack of a buffer has forced the Pakistani government to pass the full weight of global price spikes directly to its citizens. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif noted that the nation's weekly oil import bill has skyrocketed from $300 million to nearly $800 million since the regional conflict began.

To stay afloat financially, the government recently hiked petrol prices to PKR 458 per litre and diesel to PKR 520 per litre, a move that has sparked widespread domestic unrest.

Why India Remains Stable

While Pakistan is limited by fiscal constraints and IMF mandates, India has utilized several levers to keep its economy steady:

• Massive Strategic Stocks: India’s ability to release millions of barrels from underground salt caverns allows it to dampen price shocks.

• Fiscal Buffers: India has used the Central Excise Act to adjust duties, absorbing costs that would otherwise hit the consumer.

• Diversified Imports: New Delhi has maintained stability by sourcing crude from Russia and Venezuela, bypassing some of the Middle Eastern supply chain risks.

The Road Ahead

For Pakistan, the crisis underscores a critical need for long-term investment in energy storage. With 90% of its oil currently moving through the volatile Strait of Hormuz, the Minister warned that without building its own reserves, the country will remain at the mercy of global geopolitical events.