Pakistan has stepped into the global marine fuel business, switching on a fully regulated bunkering service at Karachi Port with global trader Vitol and local refiner Cnergyico. The move turns the country’s busiest harbour into a refuelling point on the main East–West shipping corridor and closes a persistent gap in its port services.
Launch of Pakistan’s first bunker hub
Under the new setup, Vitol’s Singapore-flag bunker barge Marine Ista has loaded very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) from Karachi Port Trust’s oil pier and delivered what the company describes as Pakistan’s largest marine-fuel stem to an MSC-operated container ship at DP World’s Port Qasim. Cnergyico, Pakistan’s biggest refinery by capacity, is supplying IMO 2020-compliant VLSFO from imported crude, giving the country its first domestic stream of cleaner ship fuel and allowing Vitol to offer bunkers at Karachi Port, Port Qasim, and Karachi Anchorage instead of sending ships to Fujairah or Singapore.
Why now: ports, politics and missed revenue
Pakistan is entering the bunker market late but at a decisive moment. A World Bank assessment projects that combined traffic at Karachi and Port Qasim could rise by about 129 percent over twenty years, and warns that Pakistan must add higher-value services, not just quay length, if it wants to stay competitive. The World Bank has since ranked Port Qasim among the world’s most improved container ports, and the government says it aims to expand the number of operational seaports from three to six by 2047, signalling a shift from bare-bones cargo handling to a broader maritime services model
Geopolitics has raised the stakes. In May, India banned Pakistan-flagged ships from its ports and blocked cargo that originates in or is exported from Pakistan, forcing trade onto longer and more expensive routes and driving up freight costs for Pakistani importers and exporters. With direct access to Indian ports closed, Islamabad is under pressure to squeeze more foreign exchange out of ships that still call at Karachi and Port Qasim through fuel, repairs, and logistics rather than just cargo dues.
A tight regional fuel market
Pakistan is joining a bunker industry that is already crowded and capital-intensive. The global bunker fuel market was worth around 126 billion dollars in 2024 and is projected to reach roughly 192 billion dollars by 2034, according to Allied Market Research. Asia–Pacific is expected to take the largest share, with regional bunker sales forecast to reach about 139 billion dollars by 2034 as ports invest in tankage, barges, and cleaner fuels. One industry survey estimates that Asia–Pacific already holds about 45.6 percent of bunker oil demand and that VLSFO now brings in more than half of fuel-type revenue, reflecting the post-IMO 2020 shift away from high-sulphur fuel oil.
Singapore illustrates the scale of the competition. The city-state’s bunker hub sold a record 54.92 million tonnes of marine fuel in 2024 as ships diverted around the Red Sea and alternative-fuel deliveries increased. Pakistan’s initial bunker volumes will be modest beside that, but its pitch is narrower and more defensive: offer compliant VLSFO with minimal deviation to vessels that already call for cargo, crew change or lay-up, and in the process keep a larger share of shipping spend in the domestic economy.
Risks, decarbonisation and Pakistan’s next move
The timing also exposes Pakistan to a shifting regulatory landscape. The International Energy Agency expects global marine fuel demand to flatten at about 5 million barrels per day this decade as tighter climate policies and a weaker world economy erode growth in bunker use. The same pressure that has made VLSFO standard is pushing shipping towards LNG, methanol, biofuels, and, later on, synthetic fuels such as green ammonia and e-methanol, forcing every bunker hub to decide how far it wants to invest in low-carbon options.
For now, Karachi’s bunkering launch gives Pakistan a new outlet for refinery output, a tool to offset some of the costs of Indian port restrictions and a first test of whether its ports can compete on services rather than just location. The harder question will be whether regulators and investors move quickly enough to plug Pakistan into the next wave of low-carbon bunkering, instead of letting this breakthrough stop at conventional fuel.
As Editor in Chief of The Maritime, I lead content development, interviews, and digital storytelling across our multimedia maritime platform. With over 10 years of experience in the maritime industry, I create and publish in-depth stories and video features that highlight key players, emerging trends, and operational realities across global shipping. Before launching The Maritime, I worked as a Vessel Operator at Imza Marine A.S., gaining hands-on commercial shipping and voyage operations experience. I also served as Marketing Communications Specialist at Gimas Ship Supply & Services, where I managed corporate communication, digital strategy, and industry outreach for shipowners and maritime clients. I hold a Master’s degree in Maritime Transportation Management from Istanbul Technical University and a Master’s degree in Publishing from Marmara University. My work is driven by the belief that the maritime world deserves strong, informed, and accessible media representation. I am committed to sharing the stories of maritime professionals and contributing to the sector’s visibility, knowledge exchange, and future development.
