KARACHI: Pakistan’s southeastern Sindh province has successfully completed a pilot oil palm cultivation and extraction project, putting the country on the list of palm oil producers. An oil extraction facility at the site of the pilot oil palm plantation in the province’s southern Thatta district produced its first oil last week.
Is palm oil a burden for Pakistan?
Thus, palm oil can be a burden for Pakistan if imported without intervention on an international level and can be a breather if the crude palm is imported and utilized effectively to meet the edible oil requirements until Pakistan becomes self-sufficient in oilseed production and solvent extraction.
Should Pakistan replace refined palm oil with crude oil?
Pakistan can save a tremendous amount of import bills if it replaces refined palm oil with crude oil as Pakistan is currently capable of refining 1.5 million tons of crude oil annually. Malaysia has 8 percent export duty while Indonesia has 14 percent export duty on crude oil.
How palm kernel oil is processed?
The dried palm kernels are sold to palm kernel mills to extract palm kernel oil. For crude palm oil processing, it generally required complete processes such as sterilization, threshing, cooking, pressing, washing, purification, and drying.
How much palm oil does Pakistan import a year?
According FY2020-2021(WeBOC), Pakistan imported 3.5 million tons of palm oil including refined oil and crude oil. Approx. 190 thousand tons of crude oil and 3.3 million tons of refined oil were imported. Pakistan currently has the capacity to refine 1.5 million tons of crude palm oil annually.
How many palm oil refineries are there in Pakistan?
Currently, Pakistan has approximately 18 palm oil refineries with the capacity to consume about 1.5 million tons of CPO annually according to the Pakistan Edible Oil Refiners Association (PEORA). Despite the capacity, Pakistan only imported 190 thousand tons of CPO and imported 3.3 million tons of RBD palm oil in FY 2020-2021 (WeBOC).