Attock Refinery Limited (ARL) has suspended operations at its primary distillation unit, citing a critical shortage of crude oil and a buildup of finished product stocks. The shutdown, confirmed by industry sources Wednesday, signals a deepening crisis in Pakistan’s downstream petroleum sector.
The facility, which processes roughly 53,000 barrels of crude oil per day, sits at the heart of fuel supplies for northern Pakistan. Its closure threatens to disrupt the distribution of high-speed diesel and petrol, just as demand patterns shift ahead of the winter season.
The immediate trigger for the shutdown is a localized supply chain breakdown. ARL has struggled to offload finished products to oil marketing companies, leaving its storage tanks at maximum capacity. When storage hits the ceiling, refineries have no choice but to throttle production.
“The system is choked,” one industry analyst said. “Refineries are essentially running out of room to keep the lights on.”
This isn’t just an operational hiccup at a single plant. It reflects a broader cash-flow crisis plaguing the petroleum sector. Oil marketing companies are failing to lift fuel from refineries, largely because they lack the liquidity to pay for it. The circular debt in the energy sector has left these firms paralyzed, unable to move product or settle mounting invoices.
The government maintains that alternative supply routes are being activated to prevent regional shortages. However, logistics experts remain skeptical. Shifting supply from southern refineries to the north requires a fleet of tankers and complex rail arrangements that are rarely efficient on short notice.
For the average consumer in Rawalpindi and Islamabad, the risk is real. If the unit remains offline for more than a few days, local fuel stations may start seeing dry pumps.
ARL has yet to provide a firm timeline for restarting the unit. Until the inventory backlog clears and the payment cycle stabilizes, the refinery remains in a state of forced inactivity — a stark reminder of the fragile state of Pakistan’s energy infrastructure.
