A similar facility was offered to Pakistan in 2019 which was later pulled back by the Kingdom
Saudi Arabia will resume the $3 billion deferred oil payments facility program to Pakistan for an extended period. Prime Minister Imran Khan made a fresh request for the resumption of the facility. The exact modalities of the facility will be chalked down soon.
Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting also confirmed the move and said that it has been nearly finalized. The move should lower the debt retirement pressure on the government for some time.
Previous facility
This is not the first facility of its kind from Saudi Arabia and the current government had secured a $6 billion cash and deferred fuel payments facility in 2019. $3 billion were deposited to the State Bank of Pakistan and the same amount was also earmarked for oil payments facility.
However, the Kingdom pulled the facility after some diplomatic issues between the two sides. Although there was never a harsh exchange at the official level, it has been quite clear that the Saudi regime is pivoting towards India, perhaps due to the greater business opportunities. Eventually, Pakistan ended in 2021 with Pakistan repaying all the outstanding debt under the facility.