KARACHI: Pakistan State Oil, the leading oil marketing company of the country, convened its Board of Management (BoM) meeting on Wednesday, to review the performance of the company for the quarter ended September 30, 2019 of FY2019-20.

Despite stiff competition and macroeconomic challenges, PSO continued to lead the downstream oil market. The company has reported an increase in its overall market share and closed the quarter at 46.6 percent in Total Liquid Fuels compared to 40.1 percent on same period last year. The market share improved primarily due to an increase in the White Oil segment that closed at 45.0 percent compared to 39.6 percent on same period last year.

On volume basis the white oil segment registered an impressive growth of 5.8 percent, whereas the Black Oil segment also saw volumetric growth of approximately 1.0 percent on same period last year.

PSO reported profit after tax of Rs 3.53 billion. On a consolidated basis, the group achieved a net turnover of Rs 340.6 billion which translated into a net profit of Rs 3.48 billion.

The increase in market share was achieved through a focused approach of PSO Management to incentivize its customers and dedicated team efforts. PSO also managed to bring further efficiencies in its supply chain by sourcing 42 percent of refinery production during the period (3MFY19: 33.6 percent) while 54 percent of industry imports were handled by PSO.

PSO is making all out efforts to improve its market share and leadership position with sustained profitability. The Company is also working with Saudi Aramco for setting-up a Greenfield deep conversion refinery in the country. Furthermore, realizing the importance of digital transformation, PSO has launched DigiCash, a Business to Consumer offering that received an overwhelming response from consumers and PSO has been able to register 50,000+ customers in a very short period.

During the quarter, PSO’s receivables from power sector decreased by Rs 8.9 billion whereas these from SNGPL increased by Rs 2.4 billion. PSO is continuously engaged with the concerned authorities for recovery as these receivables in a higher borrowing cost scenario will have a negative impact on the bottom line.

The PSO management expressed gratitude towards employees, stakeholders, business partners, members of the Board of Management, the Government of Pakistan, especially the Petroleum Division, Ministry of Energy, for their constant support and guidance to help PSO maintain its position as the country’s largest and most trusted fuel company.—PR