KARACHI: Pakistan has purchased another liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargo from the international spot market as supplies from its main supplier, Qatar, remain constrained following disruptions caused by the Iran-Israel conflict.
According to Bloomberg, state-owned Pakistan LNG Limited (PLL) bought an LNG cargo from TotalEnergies for delivery on July 10-11 at a price of $17.37 per million British thermal units (mmBtu). The purchase followed a tender that closed on Friday and marks Pakistan’s second spot LNG procurement in two weeks.
The latest purchase comes as Pakistan continues to replace LNG cargoes that could not be delivered under its long-term contracts with Qatar after exports were disrupted during the regional conflict. Although shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has picked up following the US-Iran ceasefire, LNG exports from Qatar have yet to return to normal levels.
Pakistan has historically relied almost entirely on long-term LNG contracts with Qatar, making it particularly vulnerable when supplies were interrupted.
During the conflict, attacks on energy infrastructure and disruptions to shipping forced Islamabad to seek alternative supplies from countries including the United States, Oman, Mozambique, Nigeria, and the Republic of the Congo, according to Bloomberg data.
The spot cargo purchased this week is priced at roughly twice the cost of Pakistan’s long-term Qatari LNG supplies, highlighting the financial impact of the supply disruption. The higher procurement costs have already begun filtering through the domestic energy sector.
