ISLAMABAD: Azerbaijan’s state energy company Socar is ready to supply liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Pakistan as soon as it receives a request from Islamabad, the company told Reuters on Tuesday, as Islamabad seeks spot cargoes to ease a growing energy shortfall.
Socar said a framework agreement signed in 2025 between Socar Trading and Pakistan LNG Limited (PLL) allows the Pakistani buyer to purchase LNG cargoes directly under an accelerated procedure.
“Socar is ready to provide LNG to Pakistan as soon as PLL submits a corresponding request,” the company said in response to Reuters questions.
SOCAR did not say whether such a request had already been madIe, when a first delivery could take place, or whose LNG would be supplied under the agreement.
Pakistan, which relies heavily on gas for its energy needs, remains vulnerable to declining domestic production and swings in global LNG prices amid the supply disruptions related to the US-Israeli war on Iran.
A day earlier, authorities in the Petroleum Division had informed that the import of four LNG cargoes from Qatar had been halted due to Iran’s renewed closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Pakistan State Oil (PSO), which was arranging the import of four LNG cargoes stranded in the strait under two agreements with QatarEnergy, has communicated via email to the Petroleum Division that the imports have been suspended until the situation caused by the closure of Strait of Hormuz stabilises.
Earlier, Pakistan had requested Qatar to provide four cargoes out of the 8-10 that were loaded and stranded due to the ongoing conflict, to be delivered once Iran reopened the Strait of Hormuz.
However, Tehran closed the strait again after determining that the US naval blockade had not ended and was instead continuing what it described as acts of piracy.
