Pakistan receives second Qatari LNG cargo this month

Pakistan received its second Qatari LNG cargo of the month on Wednesday, with the vessel Shandong Redwood berthing at the PGPL terminal under the country's long-term government-to-government arrangement with Qatar, ProPakistani reported. The shipment was priced at an equivalent of 13.37 percent of Brent, the same level as the first cargo of September.

The first Qatari cargo arrived on September 10, when the carrier Al-Marrouna docked at the Engro terminal with roughly 81,936 metric tonnes of LNG from Qatar's Ras Laffan terminal. That vessel had crossed the Strait of Hormuz on September 7. For both shipments, Pakistani authorities engaged diplomatically with Iranian officials to facilitate smooth passage through the strait, according to the report.

The additional LNG offers some breathing room to the power sector, which is dealing with gas supply constraints and hours of load-shedding in parts of the country. Pakistan relies heavily on imported LNG for power generation and industry; any prolonged disruption through the Strait of Hormuz could push procurement costs higher and tighten gas availability further.

Domestic gas production, meanwhile, has faced several outages. ProPakistani reported that raw gas supplies from the Qadirpur field to Liberty Power have been suspended since 10:55 a.m. on September 17 over non-payment. Gas input from MEL's GTH plant was reduced by 37 MMcfd on September 20 because of an annual turnaround, leaving current input at 52 MMcfd. The Nashpa plant reported a reduction of 83 MMcfd following an issue at the facility, with current input at 83 MMcfd. Gas input from MOL's CPF was reduced by 158 MMcfd because of an operational problem, leaving current input at 154 MMcfd.

Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited network data for September 21 showed line-pack at 4,792 MMcf, while the power sector consumed around 208 MMcfd. Fertiliser sector consumption was steady at 89 MMcfd. Despite the field-level disruptions, officials said there is currently no forced curtailment of gas from any source on the SNGPL network.

Qatar has continued its diplomatic engagement with Iran and other regional countries while remaining a major global LNG supplier. For Islamabad, the latest cargo provides temporary support, but safe passage for future LNG shipments through the Strait of Hormuz remains critical to keeping Pakistan's energy system supplied.