Pakistan finalises Qatari LNG supply agreement

Pakistan has finalised a long-awaited LNG supply agreement with Qatar that will allow the country to import its first cargo on 26 March, Pakistani newspapers reported, citing Petroleum and Natural Resources Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi speaking at a press conference on Friday.

The deal will provide the country with 5.7 million cubic metres per day (MMcm/d) in the first year, which will then double to 11.3 MMcm/d from the second year, the Associated Press of Pakistan said.

The foreign gas supplies – Pakistan’s first – will allow power plants to replace diesel with gas, cutting generation costs by 40% and shaving around $1 billion per year from the government’s annual fuel import bill of nearly $15 billion, Abbasi said.

The government was under pressure to finalise the agreement with Qatar by 31 March, after which it would owe terminal operator Engro Corp. a fee of $272,000 per day.

Engro finished installing the 3.5 mtpa Exquisite FSRU, leased from Excelerate Energy, this month.