Islamabad [Pakistan] : Amid the severe energy crisis in the country, the Pakistan LNG Limited (PLL) has decided to procure a Liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargo at the highest ever price of 30.6 dollars per million British thermal units (mmbtu), local media reported. Geo TV citing sources reported that the state-owned company, PLL, had issued an emergency tender on November 2, seeking bids for spot cargoes after two LNG trading companies, ENI and GUNVOR, backed out of providing two LNG term cargoes due to be delivered on November 19-20 and November 26-27. The PLL received five bids with higher prices ranging from 29.8966 US dollars to 31.0566 US dollars per mmbtu from international LNG trading companies for two spot LNG cargoes to be delivered in the last 11 days of the current month, the sources said further. Pakistan is on the verge of a massive shortage of gas and rationing due to depleting local gas reserves and the failure of the Imran Khan government to procure a sufficient quantity of LNG. On November 1, energy minister Hammad Azhar had informed that the government has arranged 11 LNG cargoes for the month of November, The News International reported. LNG trading companies have backed out of an agreement made with PLL to provide two cargoes for November for mammoth monetary gains of up to 200 per cent profit in the international spot market, according to the publication. Pakistan’s cost of energy production has increased following an increase in fuel prices. Almost two-thirds of the country’s electricity generation is based on fossil fuels, as per The Tribune. The rise in crude oil prices have hit the highest in the last three years – USD 86 per barrel, the newspaper reported. The energy crisis is worsening due to the rising cost of the LNG. It seems, this winter Pakistan is set to face its third successive winter energy crisis.
