Pakistan's Winter Gas Supply Becomes More Expensive

Pakistan will have to spend over $1 billion to secure the liquefied natural gas (LNG) it needs for the winter months, as spot market prices have surged sharply amid widespread supply disruptions under Qatar's long-term contracts.

According to Ambassador Arjan, the local newspaper "Tribune" wrote in a report on Tuesday: This heavy cost is due to the jump in the prices of cash LNG cargoes in Asia to their highest level in the last three years, as well as the plan of the Pakistani government to import 10 LNG cargoes from the cash market. The price of these shipments is twice the price of LNG import from Qatar.

Following the disruption in the supply of liquefied natural gas from Qatar, Pakistan is forced to purchase these 10 additional shipments from the cash market to ensure winter gas supply, to be delivered between November 2026 and February 2027.

Pakistan, which before the war mainly relied on Qatar's LNG supply under long-term contracts, is now forced to switch to costly purchases from the cash market, which has increased the cost of electricity production in the country.

LNG supplies under Qatar's long-term contracts are cheaper than cash LNG shipments. In the cash trading market, Asian and European buyers compete with each other to buy shipments before winter arrives, and this causes prices to rise.

Pakistan has faced serious problems for the continuation of energy supply after Qatar declared a force majeure emergency for its exports in March following the damage to the Ras Lafan LNG export. Since then, Pakistan has had to turn to spot LNG markets and pay exorbitant amounts (regardless of base price) for occasional shipments.

"Wood Mackenzie" Institute announced earlier this week that Pakistan has been affected by the supply disruption from Qatar more than other South Asian markets.

According to the Oil Price news website, Pakistan has secured 99% of its LNG imports for 2025 from Qatar. According to Wood Mackenzie's report, the disruption of energy transit through the Strait of Hormuz reduced the supply of LNG to Pakistan by a maximum of 0.4 million tons per month in the period from March to November 2026, and forced the country to reduce demand, change fuel consumption, and release domestic gas reserves, and these measures ultimately led to the elimination or non-fulfillment of a demand equivalent to more than 2.5 million tons of gas.