After a gap of more than one year, Pakistan has purchased a liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipment from the spot market, Bloomberg reported Wednesday.
The purchase, aimed at easing an expected energy shortage during the winter months, has been done by state-run Pakistan LNG Limited (PLL). The single cargo from Vitol SA for December delivery has been concluded at a premium of around 13 percent to the spot prices.
LNG traders offer Pakistan shipments for December at a costly premium
🇵🇰 💰 🚢👉 Vitol offered at $15.97/mmbtu (13% premium to spot price)
👉 Trafigura at $19.39 (37% premium)
👀 Pakistan is right now deciding whether to buy the LNG, which could help ease a winter gas shortage pic.twitter.com/4bpQi2wMyJ— Stephen Stapczynski (@SStapczynski) October 4, 2023
Bloomberg journalist Stephen Stapczynski reported earlier in the day that LNG traders have offered Pakistan shipments for December at a costly premium.
Apart from Vitol SA, Trafigura Group Pte offered a shipment at a premium of 37 percent to the spot prices. However, PLL decided against taking up the offer of Trafigura.
Back in July, Trafigura responded to PLL’s tender for LNG imports with two offers for January to February delivery at an approximately 30 percent premium to spot prices. However, PLL decided not to buy the cargo, in part due to the heavy price tag.
The country typically faces severe gas shortages during the cold winter months and is heavily reliant on imported LNG to bridge the demand-supply gap.
