Pakistan's LNG Import Value Spikes in July
The value of Pakistan’s LNG imports in July increased by 148% year on year thanks to higher demand because of the recent start-up of gas-fired power plants. Month on month, the change was negligible.
Pakistan imported LNG worth about $332mn last month, compared to about $136mn in July 2017, according to data published by Pakistan Statistics Bureau mid-August. In June 2018, Pakistan imported LNG worth $330mn. The bureau did not give any information about the volume of LNG imported. Pakistan imports most of its LNG from Qatar with which it has a long-term deal.
According to a newspaper report published in July, Pakistan has saved close to $2bn-$3bn in the recent past by replacing heavy fuel oil and diesel with regasified LNG in power generation.
US turbine-maker GE said in May that a Chinese-owned 1,230 MW combined-cycle (CCGT) gas-fired plant began supplying the national grid. The plant is 70km southwest of the city of Faisalabad.
The south Asian nation started importing LNG in 2015 with the commissioning of FSRU Exquisite, located at Port Qasim near Karachi, which has storage capacity of 150,900 m3 and a peak regasification rate of 745mn ft3/d (7.7bn m3/yr). Last month Dutch firm Vopak said it would take a stake in that import terminal while in June Qatar's state shipowner Nakilat said it would take a stake in the FSRU itself.
Last year, Pakistan commissioned its second FSRU also located at Port Qasim. As of mid-June 2018, reports indicated that the country had imported 10mn mt of LNG since 2015.