By SKM
May 24, 2025
ISLAMABAD: In a big development, the government has diverted to the international spot market 6 more LNG cargoes which were due in July, August, September, October, November and December each from ENI—an Italian company under which PLL is bound to import one LNG cargo per month under the 15-year long-term agreement, a senior official at Ministry of Energy told this Exclusivewaves.com.pk.
“Yes, the government has managed to divert 6 more LNG cargoes to the international market and this has been told by the petroleum division. The total diverted cargoes till December 2025 from ENI reached 11 in number,” the spokesman of Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Company (SNGPL) confirmed this to this scribe.
However, after the diversion of one LNG cargo to the global market every month, there has been no respite yet in the line pack gas pressure since February 2025 despite some dips. The line pack is still on the higher side of over 5 billion cubic feet (BCF) putting the national gas transmission network in jeopardy. The line pack pressure, as of Saturday (May 24, 2025), according to the latest gas pressure data, is at 5.167 bcf. The 5bcf is the danger mark as when the line pack pressure crosses this figure, the main national gas pipeline can burst any time.
Pakistan LNG Limited (PLL), earlier, diverted 5 LNG cargoes to the international market which were due to arrive in February, March April, May and June each in the current calendar year of 2025. PLL is bound to import one LNG cargo per month under the 15-year long-term pact. Under the agreement, ENI provides PLL an LNG cargo a month at 12.14 percent of the Brent.
“This is being done because of the demand that SNGPL placed in its letter written on January 21, 2025, to the federal government seeking to divert 11-term LNG cargoes to be imported in 11 months of 2025 from ENI — to the international market as the Power Division has refused to increase the use of RLNG for power generation even during June, July and August—the peak summer season.”
Sui Northern wrote a letter on January 21, 2025 to the Managing Director of Pakistan LNG Limited (PLL) and mentioned that the matter of surplus RLNG was taken up with the Power Division and was requested to review demand of RLNG for the upwards revision during June, July and August 2025. The letter says, NPCC (National Power Control Cell) responded on January 21, 2025 saying that the demand of the power sector for June, July and August shall remain unchanged in view of the declining electricity demand. So Sui Northern requested PLL MD to take up the matter with ENI for the diversion of LNG cargoes for the remaining 11 months of 2025.
The gas consumption has gone down by 150mmcf per month. The government has already deferred the import of 5 LNG cargoes from Qatar to 2026 which were to arrive in 2025.
Pakistan is currently importing 9 LNG cargoes from Qatar per month (5 cargoes under 13.37% of the Brent under the 15-year agreement and 4 under the 10-year contract at 10.2 percent of the Brent). Ends
