Pakistan faces winter LNG bill above $1 billion as Qatari supply falters

Pakistan faces a bill exceeding $1 billion to secure winter LNG supplies as interruptions to Qatari exports force it towards a sharply more expensive spot market, OilPrice.com reported. The government plans to buy 10 additional cargoes for delivery between November 2026 and February 2027, with Asian spot prices having reached their highest level in three years.

Citing local newspaper Tribune’s Tuesday report, OilPrice.com said the planned spot purchases would cost twice as much as LNG imported from Qatar. Pakistan depended predominantly on Qatari long-term contracts before the war, but the disruption has increased its reliance on higher-priced replacement shipments. Those purchases have also raised the cost of generating electricity, adding to the country’s difficulties in maintaining power supplies.

The supply squeeze followed Qatar’s declaration of force majeure on exports in March, after Iranian strikes damaged the Ras Laffan LNG export hub. Pakistan has since had to pay substantial premiums to obtain occasional spot cargoes. Its winter buying requirements coincide with competition between Asian and European importers for available LNG, which OilPrice.com said was pushing prices above the cost of Qatari contractual supplies.

Qatari deliveries to Pakistan have not stopped entirely. According to OilPrice.com, some cargoes reached the country in recent months after Iran gave Pakistan direct assurances that the vessels could pass safely through the Strait of Hormuz. Those arrivals, however, have not restored the full flow of contracted supply, leaving Pakistan needing additional cargoes for the winter period.

Wood Mackenzie identified Pakistan as the South Asian market most affected by the loss of Qatari LNG, the outlet reported. Qatar supplied 99% of Pakistan’s LNG imports in 2025. The consultancy put the reduction in Pakistan-bound LNG associated with the Hormuz closure at up to 0.4 million tonnes a month from March to November 2026. It said demand curtailment, fuel switching and the release of withheld domestic gas had resulted in more than 2.5 million tonnes of gas demand destruction.