KARACHI: State owned Pakistan LNG Limited (PLL) has invited bids for import of six liquefied nautral gas (LNG) cargoes of 140,000 cubic meters each to be delivered in January 2021.
The country has ramped up spot LNG buying given the increased demand in winters. Last month PLL had issued a tender of six LNG cargoes to be delivered in December 2020.
December and January see the largest spike in demand for gas in Pakistan, but this year the demand-supply shortfall will be greater on the back of higher consumption and diminishing indigenous supply.
An advertisement by PLL said the country was seeking the cargoes, each of 140,000 cubic metres, in six delivery windows and December 10 is the deadline for submission of bids.
Pakistan has long term LNG agreements in place, including one with Qatar, but has also been active on the spot market since August.
Pakistan has a 15-year LNG purchase deal with Qatar to buy 3.75 million tonnes of LNG per year for 15 years to 2030, but it regularly taps the spot market.
It also has a five-year import deal with commodity trader Gunvor and a 15-year agreement with Eni.
According to PLL, the first LNG cargo will be delivered on 8-11 January, second on 12-14 January, third on 15-18 January, fourth on 20-21January, fifth on 26-27 January, while sixth cargo will be delivered on January 29-February 01, 2021 on a Delivered Ex-Ship (DES) basis.