Azerbaijan to Export ‘Cheap’ LNG to Pakistan From July Onwards

Azerbaijan agreed on Thursday to commence exports of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) cargoes at concessional rates to Pakistan next month onwards, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement. During his 2-day visit to the transcontinental country, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met with Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev and agreed that Baku will ship LNG cargoes to Pakistan from July onwards, with one cargo to arrive in Pakistan per month. Both sides also agreed on an extensive structure for tariff exemption for Pakistani rice exports to Azerbaijan. The premier had informed Aliyev that Pakistan State Oil and the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) will work together on energy resources, according to the PMO statement. Both companies are expected to collaborate on energy resources on a government-to-government basis. Meanwhile, the two sides have decided to expand bilateral cooperation in energy, trade, and aviation to reflect the two countries’ decades-long strong connection. Pakistan and Azerbaijan also inked a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen bilateral cooperation, specifically to increase the volume of energy trade. The document was signed by Commerce Minister Syed Naveed Qamar and Azerbaijan’s Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov in a ceremony attended by PM Shehbaz.