Pakistan to Renegotiate LNG Deal With Qatar

Pakistan will renegotiate its 10-year liquefied natural gas (LNG) agreement with Qatar next year for more favorable terms. The current deal has a 13.37 percent slope and is considered far too expensive compared to global benchmarks. This was revealed by Federal Minister for Petroleum Musadik Malik during a recent session of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Energy. The minister also briefly mentioned that Pakistan’s LNG agreement with Azerbaijan operates on a flexible take-and-pay model, offering one cargo per month with no binding commitments. The minister said there was a need for refinery upgrades to meet Euro-V standards and announced that a biofuel policy would be presented to the cabinet within a month. Meanwhile, the Petroleum Secretary briefed the committee that 80 percent of Sindh’s industry relies on local gas, while Punjab uses only 20 percent. However, Sindh’s gas is being supplied to Balochistan where losses exceed 50 percent. Committee Chairman Syed Mustafa Mehmood questioned why gas is being redirected to areas with poor recoveries. Lawmakers called for a separate gas management company to handle Balochistan’s theft and distribution issues.