Pakistan defers LNG contract with Qatar for a year, petroleum minister says

Pakistan has delayed the liquefied natural gas (LNG) contract with Qatar by a year, Petroleum Minister Mossadegh Malik said on Wednesday, as the country will now receive LNG cargo from Qatar in 2026 instead of 2025. Pakistan’s annual electricity consumption, a third of which comes from natural gas, has declined 8-10 percent year-on-year over the past three quarters. The country’s electricity minister told Reuters in November, mainly due to high tariffs deterring domestic consumption. The South Asian country has deferred five LNG cargoes from Qatar and is in talks with other markets to defer five cargoes, he told reporters, without being named. Countries: The government in November announced a cut in electricity rates during the winter to boost consumption. and reduced the use of natural gas for heating. Plenty of electricity in PakistanEven had to shut down completely as demand dropped by 60% from peak heat levels. In an interview with Reuters in June, Malik said Pakistan is unlikely to buy LNG cargo from the spot market until at least the start of winter in November due to oversupply and high prices. The country also denied local media reports that it was closing a deal for Pakistan to import one cargo of crude oil from Russia every month from January.. Malik said his government has resumed talks with Russia and the government is trying to resolve obstacles such as “insurance, reinsurance, deal structure, shipping lines and ship cargo size”. A caretaker government set up to oversee national elections in February this year decided not to enter into a government-to-government agreement with Russia, allowing the private sector to step in. Malik said.