Power generation costs in Pakistan surged by 38% in July from a year earlier as the country paid the highest spot LNG prices in four years amid the supply disruption from the Middle East.
The costs to generate electricity last month soared due to the higher power output in July and the higher price of spot LNG which Pakistan was forced to procure in the absence of regular shipments from its long-standing term supplier Qatar.
The high cost of power generation “is driven by a higher RLNG and furnace oil mix, including reliance on spot RLNG cargoes, while elevated oil prices further increased generation costs,” local brokerage and research firm Arif Habib Limited was quoted as saying in an analysis on Tuesday.
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Total electricity generation also rose in July to further push up costs. Power output increased by 7% in July from a year, to hit the “second-highest for any July month, amid the highest-ever hydel [hydroelectric], local coal and imported coal generation,” Arif Habib Limited (AHL) said in its note.
This summer, Pakistan has been paying top dollar for LNG supply as the renewed closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the stranding of cargoes from its term supplier Qatar have forced the South Asian country to seek liquefied natural gas on the spot market.
Pakistan has issued several tenders for July and August delivery and is apparently willing to pay up to secure supply.
In the middle of July, state-controlled importer Pakistan LNG Limited accepted an offer from TotalEnergies Gas & Power Limited for a spot cargo for delivery on July 27-28, at a price of as much as $21.88 per million British thermal units (MMBtu)—the highest Pakistan has paid for an LNG cargo since the Iran war began in February and upended global LNG flows.
The last time Pakistan has paid such sums for an LNG cargo was in 2022, when spot prices in Asia spiked to record highs after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the slashed pipeline gas supply from Russia to Europe.
By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com
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