Pakistan's energy crisis to worsen as country struggles to obtain LNG amid war: Report

Pakistan's energy crisis will worsen "over the next several weeks" as the country is struggling to obtain liquified natural gas (LNG) at an affordable price, ANI cited Dawn report. The increase in global energy prices has resulted in Pakistan's electricity fuel costs going up by more than 100% as little is available in the global market due to the war between Russia and Ukraine. 

Last week, Musadik Malik, Pakistan's State Minister for Petroleum, said that the country has not been able to find a bidder for LNG slots. Musadik Malik added that Pakistan's failure to find a bidder for LNG slots has resulted in authorities moving to alternative sources of energy for power generation, which he stressed could take a month to produce results. In his remarks on the sidelines of a two-day conference at the Institute of Business Administration, Musadik Malik said that they conducted two rounds of tenders, however, they did not receive any response. 

"The situation is that we have carried out two rounds of tenders of three to four tenders each, but no one responded to them," ANI cited Dawn report for quoting Musadik Malik. 

Musadik Malik said that European nations have been importing gas from "everywhere it's available" after the supply has been suspended from Russia. He stressed that the LNG price is no longer at 40 USD (Rs 3,138.70) which was at USD 4 (Rs 313.87) two and a half years back and added that the war between Russia and Ukraine has led to a "real crisis." As per the news report, the Pakistan government plans to increase power tariffs by 47% from July to compensate for some of the losses faced due to expensive fuel imports. Earlier this month, the state-run LNG Ltd (PLL) had proposed a tender for four cargoes. However, there was no bidder for the proposal presented by LNG Ltd. The development comes as the war between Russia and Ukraine continues for over 120 days. 

"Since supply from Russia is suspended due to the war with Ukraine, European countries are also buying gas from everywhere it's available. As a result, LNG, which was priced at USD 4 two-and-a-half years ago, is no longer available for even USD 40. So, Russia's war with Ukraine created a real crisis," Musadik Malik said as per ANI. 

Sindh Govt directs shopping malls to close early in Karachi

Earlier on June 18, the Sindh government asked all shopping malls, markets, wedding halls and restaurants in Karachi to close down early to save fuel and energy, PTI reported. The decision has been taken by the government to address the issue of energy crisis which has affected the economy of Pakistan. Dr Saeed Ahmed Mangnejo, Home Secretary, said that they are facing "energy crisis" and need to take measures to control the situation, as per the PTI report. Dr Saeed Ahmed Mangnejo said that all markets and shopping malls need to shut down by 9 pm while restaurants and wedding halls need to close by 10:30 pm. 

(Inputs from ANI, PTI)

Image: Facebook/MianShehbazSharif