According to the government of Pakistan survey, natural gas is widely recognized as the cleanest burning fossil fuel. Its indigenous supplies contribute about 29.3 percent (FY2026) to the total primary energy supply mix of Pakistan. As our country has an extensive gas network of over 13,729 km transmission, 124,382 km mains and 30,661 km services gas pipelines to cater to the requirements of greater than 10.9 million consumers across the country. The Government of Pakistan is pursuing its strategies for improving indigenous gas production as well as imported gas to meet the growing demand for energy in Pakistan. Presently, the capacity of two FRSUs to Re-gasified Liquefied Natural Gas (RLNG) is 1200 Million Cubic Feet per day (MMCFD) and accordingly RLNG is being imported to mitigate the gas demand-supply shortfall. Statistics showed that the average natural gas consumption was about 2,929 MMCFD July 2025 to March 2026. During July 2025 to March 2026, the two Gas utility companies (SNGPL & SSGCL) have laid 729 Km mains and 403 Km services lines and connected 95 villages/towns to the gas network. During the period, 149,908 additional gas connections counting 148,225 domestic, 1,578 commercial and 105 industrial were provided in Pakistan. It is expected that gas will be supplied to about 708,245 new consumers (during the FY2027). It is expected that gas will be supplied to approximately 708,245 new consumers (during the FY2027) Gas utility companies have planned to invest Rs 4,491 million on transmission projects, Rs 87,457 million on distribution projects and Rs 10,810 million on other projects bringing the total investment of Rs 102,758 million during the FY2027. On the other hand, our country faces electricity outages because of the scarcity of gas following a marked slowdown in LNG supplies through the Strait of Horumuz, a vital shipping lane disrupted by the US-Iran war. Studies showed that consumers had been paying over $0.2 million per day in capacity charges to LNG terminals but there were no supplies from the state-owned entities. Since the inception, these terminals have been operating on the model of independent power plants (IPPs), whose capacity was under a contract with the government of Pakistan. LNG terminals were available but our government entities were unable to arrange gas imports. Even before the US-Iran war, Pakistan inked an agreement with Qatar for diverting 24 LNG cargoes to other destinations during the ongoing year owing to low gas demand in the country. However, LNG demand emerged after the breakout of US-Iran war but cargo supplies were suspended by Qatar. Statistics also showed that at present, our country has two LNG terminals. The government has entered into a contract for the regasification capacity of 630 mmcfd with peak capacity at 690 mmcfd on a reasonable endeavour basis, as and when required, at terminal-2, which has daily delivery capacity of 630 mmcfd. Industry experts said that the unutilised capacity could be offered to private parties as per requirements of Clause 6.2(a) of the LNG Policy 2011. Third Party Access Rights allow all LNG terminals and associated facilities to be operated on a system of regulated third-party access (RTPA) based on published/negotiated tolling tariffs in a competitive environment without discrimination, excluding, however, the tolling tariff for the public sector, which shall require OGRA’s approval.
Exceptions from such regulation will be given to those LNG terminals and associated facilities that are developed for their own or dedicated use. Access to such terminals will be based on the negotiated third-party access (NTPA).
Price benchmarks in September 2026
- Asian/European Spot Prices: Remained elevated near or approximately $30/MMBtu because of constrained Middle East LNG shipments and low European reserves.
- Henry Hub (U.S.): Rose by roughly 13 percent as compared to August to average approximately $2.25/MMBtu in September, supported by lower production growth and strong export pulls, climbing further to about 3.18 USD/MMBtu by early October.
World Bank Energy Index: The worldwide energy commodity index rose sharply by 25.7 percent in September, with natural gas prices jumping about 15.3 percent over the month.