Government should not show any haste in signing gas deal with Qatar:IWCCI

Lahore: Samina Fazil, founder President, Islamabad Women’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IWCCI) on Sunday said the price of LNG is expected to come down to four dollars per mmbtu therefore government should not show any haste in signing gas deal with Qatar.

The demand of Qatar for three different agreements between SNGPL, SSGC, PSO and IPPs has been met but the sliding prices of LNG must be used in the national interest to buy commodity at the cheapest rates.

Samina Fazil said that according to a latest report by FGE, an international energy consultancy company, the prices of LNG has come down by 60 percent as compared to last year but it will nosedive soon.Pakistan is buying LNG at the rate of eight dollars per mmbtu while different charges by port and terminal operators, PSO and gas companies add five dollars to the cost which is not justified, she added.

She said that LNG price will dip to four dollars and will not go up over eight dollars in next five years.The market is oversupplied while demand in Japan and Korea which are using half of the Asian LNG production is going down. Similarly demand in China has also been reduced. In this situation, India was quick to initiate negotiations with Qatar to reduce the price of LNG therefore Pakistani policymakers should also act in the best interest of the country.