巴基斯坦因LNG报价过高取消应急采购，电力短缺可能加剧

Pakistan faces a worsening electricity crunch after opting not to buy liquefied natural gas to replace supply disrupted by the near-total closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

State-owned Pakistan LNG Ltd. scrapped an emergency tender for a shipment for delivery by Sept. 8 after receiving a sole offer from BP Plc at $27 per million British thermal units, nearly three times pre-war spot levels, according to traders. The government rejected the offer as too expensive and may reissue the bidding process, traders said.

Without additional supply, Islamabad may need to continue rolling blackouts in the evening, when solar generation fades and fossil-fuel plants are needed to compensate for the shortfall. The country has been grappling with an energy crunch since the war in Iran began in late February and disrupted LNG flows from Qatar — Pakistan’s top supplier.

Qatar last week extended force majeure, a legal clause that allows suppliers to suspend contractual obligations due to extraordinary events beyond their control, on shipments to European and Asian buyers into October. The major exporter of the super-chilled fuel has effectively stopped sending cargoes through the strait since early July, when one of its tankers was attacked.

Pakistan has turned to the spot market for replacements, but those purchases are becoming increasingly costly as prices extend gains to near their highest since the war began. The government must now weighenergy security against the cost to consumers.