Qatar’s state energy company QatarEnergy has halved its scheduled liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply to Bangladesh this year after the Iran war disrupted fuel shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, state-owned Petrobangla said.
Petrobangla acting chairman Abdul Mannan confirmed the development to Reuters on Monday (July 6).
“The root cause of these problems is the war. We are looking for alternative sources to address the shortfall. More LNG can be purchased from the spot market. Government-to-government agreements with other supplier countries are also being considered. We will choose the most commercially advantageous option while ensuring the country’s energy security,” Mannan said.
Qatar is the world’s second-largest LNG producer after the United States and the biggest single supplier of imported LNG to Bangladesh. Last year Bangladesh imported approximately 70 lakh tons of LNG, of which about 40 lakh tons came from Qatar.
Petrobangla currently has two long-term contracts with QatarEnergy — one for 25 lakh tons and another for 18 lakh tons of LNG per year.
Mannan said that despite the reduced supply schedule, Qatari authorities have assured Petrobangla they will continue delivering as much LNG as possible. QatarEnergy did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Energy analytics firm Kepler reported that Bangladesh received 19 LNG cargoes from Qatar under long-term contracts before the war began this year. Since the war started on February 28, no LNG cargoes have arrived from Qatar’s Ras Laffan export terminal. To meet domestic demand, Bangladesh has since imported 35 LNG cargoes from the spot market.
Approximately 20% of the world’s LNG supply normally transits the Strait of Hormuz. Any disruption to this shipping lane has significant consequences for both the global energy market and the energy security of import-dependent countries.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report