ISLAMABAD (Web Desk) - A tanker carrying Qatari liquefied natural gas (LNG) is headed to Pakistan after crossing the Strait of Hormuz and is scheduled to dock at Port Qasim on Thursday today, a port official said on Wednesday, bringing much-needed energy relief to the South Asian country.
The Bahamas-flagged carrier Al Marrouna is reportedly transporting approximately 81,936 metric tons of LNG from Qatar's Ras Laffan terminal. It transited the strategic maritime chokepoint on September 7 under a government-to-government arrangement between Islamabad and Doha.
According to data from maritime analytics provider MarineTraffic, the 288-meter-long vessel was sailing at a speed of 13.8 knots on Wednesday, with an estimated time of arrival at Port Qasim of 06:00 on September 10.
The delivery comes at a crucial moment for Pakistan, where the national grid has been forced to enforce power load management from six to 12 hours daily due to acute fuel shortages amid the US-Iran conflict in the Middle East.
"The LNG tanker, Al Marrouna, will arrive tomorrow morning," Asad Warsi, a spokesperson for the Port Qasim Authority, told Arab News.
"The vessel will berth at Port Qasim (Terminal 2) to discharge a spot cargo shipment from QatarEnergy."
Pakistan’s fragile energy supply chain depends on fuel imports from the Middle East. It generates about 17 percent of its electricity from gas, including around 6 percent from imported LNG.
The South Asian country typically requires four to five LNG cargoes each month between April and August to keep its roughly 5,000-megawatt LNG-fired power plants operating.
Pakistan received its last LNG cargo from Qatar in Aug., the eighth ship to have arrived in the country since April.