What happened
Pakistan is preparing to at least double domestic natural gas supply to the power sector to around 160–170 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) by the end of April or early May, up from about 85–90 mmcfd at present, Dawn reported. The move is intended to limit electricity tariff increases and loadshedding after imported liquefied natural gas (LNG) became unavailable — following the LNG supply crisis that began in March — as summer consumption approaches. An additional 20–25 mmcfd could be diverted from the compressed natural gas (CNG) sector if the government can absorb the political pressure.
Informed sources said gas supplies to the fertiliser sector would be protected as far as possible, alongside vigilance on stocks because of a wide price gap between locally produced urea at Rs4,500 per bag and imported urea at Rs15,000 per bag, which creates scope for smuggling.
Why it matters
Power Minister Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari told a special cabinet committee on petroleum prices and supplies that unless additional gas was diverted to the power sector to replace LNG, fuel costs in electricity tariffs could rise exponentially or result in massive loadshedding. His ministry suggested diverting supplies from residential consumers, CNG or fertiliser.
“It is a choice between the uproar of 7m gas consumers or 30m power consumers,” an official quoted the power minister as telling the committee. The only alternative fuel for domestic use, particularly cooking, is liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), whose prices have surged to more than double the rates set by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority because of weak supply.
The power division said the fuel cost adjustment (FCA) for February stood at Rs1.42 per unit and could have been around Rs2 without the use of furnace oil and regasified LNG given subdued demand. It warned that the FCA for April could be slightly higher than March but might more than double in May if furnace oil was used extensively, unless excessive loadshedding was carried out. Furnace oil prices have more than doubled between February and early April.
Without regasified LNG, about 5,000 megawatts of efficient plants in Punjab become either redundant or expensive to run on diesel. The fuel cost gap between regasified LNG and high-speed diesel ranges from Rs20–21 to Rs50–54 per unit, while furnace oil-based generation costs around Rs35–45 per unit. Additional supplies became available after completion of a pipeline enabling flows from the Bettani gas field in Lakki Marwat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, to Punjab, along with other enhancements. The government has already resorted to at least two hours of loadshedding in recent days, which is expected to increase, particularly at night when solar generation declines, and early market closures have been ordered for conservation.
What is still uncertain
The plan depends on how much gas can be shifted away from households, CNG operators and fertiliser plants without triggering a political backlash. The matter has been taken up by the National Coordination and Management Council led by General Zafar Iqbal to address electricity shortages and ensure maximum supply to economic sectors at affordable rates. The government is expected to enforce two to three hours of daily loadshedding on average alongside conservation measures. Despite improved water availability, hydropower generation will depend on the Water and Power Development Authority’s management of Tarbela, where delays in tunnels 4 and 5 persist, while the 969MW Neelum-Jhelum plant remains out of order. Furnace oil stocks exceed 500,000 tonnes, sufficient for more than 35 days of full requirement, though the cost differential remains large.
Sources & reporting notes
This article is a synthesis of published material, not original reporting. Sources were reviewed on 13 April 2026.
- Dawn (Khaleeq Kiani) — Gas supply to power sector may double amid LNG shortfallPublished 13 April 2026 · The supply target, minister's warning, tariff arithmetic, and system constraints.
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