ISLAMABAD-The interim government on Friday increased re-gasified liquefied natural gas (RLNG) prices by up to $0.16 per Million Metric British Thermal Units (mmBtu) for the consumers of both the Sui Gas companies, for November 2023.
A notification issued by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) said that the price of RLNG for consumers of Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) has increased by $0.1598 per mmBtu (1.2 percent) from the previous month, while for consumers of Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) it has been increased by $0.162 per mmBtu (1.17 percent) compared to October prices.
According to a spokesperson for OGRA, the increase aligns with the federal government’s policy guidelines. OGRA attributes the rise in RLNG prices to the increase in RLNG Brent prices in the international market.
After the increase, the weighted average sale price for SNGPL consumers is now $13.493 per mmBtu, while SSGC consumers will be charged $14.0337 per mmBtu. In October, the prices were $13.33 per mmBtu for SNGPL consumers and $13.8716 per mmBtu for SSGC consumers.
It is worth to note that during last 11 months of 2023, OGRA had slashed RLNG prices seven times, while increase it four times including May, September, October and November.
The tariff of RLNG started declining in January, with a reduction of up to 2.2 percent. This was followed by further decreases of 4.3 percent in February, 3.16 percent in March, and 0.47 percent in April. The price increased by 1.3 percent in May 2023 but then decreased again in June (2.55 percent), July (1.5 percent), and August (1.3 percent). In September, there was an increase of 3.08 percent in the price of the product, October 3.8 percent, and November 1.2 percent increase in RLNG prices.
The cost for SNGPL consumers decreased by 6.5 percent in November 2023 as compared to November 2022, while for SSGC consumers it has been decreased by 5.2 percent during the time.
The recently revised RLNG prices include charges for LNG terminals, transmission losses, port charges, and margins for state-owned importers, namely Pakistan State Oil (PSO) and Pakistan LNG Limited (PLL). These prices were determined based on the import of seven cargoes by PSO and one cargo by PLL.