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Gas force majeure hits Punjab

Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Ltd has declared force majeure on RLNG supply to Punjab plants citing Strait of Hormuz tensions, with cargoes cut until Aug 3. Meanwhile, the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority has notified a 15% increase in RLNG prices for June, reflecting higher spot market costs.

By Tertius News AI Desk 1 outlet · 2 articles Version 1 Coverage Jul 6–9, 2026 Published Aug 15

Lead

Pakistan's energy sector faces a double challenge as Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Ltd (SNGPL) has declared force majeure on its regasified liquefied natural gas (RLNG) supply to power plants in Punjab, citing renewed tensions around the Strait of Hormuz. The declaration, reported by Dawn, comes alongside a significant price hike for RLNG, which the oil and gas regulator has attributed to costly spot market purchases amid supply disruptions.

Coverage Comparison

Two reports from Dawn cover different facets of the same energy crisis. One focuses on the regulatory price notification, detailing the increase in RLNG prices for June and the underlying reasons—mainly, purchases from the international spot market at short notice due to supply disruptions caused by the US-Iran war. The other report highlights SNGPL's force majeure declaration, which absolves the company from contractual liability for its inability to supply RLNG for three weeks, and warns of potential power shortages and loadshedding in Upper Punjab and Northern Areas.

While the price notification provides a granular look at the cost implications, the force majeure story emphasises the immediate operational impact, including the possibility of higher outages or increased fuel costs. Both reports rely on official sources, including the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) and SNGPL's communications.

Key Claims

According to Dawn's report on the price notification, Ogra has notified an approximately 15% increase in the price of RLNG for sales at the distribution stage by the two Sui gas companies for June. The price for June is 15% higher than in May, nearly 56% higher than in March, and 73% higher than in February. The fuel cost for RLNG-based power generation in May reached Rs31 per unit, up from Rs13.72 per unit in April.

The report also notes that Karachi-based Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGCL), which serves consumers in Sindh and Balochistan, has distribution-stage system losses of 12.55%, while Lahore-based SNGPL, supplying Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, has losses near 9%. At the transmission stage, the RLNG sale price for SNGPL increased by 14.85% to $17.94 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) in June from $15.62 per mmBtu in May. At the distribution stage, the price for SNGPL rose by 14.94% to $19.5228 per mmBtu. For SSGCL, the transmission-stage price increased by 16% to $16.368 per mmBtu in June.

Dawn also reports that Pakistan LNG Limited (PLL) imported one cargo each at $19.134 per mmBtu and $18.4 per mmBtu in June and May, respectively, underscoring the high costs of spot purchases.

In its force majeure report, Dawn states that SNGPL declared force majeure due to renewed tensions around the Strait of Hormuz, and that the supply of LNG cargoes will mostly remain cut off until August 3. The company said its ability to perform its obligations under the Gas Supply Agreement (GSA) remains materially and adversely affected. The report warns that power shortage and loadshedding are anticipated in Upper Punjab and Northern Areas, as SNGPL's supply disruption could hamper power from over 5,000MW of RLNG-based plants in Punjab and curtail transmission from Sindh to upcountry load centres.

According to SNGPL's letters to four RLNG-based power plants, which Dawn cites, Pakistan State Oil (PSO) updated the company that the force majeure event notified due to the ongoing war in the Gulf region remains in effect. PSO conveyed that the regional military conflict remains unresolved and threats to security remain elevated. The supplier, Qatar Energy, has indicated it is prevented from delivering cargoes scheduled from July 14 to August 3, in addition to previously affected cargoes.

How this outlet told it

Dawn as of Jul 6, 2026, 2:31 AM UTC

Framing: RLNG price increase — Informative

Facts Included:

15pc increase in RLNG price for sales at the distribution stage
RLNG price 56pc higher than in March and 73pc higher than in February
Fuel cost for RLNG-based power generation in May was Rs31 per unit
SSGCL's distribution-stage system losses stand at 12.55pc
SNGPL's distribution-stage system losses stand at 9pc
RLNG sale price for SNGPL increased by 14.85pc to $17.94 per mmBtu in June
PLL imported one cargo each at $19.134 per mmBtu and $18.4 per mmBtu in June and May respectively

Read the source article →

Dawn as of Jul 9, 2026, 2:31 AM UTC

Framing: Force majeure declaration — Alarmist

Facts Included:

SNGPL declared force majeure due to renewed tensions around the Strait of Hormuz
Supply of LNG cargoes will mostly remain cut off till Aug 3
Power shortage and loadshedding will be happening in Upper Punjab and Northern Areas
SNGPL's ability to perform its obligations under the GSA remains materially and adversely affected

Read the source article →

What was claimed, and who backed it

Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status counts the distinct outlets we found asserting it — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.

Claim	Confidence	Status
ClaimThe Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) has notified an around 15pc increase in the price of Regasified Liquefied Natural Gas (RLNG) for sales at the distribution stage by the two Sui gas companies for the current month.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Dawn as of Jul 6, 2026, 2:31 AM UTC
ClaimThe RLNG price for June is 15pc higher than in May, almost 56pc higher than in March, and 73pc higher than in February.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Dawn as of Jul 6, 2026, 2:31 AM UTC
ClaimThe fuel cost for RLNG-based power generation in May worked out to Rs31 per unit, compared with Rs13.72 per unit in April.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Dawn as of Jul 6, 2026, 2:31 AM UTC
ClaimKarachi-based Sui Southern Gas Company Limited (SSGCL) serves consumers in Sindh and Balochistan, and its distribution-stage system losses stand at 12.55pc.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Dawn as of Jul 6, 2026, 2:31 AM UTC
ClaimLahore-based Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) supplies gas to consumers in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and its distribution-stage system losses were also reported at almost 9pc.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Dawn as of Jul 6, 2026, 2:31 AM UTC
ClaimThe RLNG sale price for SNGPL increased by 14.85pc to $17.94 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) in June from $15.62 per mmBtu in May.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Dawn as of Jul 6, 2026, 2:31 AM UTC
ClaimPakistan LNG Limited (PLL) imported one cargo each at $19.134 per mmBtu and $18.4 per mmBtu in June and May respectively.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Dawn as of Jul 6, 2026, 2:31 AM UTC
ClaimSNGPL has declared force majeure due to renewed tensions around the Strait of Hormuz.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Dawn as of Jul 9, 2026, 2:31 AM UTC
ClaimSupply of LNG cargoes will mostly remain cut off till Aug 3.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Dawn as of Jul 9, 2026, 2:31 AM UTC
ClaimPower shortage and loadshedding will be happening in Upper Punjab and Northern Areas.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Dawn as of Jul 9, 2026, 2:31 AM UTC
ClaimSNGPL's ability to perform its obligations under the GSA remains materially and adversely affected.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Dawn as of Jul 9, 2026, 2:31 AM UTC

Transparency & Audit Trail

1 outlet · 2 articles consulted: Dawn 11 claims extracted Version 1 Written 2026-08-15