Pakistan signs LNG procurement framework agreement with Azerbaijan on flexible terms

A framework agreement for LNG procurement has been signed by Pakistan with Azerbaijan on flexible terms.

According to the media reports, the agreement was signed between Pakistan LNG Limited and Azeri Company SOCAR in Lahore today (Monday, July 24^th) and was witnessed by Prime Minister Mina Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif.

Addressing the signing ceremony, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the life of this Pakistan and Azerbaijan agreement for LNG procurement is one year which is extendable to one more year. He said Azerbaijan will offer one Cargo of LNG each month and it will be up to Pakistan to either accept the cargo or not. There will be no financial penalty if Pakistan does not accept the cargo.

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PM Shehbaz Sharif termed the agreement as a major milestone in the fraternal relations between both the brother countries. He especially thanked the President of Azerbaijan for playing a pivotal role in this agreement. He also talked about his recent productive and fruitful discussions with the President of Azerbaijan and said we have given approval to Azeri Airlines to land in Islamabad, Lahore, and Karachi.  This is a big step forward to promote tourism and investment and the exchange of delegations between the two countries.

The Prime Minister further stated that an Azeri delegation of horticulture experts is also arriving in Pakistan today on his invitation. We want to learn from their expertise to make the landscape of Karachi, Peshawar, Quetta, and Lahore as beautiful as that of Baku.

On the occasion, the Prime Minister also touched upon the matter of the recent increase in the power tariff saying it was done so under the agreement reached with the IMF. However, he clarified that this increase will not burden about sixty-three percent of the total domestic consumers. He said thirty-one percent of the consumers have also been given partial subsidies.

Speaking on the occasion, the Ambassador of Azerbaijan said that both countries are deepening their cooperation in diverse fields including energy, defense, IT, and transport. He said the two sides are also negotiating a preferential trade agreement, expressing confidence that they will be successful in this regard as well.