Qatar Delegation to Visit Bangladesh on 9 September to Discuss LNG Supply Resumption

🛢 Dhaka, Bangladesh — A delegation of QatarEnergy, Bangladesh’s largest contracted liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplier, is coming soon to find a possible way of resuming the LNG supply as its cargo halt created fuel furors in the country.

🌏 QatarEnergy stopped supplying LNG to Bangladesh immediately after the outbreak of the US-Israel war on Iran in the Middle East and restrictions on the passage of vessels through the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

📋 The Middle-Eastern company announced ‘force majeure’ on 4 March to cease LNG supply to Bangladesh, and since then, it has extended the taboo every month. Under its latest announcement, QatarEnergy was not to send gas cargoes until September.

📞 September 9 Discussions with Petrobangla

🤝 The LNG-marketing team of QatarEnergy is expected to hold discussions with top officials of state-run Petrobangla and its subsidiary Rupantarita Prakritik Gas Company Ltd (RPGCL) on 9 September 2026.

💬 “The visit of this team to Bangladesh is a follow-up to the visit of a high-powered Bangladeshi delegation to Qatar a couple of weeks ago,” a senior official of the Energy and Mineral Resources Division (EMRD) under the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources (MPEMR) told The Financial Express on Sunday.

🤝 Qatar had assured Bangladesh of all possible support in ensuring energy security, particularly amid the current challenging circumstances, during a meeting between Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman and Qatar Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani in Doha.

📊 Describing Bangladesh as a brotherly country, the Qatari prime minister had assured the Bangladeshi delegation, also comprising State Minister for MPEMR Aninda Islam Amit, of extending all possible support to Bangladesh in ensuring energy security.

💬 Petrobangla Chairman: Positive Intentions

💬 “QatarEnergy has been showing positive intentions to help Bangladesh in coming out of the energy crisis after the visit of the Bangladeshi delegation,” says Petrobangla Chairman Md Abdul Mannan.

📊 He told The Financial Express that the Qatari company already had expressed intention to supply at least one LNG cargo soon and ensure smooth LNG supply from next year.

⚠ 70% of LNG Deliveries Affected

🛢 Sources have said supply halt of LNG by Qatar has been affecting Bangladesh badly as at least 70 per cent of Bangladesh-bound LNG delivery is currently being affected as a consequence.

📊 According to S&P Global Energy CERA data, Bangladesh received about 60 per cent of its LNG-import requirements from Qatar in 2025.

🛢 Apart from QatarEnergy, several long-term and short-term suppliers, including OQ Trading International of Oman and US’s Excelerate, also stopped supplying LNG to Bangladesh as they were to source it from Qatar, market insiders said.

💰 Bangladesh is currently struggling to meet its gas demand amid elevated LNG prices and as contracted long-term LNG suppliers continue to restrict scheduled cargo deliveries. Due to disruptions to long-and short-term LNG supplies, Bangladesh is being compelled to rely more on the volatile spot market to source LNG to mitigate potential shortages after supplies from the Middle East were restricted due to navigation disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz.

💰 Spot Market Pain: $28 per MMBtu

📊 State-run Petrobangla is being compelled to buy LNG at over US$ 28 per million British thermal unit (MMBtu) to supply natural gas to industries, power plants, households and other gas-guzzling consumers.

💲 If Qatar would supply LNG, the price would have been less than half of spot market rates, even amid the current high price of energy on the international market with the Brent crude price hovering around US$96 per barrel.

📊 The country’s overall natural gas supply was about 2,334 million cubic feet per day (mmcfd) with 702 mmcfd of regasified LNG, according to official Petrobangla data as of 5 September 2026.

🛢 Bangladesh’s natural gas demand is around 4,000 mmcfd, according to Petrobangla — meaning the country is short of nearly 1,666 mmcfd, or around 42% of demand. State-run Petrobangla has been rationing gas to industries, power plants and other consumers to cope with the supply shortage.

🌏 Strategic Context: Bangladesh Energy Security Crisis

⚠ The Qatar delegation visit comes at a critical moment for Bangladesh’s energy security. The prolonged LNG supply disruption from Qatar — the country’s largest contracted supplier — has exposed the fragility of Bangladesh’s energy import strategy and the country’s vulnerability to geopolitical shocks in the Middle East.

📊 The impact of the disruption has cascaded across the economy:

• 🏭 Industrial gas rationing — ceramics, textiles, steel and fertiliser factories running below capacity
• 🔌 Power generation stress — gas-based power plants unable to operate at full capacity
• 💰 Foreign exchange drain — $28/MMBtu spot LNG imports are significantly more expensive than contracted Qatar volumes
• 🌾 Agricultural impact — fertiliser factories face gas shortages, threatening upcoming Aman season
• 🚢 Shipping disruption — Strait of Hormuz navigation risk affects broader trade flows

🤝 For Bangladesh’s diplomatic strategy, the Qatari assurance of support signals that bilateral relationships built through years of labour exports and GCC engagement can be leveraged during moments of crisis. The Bangladeshi delegation’s visit to Doha, followed by QatarEnergy’s reciprocal visit, demonstrates that energy diplomacy is now a central pillar of Bangladesh’s foreign policy.

📈 For the broader economy, a successful resolution of the Qatar LNG supply issue could provide significant relief — both in terms of gas availability for industrial consumers and reduced foreign exchange pressure from elevated spot market purchases. With Qatar supplying 60% of Bangladesh’s LNG imports in 2025, restoring even partial deliveries would meaningfully improve the country’s energy outlook heading into the critical winter heating season and the upcoming Aman agricultural cycle.

✅ The 9 September meeting will be closely watched by industry, power and policy circles as a barometer of Bangladesh’s ability to navigate the complex intersection of geopolitics, energy security and economic management in an increasingly volatile global energy landscape.