Bangladesh has been forced to increase its purchases of costly liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the volatile spot market after three contracted suppliers invoked 'force majeure' under five sales and purchase agreements (SPAs), industry insiders said.
According to market sources, QatarEnergy, OQ Trading International of Oman and Excelerate Energy of the United States declared 'force majeure' immediately after the outbreak of the Iran-Israel conflict in June.
A force majeure clause is a contractual provision that allows a party to suspend or delay its obligations when extraordinary events beyond its control make performance difficult or impossible. Such events may include wars, natural disasters, pandemics or major disruptions, depending on the terms of the agreement.
The three suppliers have since continued extending their force majeure notices each month ahead of scheduled cargo nomination dates, effectively suspending LNG deliveries to Bangladesh under the affected contracts, the sources alleged.
As a result, state-owned Petrobangla has been compelled to procure LNG from the highly volatile spot market to meet domestic demand amid disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and heightened tensions in the Middle East.
A senior Petrobangla official said QatarEnergy has suspended supplies under one of its two long-term SPAs, while OQ Trading has halted deliveries under all three of its agreements -- two long-term and one short-term.
Excelerate Energy has also suspended supplies under its first long-term SPA with Bangladesh.
Under their latest force majeure notices, the suppliers have indicated that no LNG will be delivered under the affected contracts until July 16.
With tensions in the Middle East easing and vessel movements through the Strait of Hormuz returning to normal, the Energy and Mineral Resources Division (EMRD) has urged the suppliers to withdraw their force majeure declarations.
"We have urged them to withdraw the application of force majeure and resume LNG supplies under their regular sales and purchase agreements," EMRD Secretary Mohammad Saiful Islam told The Financial Express on Saturday.
Bangladesh has so far purchased 33 LNG cargoes from the spot market this year, of which 31 were procured after the outbreak of the Middle East conflict.
Spot purchases rose to seven cargoes in July as Petrobangla sought to offset supply disruptions linked to the regional crisis and uncertainty over the Strait of Hormuz.
The country also imported seven spot cargoes in each of the previous three months -- April, May and June -- the highest monthly volume on record, to ensure uninterrupted gas supplies during the peak summer demand season.
According to officials of Rupantarita Prakritik Gas Company Limited (RPGCL), Bangladesh imported a total of 49 spot LNG cargoes in 2025.
Since commencing LNG imports in 2018, Bangladesh has imported about 37.014 million metric tonnes of LNG through 597 cargoes as of April 2026, according to RPGCL data.
Official Petrobangla data show that the country's total natural gas supply stood at around 2.694 billion cubic feet per day (Bcfd) as of 21 June, including around 1.04 Bcfd of re-gasified LNG.
azizjst@yahoo.com