Bangladesh's LNG imports over January-August rose on the year as its economy continues to grow. The country's strong demand for LNG could continue into 2026, but greater term volume reliance could limit its spot uptake in that year.
Bangladesh's year-to-date spot LNG import volumes have exceeded the total annual spot LNG imports in previous years.
State-owned gas distributor Rupantarita Prakritik Gas (RPGCL), which is the country's main LNG importer, has so far purchased 35 spot LNG cargoes for delivery over January-August, compared with just 21 cargoes in the same period a year earlier.
Bangladesh imported 32 and 20 spot LNG cargoes in 2024 and 2023, respectively, Argus data show.
The country is expected to continue importing an average of 4-5 spot cargoes/month for the rest of the year, which could send its estimated total of spot LNG cargoes for the year to 51-55. This equates to 3.16mn-3.41mn t of LNG.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh's current term LNG volumes stand at 4mn t/yr. The increase in spot LNG imports could send Bangladesh's total LNG imports for 2025 to 7.16mn-7.41mn t, up by more than 19pc from about 5.98mn t in 2024.
Bangladesh has been seeking more LNG supplies in 2025 likely because of inadequate power supply within the country. The country is likely to continue seeking more supplies for the remainder of the year. Natural gas makes up the largest share of the country's power generation mix at 43pc. This is followed by oil at 23pc and coal at 19pc.
Bangladesh has been the only active buyer in the Asia spot market so far in 2025, even as spot prices have been deemed largely unfavourable for most importers in the wider region.
The purchase price of the cargoes bought by RPGCL for delivery over January-August averaged at $13.381/mn Btu, Argus data show. This is significantly higher than the average 2025 front half-month ANEA price of $12.847/mn Btu as of 12 August.
But Bangladesh typically secures cargoes at a premium to northeast Asia delivered prices, because of the firm's narrower specifications for cargoes and credit risks associated with delivering LNG to the country.
Term volumes
Bangladesh's LNG term volumes are expected to rise in 2026 by at least 1mn t/yr, market participants told Argus, adding that the rise in term supplies is likely to lower demand for spot LNG.
Bangladesh's term contracts with QatarEnergy, Oman Trading and Excellerate Energy will start from the first quarter of 2026, according to global trade analytics platforms Kpler. Volumes will ramp up progressively and eventually hit a total of 4.3mn t/yr.
Bangladesh's spot LNG imports are likely to fall by at least 1-2 cargoes/month, assuming total imports remain around 2025's level, because of the country's limited import and regasification capacity.
