In an emergency bid to secure stable Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) supply, the state-run Gas Authority of India (GAIL) has signed an agreement with the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) to expedite talks on short and long-term sales agreements.
Signed on the sidelines of the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference (ADIPEC-2022), one of the world’s largest oil, gas and energy exhibitions, the pact explores collaboration opportunities in LNG supply, decarbonisation and future sales.
The pact was signed in the presence of Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, and came after India reached out to the UAE with an eye on relieving its LNG woes shortly, officials said.
Up to 55 per cent of India’s local gas demand is met through imports. On the other hand, while gas meets only 6.2 per cent of India’s energy needs, the Centre has been planning to raise this figure substantially to reduce the dependence on petroleum.
The agreement to ADNOC includes parallel issues such as the potential optimisation of LNG trading activities, the review of joint equity investments in renewables and the monitoring of greenhouse gases for LNG cargoes to support low-carbon LNG supplies.
ADNOC was the first LNG producer in the Middle East and has over 40 years of experience in the LNG market. It is currently in the midst of a major expansion of its natural gas business, accelerating production to meet both domestic and international demand.
The Centre is advocating for an aggressive gas purchase policy and balancing sources of import, most of which have originated from Qatar in recent years, the official added.
An LNG term contract with Qatar, the biggest currently expires this decade, Qatar and the United States which is the two largest producers globally, currently India with LNG through multiple supply India with LNG through multiple contracts. The third largest producer, Australia, mostly supplies China.
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