By Nidhi Verma
NEW DELHI (Reuters) -India’s top gas importer Petronet LNG will receive 500,000 tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in 2026 in its 1.2 million ton per year supply deal with ExxonMobil from Australia’s Gorgon project, its managing director said on Friday.
Petronet already imports 1.42 million tons per year of LNG from the Gorgon project, in which ExxonMobil has a stake, under a separate long-term contract with the U.S. oil major.
The first cargo under the new 15-year deal, which was agreed in 2017, is expected to arrive between March and April next year, Managing Director A.K. Singh told a press conference.
ExxonMobil will deliver about eight cargoes to Petronet in 2026, Singh said. The volumes will gradually increase over three years to 20 cargoes annually, equivalent to 1.2 million tons per year, he said.
Singh said global LNG prices could hover around $11-$12 per million British thermal units if the winter is severe, but expects prices to soften in 2026 as more supply comes online globally.
Indian companies are investing in their gas infrastructure as the country aims to raise the share of natural gas in its energy mix to 15% by 2030 from the current 6.2%.
Petronet plans to complete the expansion of its Dahej LNG import terminal in western India to 22.5 million tons per year by March 2026, Singh said.
It also operates a 5 million-ton-per-year LNG terminal at Kochi in southern India and is building a new 4-million-ton-per-year plant at Gopalpur in easter Odisha state.
(Reporting by Nidhi VermaEditing by Tomasz Janowski)
